The Artic Oil and Wildlife Refuge W.

Wayt Gibbs
Birds group concluded that thorough exploration would most likely yield about seven billion barrels (bbo) of economically recoverable oil if North Slope Since 1 1 the price of North Slope crude has fluctuated between ! and !"#$ aver% aging !1& a barrel

oil will only last a few decades

'n analysis by the ()S) *nergy +nformation 'dministration (*+') suggests that if the (S,S estimate of - bbo is correct$ then the 1../ 'rea will generate fewer than /..$... barrels a day for the first five years) 0he *+' also forecasts that 'merican pe% troleum consumption$ 1 )# million barrels a day last year$ will rise to /" million by /.1.$ with 11 percent of that amount imported lakes to free2e through in winter$ 3yons predicts$ and next summer the waterfowl that pause in their migration to feed on invertebrates in the ponds will find fewer to eat water is drawn no farther than 1. miles from where it is needed$ or else it free2es in the trucks on the way) 3yons ad% mits that there may be technological solutions$ such as a de% salini2ation plant connected to a heated$ elevated pipeline) But such measures would change the economics of the enterprise and thus the amount of oil recoverable)

Drillers no longer dump their cuttings and sewage and garbage into surface pits4 these are
now either burned or in% 5ected deep into wells 6aribou in 'N78 might suffer more than the 6entral 'rc% tic herd has$ because almost five times as many animals there forage in an area one fifth the si2e of the plain surrounding 9rudhoe and :uparuk) +f oil workers mine gravel from the riverbanks where they stand$ the muskoxen will bolt$ upsetting a precariously balanced energy budget and 5eopardi2ing their young)

Our dependency on oil has become so great that we are willing to destroy natural habitats in order to get something that will run out within time. The way we've been living has made the ma ority of our natural resources slowly diminish! leaving us with the mysterious "uestion of what now. What actions do we ta#e when it is all gone. $nstead of searching for alternative ways to get our energy we are searching for new oil reserves! living in the moment instead of thin#ing about the future. There is a lot of controversy about the sub ect on whether or not we should drill for oil in Alas#a's area %&&'. (any say we should due to the fact that prices on oil could go down which would lead to an economic doom! it would lessen our dependency on foreign oil! it would create obs! overall help the economy in a way that it will be able to continue to produce oil for the people. Those who are against the pro ect are thin#ing about the wildlife. Those who support the pro ect state that it will ust drill in one area that is over '&&& miles! but those against #now it's not true. The process will be spread out across the land and therefore causing more harm to native animals as well as destroying the beauty of the landscape of land. Another problem those against state is that the drilling may not yield much of anything! the oil found will last probably a couple years and be gone and in the end the destruction of the natural habitat would have not been worth it for the little oil yield they got. $n my opinion we should not drill in Alas#a. $t's one of the places corporations haven't got to and destroyed and $ would li#e to #eep it that way. $ understand that oil is a necessity! but maybe this should be a wa#e up call that it's time to start adapting and switching to more environmentally friendly alternatives. We all #now oil will not last forever! so why do we continue to believe it will. )ust because oil won't last forever doesn't mean natural habitats shouldn't. We have altered and destroyed mother nature way too much and drilling for what may be a couple years worth of oil is not worth it. $ would be willing to switch or learn about new alternative ways we could do things. $t's time for us to change

and stop our cra*y dependency on oil. +ither we do this or we simply reduce our use. One or the other! but switching to alternative is what will have a long term effect. ,o WhatThis issue is important because here are the big corporations again trying to destroy mother nature for our needs. .eeds that are unnecessary. We ta#e this planet for granted considering it is the only #nown one with life on it. There is no /lanet 0. What $f..$f we go through with the plan of drilling in Alas#a we will find out that we drilled and destroyed a beautiful habitat for a little bit of oil that will not sustain us in the long run. 1ow will the corporations react- They won't care they will ust me thin#ing on to the ne2t. ,ays WhoThis article was written by W. Wayt Gibbs! but other scientists and researchers such as (ar# D. (yers has contributed to the information in this article. What Does This Remind (e OfThis reminds me of the frac#ing video we watched. 1ow the people were saying it was safe and would help the economy when in reality was awful and harmful not only to the people! but to the environment as well.