Andrew Dickerson

Professor Nikki Harken

Cornerstone 11:00 am 11:50 am
February 14, 2016
Research Project: Page 1 Edited Jan.-31
Draft #3
INTRO
The increasing demand for oil and natural gas to power our modern society grows with
each passing day. The population grows each year; and with more people the demand for natural
resources increases in order to power our industries, automobiles, and basic economy. With all
this demand from the human race, the environment will not last long. Keeping areas of the world
wild is important not only to the organisms that live there, but also to the overall wellbeing of the
planets health. People also need these places as a place to relax and reconnect, a place to get
away from the concrete jungle.
Drilling for oil, natural gas, and other resources should never be moved into public lands.
These lands were designated to be put under protection for a reason. We need to keep these
places free from the toxic effects of drilling and mining. If we do not save the environment now,
it will be much harder to reverse the effects later on. Preserving the environment for future
generations is one of the most important things we can do. Do we really want to leave a decrepit,
polluted world for our children where every breath is a toxic mix of chemicals? This is why we
need to protect what we have, and prevent drilling for oil and natural gases in public lands.

Pg. 2 New Feb-4

Granted we would not be where we are today without drilling and mining in natural
areas. Oil that is pumped from the ground or ocean floor can be processed into many useful
things such as kerosene for lighter fluid, gasoline and diesel to power our automobiles, jet fuel
for planes, and various plastics that make up almost every item. We need all of these products
from crude oil to power our everyday lives. Gas in the car to go to work and the ability to heat
our homes. Items such as trash bags, cell phones, clothing, and computers all use plastics derived
from the refinement and manufacturing of oil. The act of drilling for oil is essential for modern
life to occur and continue. But it should be taken into account the fact that specific areas of land
have been put aside to help preserve a habitat or species of organism and to these areas should
not be drilled.
Preventing drilling from occurring in public and natural lands is very important because
these lands were designated under this title for a reason. 1) Whether it be to protect a unique
habitat or organism the area was clearly put aside to preserve an aspect of our world that we may
lose. Drilling for oil tears up the land when all the machines need to be brought in as well as the
ongoing process of drilling. 2) These areas are also very enjoyable for people to visit and explore
offering many recreational opportunities. The fact that drilling for oil requires large towers,
machines, and increased traffic to an area make these protected areas very unappealing to visit.
They towers break the view and the drilling machines produce large amounts to pollutants in the
immediate area. An increase in traffic can also produce large amounts of noise and take away
from the peacefully serenity that people come to enjoy. 3) Keeping these places wild is also very
important for the organisms that live there and even migrate through an area. Because of the
fences that oil companies put around their large tracks of land animals may not be able to

Pg. 3 New Feb. 4

migrate through that specific area. If an animal cannot migrate it may die due to the changing
seasons or starve to death, therefore reducing the population of that animal. Drilling for oil in
public lands should be prevented because it tears up the land, takes away the overall appear to
visit that land, and prevents certain species from migrating in order to survive.

Pg. 4 New Feb. 14

BACKGROUND
Literature Review
Even though oil and natural gas are essential resources towards modern life and greatly
abundant there still needs to be an acknowledgement towards the preservation of public lands in
Alaska. Due to the vast expanses of undeveloped land it truly is Americas last great wilderness.
This vast wilderness should be preserved for future generations. We will start with the history of
drilling in Alaska and her public lands, then move to how drilling for oil and natural gas affects
the environment overall, and finally finish up with what could happen with Alaskas public lands
and drilling.
Alaska Public Lands Drilling History
With Alaskas gain of statehood in 1959 many Alaskans and Americans wanted to leave
the lands open for development and resources such as mining and drilling
(http://www.alaskacenters.gov/history-public-lands.cfm). However, in 1971 the Alaska Native
Claims Settlement Act (ANCSA) passed, this act granted 44 million acres of land to the Native
peoples that had lived in Alaska for tens of thousands of years. In addition to the act 80 million
acres were set aside for possible conservation (http://www.alaskacenters.gov/history-publiclands.cfm). The passing of ANCSA was mostly in response to the discovery of oil beneath the
north slope and the arising conflict over how much claim the indigenous people had to that oil as
well as the other resources around the State (http://www.alaskacenters.gov/history-publiclands.cfm). Once oil exploration began in Alaska, claims started to be filed under the Hardrock

Pg. 5 New Feb. 14

Mining Act of 1872. At around 1900 the large mining and oil corporations began to file blanket
claims over large tracks of land though to potentially contain oil
(http://www.akhistorycourse.org/articles/article.php?artID=140). In 1906 President Theodore
Roosevelt withdrew all the coal and oil lands in the United States, including Alaska, from
development until Congress could come up with a way to control oil and coal claims. Roosevelt
used the 1906 Antiquities Act, (http://www.akhistorycourse.org/articles/article.php?artID=140)
which is the first law to establish that archeological sites on public lands are an important public
resource, to make this decision. Congress did not fix the problem until 1920 when it adopted the
Mineral Leasing Act. The act established a leasing plan for lands thought to contain coal, oil, and
natural gases. Many states soon followed with leasing acts of their own
(http://www.akhistorycourse.org/articles/article.php?artID=140). Congress also provided for the
creation of several oil reserves. The largest was Petroleum Reserve No. 4 established on Alaskas
Arctic coast (http://www.akhistorycourse.org/articles/article.php?artID=140). With the discovery
of North Americas largest oil field at Prudhoe Bay along the Arctic Coast in 1967 Alaska was
dramatically changed (http://www.akhistorycourse.org/articles/article.php?artID=140). Many
environmental concerns arose with the discovery of oil and the idea of building a pipeline
through the state from Prudhoe Bay to the Pacific coast. Environmental concerns included the
idea that Americas last wilderness, the last vast stretches of open land in the country, should be
preserved for future generation (http://www.akhistorycourse.org/articles/article.php?artID=140).
How Oil and Gas Drilling Effect the Environment
The well pads used for the oil towers and roads needed for trucks and transport scar the
landscapes that are being drilled for oil. Heavy equipment is required such as bulldozers and

Pg. 6 New Feb. 16

gravel trucks to build these roads and well pads. In the process the environment is stripped of
vegetation, erosion increases due to a lack of vegetation, and unspoiled wildlife habitats may
become seriously fragmented. The impacts on public lands from oil and gas drilling is often
irreversible (http://wilderness.org/six-ways-oil-and-gas-drilling-bad-news-environment). Noise,
traffic, and fences keep migratory animals from age old migration routes and foraging as well as
breeding habitats which could potentially lead to a decrease in the population. Wild animals
respond to these disturbances with short-term avoidance behavior. Many studies though, have
shown that some of these behaviors can become habituated and drives away a population over
time (http://wilderness.org/six-ways-oil-and-gas-drilling-bad-news-environment). Oil and gas
infrastructure spoil peaceful settings for visitors reducing recreational use of these areas.
America spends approximately $646 billion on outdoor recreation a year, this benefit depends on
healthy wild lands in which recreation is abundant. Loud machinery and drilling rigs spoil the
peaceful serenity of these public lands (http://wilderness.org/six-ways-oil-and-gas-drilling-badnews-environment). The process of drilling releases toxic chemical pollutants into the air and
water. Pits and ponds contain used wastewater, organic chemicals, petroleum hydrocarbons, and
other chemicals that compromise water quality. The release of methane also pollutes the air and
produces haze that hinders visibility (http://wilderness.org/six-ways-oil-and-gas-drilling-badnews-environment). In areas without any specific cultural significance oil and gas production
sites still destroy scenic values. Particularly along travel routes and public lands. The act of
burning off natural gas that is a byproduct from the oil wells creates a glow at night that is almost
as bright as other large cities with a large population, the light from the oil fields is just gas being
flared off (http://wilderness.org/six-ways-oil-and-gas-drilling-bad-news-environment). Oil

operations require a drilling fluid to help lubricate the drill bit. This fluid is supposed to be
captured in lined pits, but is commonly spilled and splashed around the drill pad. This spillage of
lubricate can affect the environment when it seeps into the ground and water table as well as
harming animals that happen to ingest it (http://wilderness.org/six-ways-oil-and-gas-drilling-badnews-environment). Oil drilling requires the use of machinery, pipelines, platforms, and rigs to
actually get the oil. In order to effectively move these things around roads are built. These roads
mostly gravel are gridded out across the landscape, effectively fragmenting the large tracks of
habitat (http://www.stern.nyu.edu/sites/default/files/assets/documents/con_043140.pdf). Oil
drilling uses loud machinery which may drive away animals, though not directly effecting a
particular species it may still have a negative effect indirectly by changing on thing the
ecosystem, therefore sending the entire system out of balance
(http://www.stern.nyu.edu/sites/default/files/assets/documents/con_043140.pdf). Cultural and
ecological resources could be disturbed, altered, damaged, or destroyed. The damaging of
cultural artifacts takes away the opportunity to learn and expand knowledge. The damaging of
ecological resources can lead to a potential extinction of a species, erosion, which leads to less
top soil, an increase in dust and a decrease in air quality. With increased human activity invasive
species may be brought along and take hold, completely destroying the current environment
(http://teeic.indianaffairs.gov/er/oilgas/impact/drilldev/).
Alaska Public Lands Drilling Future
Proposals to open ANWR to drilling for oil go back decades. The 113th Congress
considered three bills to open the coastal plains of ANWR to oil exploration and drilling.
Alaskas governor, Sean Parnell, also offered to send $50 million of seismic testing equipment to
ANWR to try and find oil (http://wilderness.org/photographic-tour-top-12-places-are-too-wild-

drill#wyomingrange). In January 2015, President Obama officially recommended to Congress

that 12.28 million acres of ANWR and coastal plain be permanently protected as wilderness. The
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service also recommended four rivers be added to the National Wild and
Scenic Rivers System (http://refugeassociation.org/advocacy/refuge-issues/arctic/). January 9,
2015 Rep. Jared Huffman (D-CA) introduced the Udall-Eisenhower Arctic Wilderness Act to
permanently protect the ANWR by designating it as wilderness, something only Congress can
do. The proposal would effectively take the debate of drilling in ANWR off the table for good
(http://refugeassociation.org/advocacy/refuge-issues/arctic/). Proponents of development cite that
16 billion barrels of oil are available, while opponents say only 4 billion barrels of oil are
available (http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/ngm/data/2001/08/01/html/ft_20010801.3.html).
Drilling in ANWR would only reduce todays rate of consumption by 9 percent on foreign
imports (http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/ngm/data/2001/08/01/html/ft_20010801.3.html).