On August 17, 2020, the current administration released the Record of Decision to adopt Alternative B of the Coastal Plain Oil and Gas Leasing Program Environmental Impact Statement. This is the Alternative that will allow for the entire 2,443 square miles (over 1.56 million acres) to be leased to the oil industry. Alternative B does not address the major concerns that native people, other government agencies, scientists, and many of you sent in pointing out the negative impacts of this option.
A recent poll by Yale Climate Connections found that 67% of United States voters oppose drilling in the Arctic Refuge. This majority needs to be listened to.
Five of the six major banks that operate in the United States of America: Citigroup, Morgan Stanley, Goldman Sachs, JPMorgan Chase, and Wells Fargo have said, along with many banks around the world, that they will not fund any new oil and gas development in the Arctic Refuge and across the Arctic region.
Fifteen state attorney generals have filed a lawsuit against the current administration on the grounds that what happens in the Arctic Refuge affects their fish, wildlife, and physical environment. For example, New York has tundra swans, American golden plovers, and whimbrels that migrate from the Arctic Refuge and contribute to their $4 billion birdwatching industry. In Michigan, waterfowl hunting is a significant source of income and some of the targeted species reproduce in the Arctic Refuge. California, Connecticut, Delaware, Illinois, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Minnesota, New Jersey, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont, and Washington are the other states. Attorney General Bob Ferguson, from our State, is taking the lead.
Two other lawsuits have also been filed against the current administration on this issue. One led by the Gwich’in Steering Committee and includes the Alaska Wilderness League, Alaska Wildlife Alliance, Canadian Parks & Wilderness Society-Yukon Chapter, Defenders of Wildlife, Environment America, Friends of Alaska National Wildlife Refuges, National Wildlife Federation, National Wildlife Refuge Association, Northern Alaska Environmental Center, Sierra Club, The Wilderness Society, and Wilderness Watch. The other by Earthjustice representing the National Audubon Society, Center for Biological Diversity, Friends of the Earth and Stand.Earth.
Many of the above organizations, which together represent over 27 million members, have sent letters asking the heads of Exxon Mobil Corp., Chevron Corp., ConocoPhillips, and Hilcorp Energy Co. to forswear Arctic Refuge drilling rights.
What can you, a person who cares about the birds here in North Central Washington, do?
Turns out, you can do a lot!
- your VOTE
Election day is November 3, 2020. Take time now to know where the candidates stand on this issue. As soon as your ballot arrives, fill it out and take it to a drop-box well ahead of November 3.
- Use your VOICE
Contact your Senators and Congressional Representative, let them know how you feel on this issue. Thank them if they have supported this issue. If they have not, stress that you would like them to start supporting NOT drilling in the Arctic Refuge. Remind them you will be voting.
Contact Attorney General Bob Ferguson and thank him. If you or your family live in one of the other 14 states, please call and thank your Attorney General. If your State hasn’t joined in, call and ask your Attorney General to join the others to stand up for this important area that belongs to all of us.
Contact Bank of America and ask them to join the other banks and PLEASE not finance Arctic Refuge drilling. If you bank with them, this is a critical action for you to take.
Contact Exxon Mobil Corp., Chevron Corp., ConocoPhillips and Hilcorp Energy Co. and ask them to forswear Arctic Refuge drilling rights. Your personal concern to take the time and effort will be noticed.
Share this with your family and friends in person, via email or social media.
Write a letter or two to the editor of your local newspaper. Thank your Congressional Representative or publicly ask them to show support for not drilling. Thank the banks by name that have signed on and ask Bank of America to join the others. Thank your Attorney General by name or ask them to join the other 15 in the lawsuit.
If you need some tips, check out this great online toolkit:
- Use your MONEY
Donate to those candidates that have stood up for the Refuge.
Donate to those organizations, like National Audubon Society, that have filed lawsuits on behalf of the Refuge.
Don’t bank with Bank of America.
Think about where you buy your gas.
Use the gas you do buy wisely.
- Get INSPIRED
Watch:
“Gwich’in Voices for the Arctic Refuge”
“The Sacred Place Where Life Begins Gwich in Women Speak trailer”
“We are not protecting the Arctic Refuge for ourselves. We are protecting it for everyone… Let’s work together.”
- READ a book that in my opinion is a must read for every citizen of the United States—we are all Public-land owners. We own the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. We own 640 million acres, 28% of the land that makes up our country. We have a right to make sure it is used wisely and kept in the public’s hands for us here now and generations yet to come.
That Wild Country: An Epic Journey through the Past, Present, and Future of America’s Public Lands by Mark Kenyon
Part history, part travelogue. It is about working together. It is about enjoying our public lands. I learned so much from this book. I hope you do too.
“Thinking back 114 years to the most famous camping trip in our nation’s history… President Theodore Roosevelt and John Muir…In the words of historian Douglas Brinkley, “They vowed to let their biographies be intertwined for the sake of the conservation movement…In effect, the Sierra Club joined forces with the Boone and Crockett Club—hikers and hunters forged an alliance.”
- Grab your binoculars, go look and listen for birds out in your favorite parcel of your public land. Enjoy!