** High Priority ** Hello Iowa Conservationists Below is a very important action alert that we need your help to distribute (via e-mail and/or to print copies and pass them out at events in your state) within the next 2 weeks. We need calls, e-mails, and faxes into Iowa Congressman Jim Nussle, who Chairs the House Budget Committee right away. He is one of the most important Members of Congress who has the power to influence the entire outcome of whether the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge is opened to drilling or not. PLEASE E-MAIL THIS ALERT TO OTHERS IN IOWA (ESPECIALLY IN NUSSLE'S DISTRICT (Manchester, Davenport, Dubuque, Waterloo area). Here's a list of his district offices. Manchester, Iowa 712 West Main Street Manchester, Iowa, 52057 (563) 927 - 5141 Davenport, Iowa 209 West 4th Street Davenport, Iowa 52801 (563) 326 - 1841 Dubuque, Iowa 2255 John F. Kennedy Road Dubuque, Iowa 52002 (563) 557 - 7740 Waterloo, Iowa 3641 Kimball Avenue Waterloo, Iowa 50702 (319) 235 - 1109 I WOULD APPRECIATE HEARING BACK FROM ANY OF YOU THAT ARE ABLE TO MAKE CALLS TO ONE OF HIS DISTRICT OFFICES OR HIS D.C. OFFICE/ OR IF YOU ARE ABLE TO FAX HIM. Thanks for your help on this important matter. --Lisa Yee-Litzenberg, Iowa Regional Organizer National Wildlife Federation (Great Lakes Office) 213 W. Liberty, Suite 200 Ann Arbor, MI 48104 (734) 769-3351, ext. 23 or [log in to unmask] www.nwf.orr/arcticrefuge ********************************************************* Stop New Threats to the Arctic Refuge: Contact Congressman Jim Nussle Today! Another battle over the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge appears inevitable as the 108th Congress works on the federal budget in Washington this winter. Faced with a major loss in the Senate last April -- when attempts to open the Arctic refuge to oil drilling were soundly defeated -- drilling proponents are already busy looking for ways to revive the issue. Iowa Congressman Jim Nussle is under pressure to promote Arctic Refuge drilling by including drilling revenues in the budget, and he needs to hear from you! One option drilling proponents are pursuing is to include drilling provisions in the federal budget process. "Drilling supporters are looking for any way to avoid an open debate regarding the Arctic refuge," says Amy C. Sagalkin, NWF's Alaska lands legislative representative. "Last year's Senate vote sent a powerful message that Americans are not willing to sacrifice the nation's last-remaining wild places for the short-term economic gain of a few oil companies. If they can avoid normal congressional channels they will." Congressman Jim Nussle plays a key role because as Chairman of the House Budget Committee he will have powerful influence over whether Arctic refuge drilling revenues are included in the budget. The Arctic National Wildlife Refuge is home to muskoxen, polar bears, fox and many other species of wildlife. It serves as a stopover for a total of 135 bird species from four continents - including at least one bird from every state in the United States. In addition, 130,000 caribou migrate north to the refuge's coastal plain to calve each spring. While drilling supporters claim that oil development will have little impact on wildlife, oil companies could weave a 2,000-acre spider web of wells, pipelines, processing plants and other facilities across the coastal plain. "Rather than forever alter the Arctic refuge for a small amount of oil that won't even be available this decade, we need to look at a broader energy policy that balances the use of fossil fuels with conservation, energy efficiency and the development of alternative energy sources," says Sagalkin. "This needs to be a public debate, not hidden within the budget." Congressman Jim Nussle can prevent inclusion of Arctic Refuge drilling provisions in the budget. Contact him today and tell him to use his position as Chairman of the House Budget Committee to oppose the inclusion of any Arctic refuge drilling provisions in the federal budget process. Let him know that a backdoor attempt to avoid discussion of a controversial topic is wrong, and that normal congressional channels should be followed when discussing the future of the refuge. CALL Congressman Jim Nussle's Washington, DC office at 202-225-2911 Or EMAIL him a message directly from the NWF website at www.nwf.org/action. Feel free to personalize the suggested text for greater impact. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - To view the Sierra Club List Terms & Conditions, see: http://www.sierraclub.org/lists/terms.asp