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Had President Clinton vetoed legislation proposed by the Wilderness Society, we would now be pumping a million barrels of oil each day. Drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR) could get new oil flowing in 5 years, if the number of environmental lawsuits can be minimized.
ANWR was hotly debated about five years ago. One one side was the drill-baby-drill crowd. On the other were the ever present environmentalists. The environmentalist position won. Much of it was based on pictures of a beautiful mountain range, just where the there will be no drilling, none, nada.
ANWR is the size of South Carolina. Its narrow coastal plain is frozen and windswept most of the year. Wildlife flourish amid drilling and production in other Arctic regions, and would do so near ANWR facilities. Inuits who live there know this, and the Inuits support drilling by an 8:1 margin.
The Gwich’in Indians, who oppose drilling, live hundreds of miles away. Not only that, this tribe has leased and drilled nearly all their own tribal lands, including caribou migratory routes.
The size of the drilling area has been greatly exaggerated in the media. By way of comparison, if the area in the Arctic Natural Wildlife Reserve were one football field, the drilling area would occupy space the size of two postage stamps. These facts wash away nearly all of the environmental objections.
So much of the spin is about drilling in beautiful, scenic areas. The coastal areas that are proposed have terrain like you see in the picture. No one will care if there is a drilling rig in sight, especially when it is contributing to
producing 15 billion gallons of oil annually.
When the environmental case is brought forward, people assume they have the voice to speak with authority. Let us stop and consider this fact: This energy on US land belongs to all Americans. It is not property owned by environmental groups. They don't own the energy resources just because they say so. They paid nothing for them. These are public lands, and they belong to all Americans. Everybody has a voice in deciding whether they are to stay protected land or can be worked to produce energy.
It is bogus to say that just environmentalists should control this energy. They should not be given standing in court to press their case. Politicians who cater to these groups are not representing the American people and their rights. These politicians should be voted out of office if they take such a bogus position.
According to the Geological Survey and Congressional Research Service, it’s 95% likely that there are 15.6 billion barrels of oil beneath ANWR. The time has come. We need to drill for oil in ANWR.
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