ANWR... To drill or not to drill?

[Nfl Fan]

I say, "Drill."

I grew up in Alaska. Nobody appreciates wilderness and the sheer beauty of The Great Land like Alaskans. I can't tell you how many weeks and weekends I've spent deep into the heart of God's Country... backpacking, snowmachining, running rivers, fishing, camping, etc.

So why would anybody even suggest oil drilling/exploration in a pristine place such as this?

Well, they're not. There is a lie that is told about oil exploration up there and the lie is this:


Just for clarification...
THE COASTAL PLAIN DOES NOT LOOK LIKE THAT!!!!!!!!

The coastal plain (where they have been trying to drill for a massive cache of oil reserves) is pictured in that top sliver up there colored yellow. The actual area where they want to drill is a pinpoint of that.


The majority of the year it looks like this:


In summer it looks like this:


Folks... it is a frozen desert up there. It is a vast wasteland. Ice, tundra, and permafrost. Nobody visits. Nobody wants to. We need the oil. We need the independance from foreign oil. It is good for Americans; it is good for Alaskans; it is good for the economy; and it doesn't hurt a darned thing.

I say, "Drill." And 75% of all Alaskans say the same thing.

[Omaha Red Sox]

We need the independance from foreign oil.

That's it right there. We need to tap into our own resources to become more self-sufficient as a country and stop this dependency on other countries.

[knapplc]

Oil is a finite resource. There's a long discussion with some good info regarding Peak Oil over on the Dark Side. The reality is that within this century oil will no longer be a viable resource for fuel. Scarcity will make it so cost-prohibitive that it simply won't work.

The real answer is electricity, and generating it most likely from a variety of sources including solar, wind, geothermal and nuclear sources. Instead of spending so much time on ANWR, OPEC, the Gulf of Mexico or anywhere else oil is or might be, we need to develop a motor that will propel cars and trucks down the road at comparable speeds and levels of performance to internal combustion.

[Tyeattolah]

agree with Knapplc as far as electricity goes, however in the short term we have to decrease our dependency on foriegn fuel.

There are some arguements against wind power in as much as the areas of land in the US that historically have the most wind are far removed from the major population centers of the CONUS. So there are issues with storage/transport of wind generated energy from these locations to the metropolitan centers.

Solar seems to be viable source as well. SO bottom line is, we have to dedicate research funding and activities into these alternative energy sources and perfect those batteries/electric motors etc that can equal our internal combustion dependency!

[Metroid]

We need the independance from foreign oil.

That's it right there. We need to tap into our own resources to become more self-sufficient as a country and stop this dependency on other countries.

Actually what we need to do is reduce our dependency on any oil...foreign or domestic.

[m16a]

We need the independance from foreign oil.

That's it right there. We need to tap into our own resources to become more self-sufficient as a country and stop this dependency on other countries.

Actually what we need to do is reduce our dependency on any oil...foreign or domestic.

Very much a second

As a whole, this country needs to lose its dependence on other countries... Not just in terms of oil. If they could stop importing half the crap they do and make it here, prices would shoot down...

[Omaha Red Sox]

We need the independance from foreign oil.

That's it right there. We need to tap into our own resources to become more self-sufficient as a country and stop this dependency on other countries.

Actually what we need to do is reduce our dependency on any oil...foreign or domestic.

Oh, definitely. I believe research is imperative to our energy future. We're sucking our earth's resources dry.

[scottaa1]

when legislators face enough pressure, the environment always loses. To even begin tapping into the oil in the ANWR would take years and require many millions of dollars to fly in equipment to drill test wells, begin to build up the infrastructure necessary to support a large-scale drill, build roads, a pipeline, etc., etc.

That we need to focus on alternative energy sources is obvious. Additional drilling for oil will only potentially lessen the pain in the meantime. The fact of the matter is we are so far away from a viable alternative (and clean) energy source that we realistically need to look some 50+ years into the future before they could be fully implemented and trickle down to all the petroleum-consuming industries and truly begin to wean the world off fossil fuel.

Screw the wildlife. What has it done for me, anyways?

Orbital solar platforms. Now, how to get the energy from orbit to earth... the aliens that astronaut spoke of may be willing to help.

[Nfl Fan]

when legislators face enough pressure, the environment always loses.

Actually, the North Slope and pipeline have been remarkably successful regarding the environment.

To even begin tapping into the oil in the ANWR would take years and require many millions of dollars to fly in equipment to drill test wells, begin to build up the infrastructure necessary to support a large-scale drill, build roads, a pipeline, etc., etc.

Should've started 20 years ago when Alaskans wanted to drill but the Federal Government locked it up. So let's be pro-active and get going! We are wishing we did now, so let's not wish we did later.

I agree that we need to get off oil, but we are still going to need oil. We are a looooong way from being off oil. A very long ways.

Remember, the coastal plain is frozen wasteland... not this beautiful slice of heaven.

[scottaa1]

when legislators face enough pressure, the environment always loses.

Actually, the North Slope and pipeline have been remarkably successful regarding the environment.
.

I didn't mean the environment loses AFA how safely resources are extracted/moved (altho it sometimes does), I meant that protected areas tend to become unprotected when politicians yield to pressure. That doesn't just apply to oil; think forestry, coal-bed methane, etc.