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Red Alert on the Arctic Refuge
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Progressive Portal
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Mar 14, 2005 21:54 PST
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DRILLING APPROVAL INCLUDED IN SENATE BUDGET RESOLUTION;
CANTWELL AMENDMENT IS LIKELY LAST CHANCE TO SAVE ANWR
[From SaveOurEnvironment.org <http://www.saveourenvironment.org> and
Sen. Barbara Boxer <http://boxer.senate.gov>]
The fate of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge is likely to be decided
during the week of 14 Mar 2005, perhaps as early as Tuesday, 15 Mar.
Senate proponents of oil exploration in the pristine wilderness have for
the moment succeeded in getting authorization for drilling into a budget
resolution, a must-pass bill that requires only a simple majority and
cannot be filibustered. They've resorted to this sneaky back-door
approach because they're not confident, even with a substantial
Republican majority in the Senate, that they could get their way if
there were a full public debate on the issue.
If this provision stays in the bill, it will go to a House-Senate
conference committee, and even though the equivalent House resolution
doesn't mention ANWR, it's highly unlikely that the conference
committee, controlled by the Republicans and meeting in secret, will
remove the Senate-backed clause. And George Bush, of course, would be
delighted to sign a bill that includes ANWR drilling.
In other words, the long battle to save ANWR from despoliation by the
oil companies is in grave danger of going down to final defeat.
As we explained in a recent alert (see the 24 Feb 2005 entry at
<http://www.progressiveportal.org/alerts/>), even the oil industry
acknowledges that ANWR doesn't contain significant oil that can be
retrieved economically. This fight is really about conquering
anti-drilling environmentalists everywhere. The long-term targets
include the coastal waters of California and Florida.
There remains, however, one last chance to forestall this tragedy.
Senator Maria Cantwell (D-WA) is set to introduce an amendment to strip
the Arctic drilling provision out of the budget. Thanks to
SaveOurEnvironment.org, you can send a free fax to your Senators to
support the Cantwell Amendment and save the Arctic Refuge.
In addition, Sen. Barbara Boxer has set up an easy way to send a message
about ANWR to Sen. Bill Frist (R-TN), the majority leader in the Senate.
Take advantage of this opportunity to speak up for ANWR.
Take Action
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1. Send a free fax to your Senators at:
http://www.saveourenvironment.org/action/index.asp?step=2&item=13153
2. E-mail Sen. Frist at:
http://ga4.org/campaign/boxer_anwr
(If you don't wish to receive e-mail from Sen. Boxer's political action
committee, don't check the box above the "Send This Message" button.)
More Information
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Background information, fact sheets, a slide show, video, and other
materials on ANWR from the Natural Resources Defense Council:
http://www.nrdc.org/land/wilderness/arctic.asp
Maps and other resources from Defenders of Wildlife:
http://www.defenders.org/wildlife/arctic/overview.html
http://www.savearcticrefuge.org
Sierra Club resources:
http://www.sierraclub.org/wildlands/arctic/
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