President Dwight D. Eisenhower was somewhat conservative. He was a war hero, a good man and not exactly a radical, yet he was the leader who signed legislation that set aside much of the area now known as the Alaskan Arctic National Wildlife Refuge.
Pennsylvania Sen. Arlen Specter is publicly undecided on the future of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. Because of the close vote predicted on impending Arctic Wildlife Refuge legislation, Lehigh Valley residents have unprecedented influence over changes in our nation's energy policy. Perhaps never before in our Valley's history, has our opinion been so important in directing our environmental future.
Interested in making a huge difference? I'll tell you how to do that, but first, I'll tell you why you should.
As the birthplace of birds that migrate to all 50 states, the refuge is a natural heritage nursery unequaled anywhere on the continent. In fact, in 1980, Congress enlarged the refuge, providing what its members believed would be permanent protection for 180 species of birds and other wildlife.
The Senate is considering legislation that, if passed, would open this area to commercial oil drilling, and would change the quality of this habitat forever. Sen. Specter has yet to say publicly how he will vote. We should tell him the facts, which are as follows:
The Arctic refuge has extraordinary value as an intact ecosystem, with all its native birdlife. Millions of birds nest, migrate through, or spend time in the refuge. Bird populations would undoubtedly be threatened and reduced with the construction and operation of a sprawling industrial oilfield. Loss, degradation, and fragmentation of habitat in the narrow coastal plain would be inevitable.
Even the routine human activities associated with heavy industry in this area of Alaska, including helicopter use, would create stress and harm to birds. Oil fields attract predators like foxes and ravens that prey on birds. This increased predation has already proved detrimental to bird populations at existing oil industry sites, such as Prudhoe Bay.
Especially serious and long-lasting, would be the effects of oil spills and pipeline ruptures, particularly if the oil and other toxic substances were to reach the refuge coastal lagoons and wetlands.
You might wonder how often these disasters occur in Alaska. Actually, several hundred oil spills occur each year in the North Slope oil fields. In April 2001, 92,000 gallons of crude oil and salt water spilled onto the tundra in the Kuparek oilfield.
In the Arctic refuge, the risk of spills would be even more disastrous: Thousands of shorebirds gather in the refuge river deltas and coastal meadows. If crude oil reaches the Beaufort Sea coast, tens of thousands of ducks, loons and phalaropes could die.
But who, besides birders and hunters, cares about ducks? I hope many people care about our natural world; however, many more people care about the big picture, care about the future of our human citizens and how they might be impacted by unnatural events, like war and price-gouging and the high price of foreign oil.
You might think, "We ought to drill for oil on our own soil because we shouldn't be dependent on foreign oil." However, consider these facts:
Drilling in the Arctic Refuge would provide only enough oil to fill the U.S. oil demand for 180 days; the Arctic National refuge will never supply enough oil to meet our nation's energy needs; the process of opening the Arctic to drilling would require a minimum of 10 years before any oil would begin to flow.
Once the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge is open to the oil industry, it is no longer a refuge. President Eisenhower's dream of protection would be gone. President Bush and pro-drilling Senators are framing this issue as if our national security were at stake. They suggest that drilling in the Arctic is patriotic and that we are in an oil crisis. Nothing could be further from the truth. Oil prices are low. We are not at war with an oil producing country. And, just as it would not be patriotic to destroy the Grand Canyon, it is not patriotic to destroy the Arctic refuge.
You should call or fax Sen. Arlen Specter, today. His local number is 610 434-1444; his Washington number is 202 224-4254. You can fax him a letter or a copy of this column at 202-228-1229. Don't send him a letter through U.S. mail; time is too short. The vote is expected in the next two weeks.
Tell Sen. Specter now you are against opening the Alaskan Arctic National Wildlife Refuge to oil drilling. Tell him you support safety and protection for wildlife. If you regularly vote, tell him so. He will listen, and somewhere, President Eisenhower will be smiling.
Karen Dolan of Bethlehem is a teacher in the Bethlehem Area School District and president of the Lehigh Valley Audubon Society.