Oil Production On The Wildlife Refuge example essay topic

The Arctic National Wildlife Refuge It seems as though I am stuck between a rock and a hard place in this debate of drilling for oil in the National Wildlife Refuge in Alaska. I am strong for saving the environment until we have done everything in out power and we absolutely need to tamper with the environment in some ways. This debate has been going on for over a decade and at this rate I'm not sure it will ever be decided. Drilling for oil on the Coastal Plains of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge is urged by the oil companies and supported by most Alaskan government officials. It seems strange to me that the government officials of Alaska would urge towards drilling in Alaska, until I did some further research. Come to find out in Alaska there are no taxes and the US government is providing every citizen in Alaska money.

In a sense it is like blood money (it is somewhere around $2000) It is like a bribe, well who wouldn't want that money. Lets say for instance you weren't sure which side of the debate you would rather be on, then you are offered a great sum of money if you were for the drilling, I'm sure you would be for the drilling. One essence of the conflict is the possibility that the Coastal Plain of the Arctic Refuge contains one of the best remaining prospects for significant oil discovery in the United States. To this argument it never states clearly how much oil is actually in the National Wildlife Refuge in Alaska. In the report it states anywhere from 697 million barrels to 5.15 billion barrels. I might not know much about oil but I do know that it a great difference between the two numbers.

I do believe that if the government is to persuade citizens of the Untied States to forgo the oil drilling I do believe we would like to know a better estimate of the oil that can be retrieved from all the drilling. I do understand that oil is a nonrenewable resource, and once oil and gas is extracted from the land it will be gone forever. On the other hand the same goes for wildlife, once we destroy wildlife it will also be gone forever. Although I do understand that we use oil and gas closely to a daily basis I do think that there is better ways of achieving them. I can remember to a few years back there was much talk to solar energy produced cars. What ever happened to that?

As far as my knowledge goes it seems to me that they are making for more vehicles that burn much more gas then before. If we could reduce vehicles from 27.5 mpg to 40 mpg we would reduce the demand by two million barrels a day. It is not rocket science to realize all the different ways that we can reduce oil, all we have to do is realize what we are going to lose in the long run for people who don't think that it is a big deal. The oil industries argument is that the oil drilling and production will affect less than one percent of the refuge. They also state that it will significantly increase employment nationwide. Although the oil drilling and production may only affect less than one percent of the refuge it will wipe out the Porcupine Caribou Heard which is one of the largest in the world with over 150,000 animals.

Oil production on the Wildlife Refuge is truly detrimental to the wildlife in this area. Wildlife is something that can not be replaced or restored after they are gone they are gone forever. The Refuge also contains some of the last true remaining wilderness in the country. One the other note it indeed will create lots of employment opportunities, but so will solar powered cars, and the conservation of oil and gas. Yes we do need oil to promote / continue economic growth, but I ask myself what do we ever get out of drilling for oil? My answer: Nothing, the Atlantic and Pacific coast have been trashed and destroyed from oil drilling.

I guess before writing this paper I was torn between both side, now as I completed my paper I am obviously against the drilling for oil in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge in Alaska. I could continue this paper and it would go on and on, but indeed it is time to wrap it up. Although I do understand that sometime we might come to terms that we really need oil, so I think we should keep it as a last resort and I don't believe that we are there yet!