op-ed

Caribou: Their Ecosystem or Ours?
Allie Weaver-
There has been an ongoing debate about the drilling on the Alaskan territories. These territories are called the ANWR territories or the Alaskan National Wildlife Refuge. After performing consistent and extensive research on the benefits and risks of drilling in this territory, it has not only come to my attention but it has been made completely apparent to me that it is necessary to drill in these territories. Now in all fairness I think it is necessary that you know I am very environmentally conscious person with every intention of going green that there is. However I am also aware of how crucial it is for the United States to separate themselves from foreign energy resources. Now in regards to the environmental issues at hand, the harming of the caribou and other wildlife has been mentioned as a downfall to the drilling in these territories. However, it is important to know that this drilling exploration is only scheduled to be during the winter months so that the sensitive tundra will be protected, and the wildlife will be at a lesser risk. There are also going to be strict rules to protect streams, rivers, springs, and wetlands. Now as for the caribou, everyone seems to be worried about the welfare of the caribou. It is important to reference Prudhoe Bay, which is an oil base in Alaska that, according to the New York Times in 2006, produced up to 400,000 barrels of oil a day. I think it is also important to mention that Prudhoe Bay is also the largest oil field in the United States. When the Prudhoe Bay territory was opened for oil drilling, the caribou were also a great concern to the environmentalist population, however the number of caribou in Prudhoe Bay actually increased after the opening of the Prudhoe Bay oil rig. Now since I have mentioned the largest oil field in the United States I think now is a good time to mention the size of the Alaskan National Wildlife Refuge. According to the Strategic Center for Natural Gas and Oil the ANWR territory is about the size of South Carolina. The proposed area for drilling in

caption for photo
The blue area represents the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, the red is the Northern Coastal Plain.
the Coastal Plain is about one-fifth the size of Washington DC’s Dulles International Airport. For those of you who are more number oriented the ANWR territory is a total of 19million acres, the area that is being proposed for drilling is 2,000 acres. This is an incredibly small fraction of land in comparison to the size of the refuge as the whole. The U.S. Department of the Interior stated that in 1980, President Carter and Congress actually set aside 1.5 million acres of the refuge for potential oil development. This means that this land has had been a prospect for oil drilling territory for a long period of time. Some environmentalists argue that there will not even be a significant amount of oil found once the drilling actually begins. Well, I hate to impose more numbers upon you but it is estimated, according to the Strategic Center for Natural Gas and Oil that ANWR can produce more that 150 billion cubic feet of natural gas per year, which was almost the actual volume of gas consumed by the state of South Carolina in the year 2000. It has also been shown from extensive research, that ANWR could produce greater than a million barrels of oil per day, which is more than enough to replace the U.S. imports from Iraq. It has always been the goal of the government to be a secure and stable nation, and relying on our own soil and breaking away from foreign dependency is a great way to continue our reputation as the most powerful nation in the world. A great amount of concern has been rested on that of the Alaskan citizens and how drilling in these territories would affect the lives of the locals. BBC’s Richard Lister went to a remote part of the Alaskan Arctic and talked with the locals to get their opinion. He found that the opposition for drilling in ANWR still rests among conservation groups and not so much with the locals. “Much of their income now comes from taxes on the oil companies, and I found few people who opposed new onshore drilling-even in ANWR”, says Lister. Annual polls from the Center of Natural Gas and Oil also show that over 75% of the Alaskan citizens support opening ANWR. The Alaskan state legislature also passed a resolution supporting ANWR development by sixty votes to zero, so it is extremely apparent that it is not only the locals that feel like ANWR will support Alaska’s economy. It is essential to point out that the media and the conservative groups that are trying to fight for the preservation of the ANWR territory present their information in the presentation of beautiful mountains and streams and wildlife leading us to believe that this is exactly where the drilling is going to take place. However, it is absolutely crucial to understand that these tiny 2,000 acres where this drilling would be taking place is in an already developed area. There are already streets and buildings and locals thriving in this area. So sorry to disappoint you but there is going to have to be a different approach besides making the oil drillers look like the big bad wildlife destroyers. The area in which drilling would be taking place is already industrialized. In order to make a decision on this topic you must step back and evaluate the facts. Evaluate that by the year 2020 imports are supposed to rise from about 50 percent of U.S. consumption today to 62 percent. The environment and wildlife are extremely important but if we cannot take care of ourselves and our ecosystem, how can we be expected to take care of a whole other ecosystem.

Argument of Definition

I found my argument of definition on the current economic crisis that we are experiencing. The information was reffering to Americans' opinions and which presidential candidates Americans' felt would handle the economic crisis more efficiently. One specific statistic said that "forty-nine percent of those questioned said Obama, D-Illinois, would display good judgement in an economic crisis, six points higher than McCain, R-Arizona." This is an argument of definition because the definition of "good judgement during an economic crisis" is a very subjective thing. Since many people have different opinions on how to deal with economic crisis it is expected that there would be many different opinions and approaches to "good judgement."

Factual Argument

My factual argument that I found I believe well represents the characteristics of a factual argument. Factual arguments are "driven by perception...." and " can quickly lead towards tentative and plausible statements."My factual argument that I found is quite simple really. It is discussing John McCains interview when he went on the view. There are simple arguments being made from Barbara Walters saying that she didn't think John McCain knew what to expect coming onto the show and had fact behind this because she knows what kind of show her and her fellow hosts put on. This is a strange example but it is later proved by the actual video of the interview and how John McCain handled it. The result was John McCain being a little stunned by a few of the questions that were asked but the interview over all went over well.

Editorial Article

Environmentally Responsible Energy Productionin Alaska's Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR)
Environmentally responsible energy production in a sliver of Alaska's vast Coastal Plain will reduce America's dependence on unreliable foreign sources of oil by providing America with a homegrown, secure and stable supply of energy. It will create new jobs for Americans here in America. Environmentally responsible energy production is supported by labor unions, farm groups and others in a bipartisan coalition that includes Alaskan Eskimos who live in the area proposed for energy production.
According to legislation most recently passed by the U.S. House of Representatives, no more than 2,000 acres out of the 19-million-acre refuge will be utilized for energy production. Likewise, in order to ensure that energy production does not have any significant adverse impact on the environment, the best environmental technology and American ingenuity will be required for exploration and development. Exploration will be limited to the winter months between November and May to protect wildlife. Ice roads and airstrips will protect the sensitive tundra. In addition, strict rules will be mandated to protect streams, rivers, springs, and wetlands.
ANWR represents America's single greatest onshore prospect for oil. The U.S. Geological Survey estimates that ANWR contains a mean expected value of 10.4 billion barrels of technically recoverable oil. At peak production, ANWR could produce more oil than any U.S. state, including Texas and Louisiana.
In 1980, President Carter and Congress set aside 1.5 million acres of ANWR's Northern Coastal Plain for potential oil development. This area is often called the "1002 Area" because it was set aside in Section 1002 of the law. The U.S. House of Representatives has endorsed the environmentally-responsible development of ANWR twice in the past four years.

ANWR

The topic I chose is the debate between the people and the government of drilling in Alaska. This topic surprisingly interested because I realize the gravity of our energy situation. Congress has supported the environmentalists twice in the past four years to support the no drilling policy in Alaska. ANWR stands for Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, the environmentalists argue that the caribou, which are surrounding the territory where drilling would take place, are an endangered species and would be harmed through the drilling process. However there are several sources and images even of the workers that were drilling or inspecting the drilling area that were interacting with the caribou and not harming them at all. Rather getting along with them. Do not take me as a person who does not care about the environment, in fact that is one of my main concerns about this election. However this area in Alaska where the American people are wanting drilling to be done occupies 2,000 acres out of 19 million acres of the refuge that would be utilized for energy production. Both the presidential candidates have stated that they do not support drilling in the refuge area however President Carter in 1980 along with Congress set aside 1.5 million acres of ANWR's Northern Coastal Plain for potential oil development. It is surprising to me that our candidates are seeming to look over this incredible opportunity of energy production on our very own soil. Especially when I find it imperative to seperate our reliance on foreign oil and create our own resource. When the presidential candidates have repetitively faught for the voice of the American people and the American people are wanting to utilize this energy source, the candidates have no support in their supposed claim to want to speak for the American people. It is neccessary for us find and produce our own energy which is exactly what drilling in the ANWR territories would give us.

What interests me in the election

I have to be honest and say that in the past I have never really payed much attention to politics or the presidential elections in general. However this year I find myself more interested, I think this has something to do with the fact that I'm getting older and am truly starting to understand how important strong leadership is in this country. I am starting to realize that I have to put my opinion out there and do anything I can do make this world a better place. One of the factors that will affect who I vote for is the environment. The candidates approach on how to deal with global warming is very important to me. This is a very real issue that must be confronted head on. Another issue for me is how the candidate is handling and will handle the war on terrorism. This is also a very serious issue and will affect my life and the life of my children. It is crucial that we have someone in office with a specific and successful plan on how to handle the war on terror. I think this years election is one of the most public elections that we have ever had. I believe this years election has really evoked a younger crowd and is really touching people on a personal level. I think it is absolutely necessary for young people like myself to start paying attention to what is happening in the political world and start to take action.

Chapter 4 Logos

When it came time to find an argument that included or represented logos I did not have a hard time. Immediately I decided to look for things on the presidential election because it is obvious that both presidential candidates are going to be presenting their "own logic," or their own common sense plan of how this country should be led. McCain holds his mainstream logic as saying that Obama is just a celebrity and has no actual leadership experience. He claims logically, that when a nation is in a time a struggle strong leadership is neccessary and Obama does not possess that leadership skill because he has never led anything in his life. Former New York mayor Rudy Giuliani defends McCain and states that not only was this his personal opinion as well but "it is a fact" that Obama has never led anything and that this country does not have time for on-the-job training. As we read in our text, facts are believable when they come from reliable sources, and I believe that Giuliani represents one of many honest or reliable sources that have been documented in this whole entire campaign.