Perennial ANWR struggle goes on and on

U.S. House votes to open coastal plain to oil and gas leasing and exploration; Young takes credit for passing legislation for 12th time

Wesley Loy

For Petroleum News

They’ve become commonplace over the years — efforts in Washington, D.C., to either open or permanently close the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge to oil and gas exploration.

The most recent development saw the Republican-led U.S. House of Representatives on Feb. 16 pass a bill that included language to allow oil and gas leasing on ANWR’s coastal plain. The bill, H.R. 3408, passed by a vote of 237-187. The supporters included 21 Democrats.

“This is a great piece of legislation for the American people,” U.S. Rep. Don Young, R-Alaska, said in a press release. “Tapping into ANWR’s enormous energy potential could provide up to 1.5 million barrels a day for years to come.”

Young continued: “This is my 12th time passing ANWR out of the House and although this is a momentous day, there is still work to be done. The Senate should not drag its feet on this bill. The American people are sick and tired of high energy prices, high unemployment, and out of control deficits — they want cheap energy created here in America and that is exactly what this bill will do.”

Resistance in the Senate

Alaska’s senior senator, Lisa Murkowski, is the top-ranking Republican on the key Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee.

Robert Dillon, a Murkowski aide, told Petroleum News on Feb. 22 that the senator was pleased to see Young succeed in passing ANWR legislation through the House for a 12th time.

“We’re going to have a tougher battle in the Senate, because ANWR is kind of a red flag to a lot of Democrats,” he said.

While opening ANWR certainly has supporters in the Senate, the majority leadership can simply block such legislation from reaching the floor for a vote.

Prospects could improve greatly, however, if Democrats regain control of the Senate in this year’s elections. In that case, Murkowski could rise to chair the Energy Committee.

And so, Young’s 12th passage of ANWR legislation might not be as important as his 13th, Dillon said.

In the meantime, Murkowski plans to keep working to persuade her colleagues to open ANWR’s coastal plain to oil and gas activity.

This summer, she plans to lead an ANWR tour with members expected to be vital for passing the necessary legislation, Dillon said.

‘Backdoor attempt’

One group, the Alaska Wilderness League, called the action “nothing more than a backdoor attempt” to open ANWR “under the guise of transportation policy.”

“This is not the first time that the Republican leadership in the House of Representatives has used the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge as a political football, but hopefully it will be the last,” said Cindy Shogan, the group’s executive director.

“For 50 years, millions of Americans have stood steadfast for the Arctic Refuge’s Coastal Plain as an essential piece of our natural heritage,” Shogun continued. “Despite this overwhelming support, Big Oil’s cronies in Congress have tried every trick in the book to hand over this small corner of northeastern Alaska — the last 5 percent of Alaska’s North Slope that is legislatively off-limits to drilling.”

Shogun said she was confident the Senate and White House would protect ANWR.

Series of lease sales

The ANWR legislation appears to be recycled text from previous bills. It spans 26 pages.

The legislation directs the Interior Department to implement “a competitive oil and gas leasing program that will result in the exploration, development, and production of the oil and gas resources of the Coastal Plain.”

It directs the government to offer tracts having “the greatest potential for the discovery of hydrocarbons,” and to offer “no less than 50,000 acres for lease within 22 months” after enactment.

The bill further directs the government to rapidly conduct additional minimum 50,000-acre sales.