Should we drill for oil in Alaska's wilderness?
Should we drill for oil in Alaska’s Wilderness?
The world, as we know it, is in the midst of having an oil crisis. Our nation starves and bends at the will of this dreadful calamity. Our deprivation for this atrocious corruption has led us to look for oil deposits in the Alaskan Wilderness. The US needs oil and by drilling for oil on our own land, we would help our economy, but in doing so would destroy the beauty of the wilderness and harm many others. The matter on hand is that should we drill for oil in Alaska’s wilderness? My opinion and answer to this question would simply be no. The United States of America should not drill for oil in the Alaskan wilderness. I hold strongly to this belief for I am someone who does not tempt to greed but rather, I wish to look for alternatives that would reduce oil consumption. Drilling for oil in the Alaskan wilderness would not only destroy the home of many Arctic animals, but at the same time, it will have no real effect on our economy. According to a study by the US Energy Information Agency, the oil from the Alaskan Wilderness “would only reduce US oil imports by 4%” (Document C), which would barely put a dent in our economy. Not only that but it would only supply us for “no more than 6 months” in spite of our starvation and at the rate in which we consume oil. We hold less than 3% of all known oil reserves and “the amount from the Arctic Refuge is a drop in the bucket” (Document C). The effect is too small for the scar that would be left behind after we have drilled the land. The Alaskan Wilderness that we wish to drill belongs to the Inupiat Eskimo people. By drilling in their land, we would ruin their traditional way of life. They “rely on the land and resources of the North Slope for ... physical, …cultural, and …economic well-being” (Document D). The Eskimo people live on this land and although drilling may not have harmed them yet, slowly, over time, the land will degrade by pollutants and drilling. “We
The world, as we know it, is in the midst of having an oil crisis. Our nation starves and bends at the will of this dreadful calamity. Our deprivation for this atrocious corruption has led us to look for oil deposits in the Alaskan Wilderness. The US needs oil and by drilling for oil on our own land, we would help our economy, but in doing so would destroy the beauty of the wilderness and harm many others. The matter on hand is that should we drill for oil in Alaska’s wilderness? My opinion and answer to this question would simply be no. The United States of America should not drill for oil in the Alaskan wilderness. I hold strongly to this belief for I am someone who does not tempt to greed but rather, I wish to look for alternatives that would reduce oil consumption. Drilling for oil in the Alaskan wilderness would not only destroy the home of many Arctic animals, but at the same time, it will have no real effect on our economy. According to a study by the US Energy Information Agency, the oil from the Alaskan Wilderness “would only reduce US oil imports by 4%” (Document C), which would barely put a dent in our economy. Not only that but it would only supply us for “no more than 6 months” in spite of our starvation and at the rate in which we consume oil. We hold less than 3% of all known oil reserves and “the amount from the Arctic Refuge is a drop in the bucket” (Document C). The effect is too small for the scar that would be left behind after we have drilled the land. The Alaskan Wilderness that we wish to drill belongs to the Inupiat Eskimo people. By drilling in their land, we would ruin their traditional way of life. They “rely on the land and resources of the North Slope for ... physical, …cultural, and …economic well-being” (Document D). The Eskimo people live on this land and although drilling may not have harmed them yet, slowly, over time, the land will degrade by pollutants and drilling. “We