Early Actions by Rep. Nussle May Set the Course for Arctic Drilling in 2006
Audubon

 Just days into the 109th Congress and the pro-drillers are already hard at work pushing to open the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge to oil and gas drilling! As we write, their first effort is underway: trying to attach drilling revenues to the FY06 budget resolution – the Congressional blueprint that sets overall funding levels for government agencies for the upcoming fiscal year.

This is nothing more than a back-door, underhanded way to avoid a fair and open debate on one of the most controversial issues Congress will tackle this year.

Fortunately, this sentiment is not lost on Chairman of the Budget Committee of the U.S. House of Representatives, Iowa Representative Jim Nussle. Chairman Nussle has steadfastly opposed attaching this back-door maneuver to the House budget resolution in the past. With your help, we can ensure he does so again this year!

That’s why we’re writing to you today – to ask you to please contact Representative Nussle and urge him to continue to keep the budget resolution free and clear of provisions relating to drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. Just click HERE now to instantly send your letter to Rep. Nussle on this issue today!

KEEP IN MIND

As their sneaky tactics are being employed, the pro-drilling special interests are also working tirelessly to win over Members of Congress by overwhelming them with less-than-accurate claims, but make no mistake, drilling in the Arctic Refuge will in no way reduce our dependence on foreign oil. In fact, it has been widely reported that there is only a 6-month supply of oil in the Arctic Refuge – and it would take a full 10 years before any of that oil would begin to flow. Raising the fuel efficiency of light vehicles by less than one mile per gallon could save the same amount of oil that might be under the Arctic Refuge!
 
For the pro-drillers, this is about short-term financial gains. For those against drilling, it’s about protecting America’s last great frontier, protecting an environmentally sensitive and biologically productive area for birds and wildlife that call it home. For over 20 years, Audubon has been a leading voice in protecting the Arctic Refuge. Help us continue preserve one of America’s last great frontiers, a true national treasure.

For more information, please contact us at audubonaction@audubon.org. Thank you for your support and participation!