SENATOR HARKIN AGAIN IMPORTANT IN ARCTIC REFUGE DEBATE

As the politicians in Washington, DC get ready to convene the 108th Congress, 
many in the conservation community are wondering what will be the fate of the 
Arctic National Wildlife Refuge.  With Republicans now in control of both the 
Senate and House, President Bush would seem to have a better chance of 
advancing his pro-drilling agenda.  

Near the top of the list of items to be addressed in Congress will be energy 
legislation.  The House and Senate each passed their own versions of energy 
bills in 2002.  The House bill included language to open up the coastal plain 
of the Arctic Refuge to oil development.  Thankfully, when the Senate voted 
on this part of their bill in April, Arctic Refuge drilling was rightfully 
defeated and it was not part of the final Senate energy bill.  The two 
chambers met in conference to try and iron out the differences in their bills 
but were unsuccessful, and no energy bill passed Congress.  Now that the 
Republicans have the majority in both chambers, some people seem to think 
that the fate of the Arctic Refuge is sealed - that drilling is a foregone 
conclusion.  Not so fast…

While it is likely that energy legislation to be developed in the 108th 
Congress will be heavily slanted toward more domestic production, there still 
are many members of Congress that believe the Arctic Refuge is not the answer 
to America's energy needs.  In the April 2002 vote (54-46 in favor of 
protecting the Arctic Refuge), there was strong bi-partisan support for 
protecting the Arctic Refuge.  The recent elections have not changed this 
fact; a majority of the Senate continues to believe that opening the Arctic 
Refuge to oil development is not the answer to our nations energy needs.  
Their sentiments are in line with an overwhelming majority of the American 
public who know that we can not drill our way to energy security.

In the April vote, Iowa's Senator Tom Harkin signaled his support for 
protecting the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge.  We need to thank the Senator 
for this vote.  A strong coalition of groups and individuals were able to 
demonstrate that the people of Iowa believe that the Arctic National Wildlife 
Refuge is too amazing to trade it for the equivalent of a six-month supply of 
oil for America.  Concerned citizens wrote letters to Senator Harkin, called 
and emailed his offices, wrote letters to the editor of their local papers, 
and visited with Senator Harkin and his staff in DC and back in Iowa.  
Surely, the proponents of drilling in the Arctic Refuge spent more money in 
their effort to win this debate, but they were defeated by the overwhelming 
will of the American public who has consistently voiced their opinion that 
the Arctic Refuge should remain a pristine place for wildlife and wilderness 
values.  

To learn more about this issue and how you can help keep the Arctic Refuge 
protected, consider attending an Arctic Refuge training & strategy session to 
be held in the Quad Cities area on Saturday, February 1.  

For details on the session, contact Scott Hed at (605) 336-6738 or 
[log in to unmask]  Scott is the regional organizer for the Alaska 
Coalition (www.alaskacoalition.org) and works with groups and concerned 
individuals in Iowa, Nebraska, the Dakotas, and Minnesota to help protect 
federal lands in Alaska.



Erin E. Jordahl
Director, Iowa Chapter Sierra Club
3839 Merle Hay Road, Suite 280
Des Moines, IA 50310
515-277-8868
[log in to unmask]

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