Dear Friend:

A great number of Iowans are against drilling in the Arctic Refuge and Senator Grassley needs to become aware of this. And soon. The vote on this issue is expected in the next month or two. This hard-copy petition has the support of the Iowa Sierra Club Executive Committee.

Please open attachment and print out petition.

If that doesn't work, copy the petition below (begin with The Honorable...) and paste into a word processing program, make necessary adjustments, and print out (I found by reducing top and bottom margins to 1/2", setting font size at 11, and using paragraph tabs instead of line spaces, you can get 13 name and address lines on a page.)

When a petition is full send to Senator Grassley.  Forward and distribute this petition to all your friends.

Thank you for helping.
 
Jack Eastman
Executive Committee, Iowa Sierra Club



The Honorable Charles Grassley
United States Senate
135 Hart Senate Office Building
Washington, D.C. 20510-1501

Dear Senator Grassley:

We, the undersigned citizens of Iowa and of the United States of America hereby register our strong opposition to the proposal to drill for oil in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. The advantages of this strategy are meager and inconsequential when compared to the disadvantages. Moreover this approach does nothing whatsoever to solve our long-term energy needs. Experts predict that the maximum amount of oil that could be derived from drilling in this area is only enough to supply our country for about six months. In addition, it is estimated that it will take ten years to obtain this relatively small amount of oil.
The Arctic National Wildlife Refuge is one of the last frontiers in North America virtually untouched by human activity. The risks of disturbing this pristine ecosystem are simply not justified. It should be clear that the primary beneficiaries of oil drilling in this region will not be the American people, but oil companies. The 1990’s was the hottest decade on record and overwhelming scientific opinion concurs that temperatures will continue to rise as long as we continue to focus on burning fossil fuels for energy. Renewable sources of energy such as wind, solar, and biomass are abundant in Iowa and elsewhere in the United States. We urge you to join your colleagues in Congress who aim to expand renewable sources and decrease dependence on fossil fuels, the burning of which has the potential to cause devastating and possibly irreversible effects on the entire planet.
We also urge you to oppose the irresponsible and short-sighted policies such as drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. Our children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren deserve much more than this. As a member of the U.S. Senate you are in a powerful position to alter the course of our energy policy from its current destructive path to one leading to a cleaner, more sustainable future. We sincerely hope that you will find the courage to do so.

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