With the passing of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, Republicans fulfilled many of their long held dreams. One Republican senator in particular accomplished something she has fought for a long time to get. Senator Lisa Murkowski, finally, after years of trying, got Alaska’s Arctic National Wildlife Refuge opened up to drill for oil. In the Tax Bill, the Interior Department is to hold lease sales in the so-called 1002 area of the refuge. It is in the coastal area of the 19 million acre refuge and is estimated to have roughly 11.8 billion barrels of oil. This will not happen right away, as authorities have to follow federal environmental regulations, such as extensive environmental reviews and public comment, before leasing.

Environmentalists are vowing to fight every step of the way to stop the Drilling. This means we could see lawsuits for possibly over a decade on this issue. We may never see any drilling there, because the promised battle, and the length of time it would take to settle a new president in three or seven years, could stop this altogether and close the refuge to drilling again. However, with the passing of the bill and its inclusion of the oil drilling, a question comes to mind. Should we allow drilling in Alaska’s Arctic National Wildlife Refuge?

Newsy video about drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge:

The Issue

Should we allow drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge? Is drilling there a good first step towards energy independence? Or, will drilling in the refuge lead to disaster for Alaska?

Page 2: Arguments for allowing oil drilling in the refuge

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