SWA #23

Title: To Drill or Not to Drill:   The Debate on Oil and Gas Development in Alaska and how it can be Resolved


Thesis:  After conducting research of the debate on drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR), I believe that the solution to the debate is to begin construction on the pipeline and allow drilling in the area proposed.


I.   The area that will be affected by the drilling is not as large, nor as environmentally diverse as environmentalists make it out to be.
       A. Environmentalists claim that this specific area is beautiful
              1.    Greenpeace USA says that “America's Serengeti” would become “a wasteland 
     of roads, pipelines, drilling platforms and oil spills,” further 
     endangering wildlife that “is already gravely threatened by global 
     warming.”  
              2.   Traversed by a dozen rivers and framed by jagged peaks, this spectacular 
     wilderness is a vital birthing ground for polar bears, grizzlies, Arctic 
     wolves, caribou and the endangered shaggy musk ox, a mammoth-like survivor 
     of the last Ice Age.
              3.   The Natural Resources Defense Council exhorts legislators not to “trash an 
     American treasure” by signing legislation that would permit drilling in 
     ANWR. 
       B.   The area that will be affected is not the same area that they portray and advertise nor does it take up the area environmentalists claim it will.
              1.   ANWR's Area 1002 is a barren, frozen wasteland 
     for much of the year
              2.   The bill requires the Interior Department to put up at least 200,000 acres for lease and no 
     less than another 200,000 if there's interest by industry, totally roughly 
     3 percent of the refuge.
              3.    eight-month winter, temperatures drop as 
     low as 70 degrees below zero. The region is shrouded in near-total darkness 
     for five months, and for 56 days there is no sunlight at all.
              4.   No trees live 
     in this inhospitable region, and wildlife is present for only about six 
     weeks each year. 


II.   It is an economically smart move to drill within the United States
       A.   The amount of oil is substantial enough to help bring the cost of oil and gas down.
             1.   ANWR could produce more than 150 billion cubic feet of 
     natural gas per year, which is about the volume of gas consumed by the 
     state of South Carolina in 2000."
              2.   Potentially holds billions of barrels of recoverable oil and 
     trillions of cubic feet of recoverable gas 


III.   A compromise can be reached through an agreement for a certain percentage of the revenue generated by the drilling to go towards projects of environmentalists' and Democrats' choosing.
       A.    One argument is that a 
     percentage of the revenue that comes from drilling can go towards projects 
     that Dems decide, such as renewable energy development.
       B.   Will allow drilling to commence in Alaska but also help research and development on renewable sources of energy, such as wind, solar, and hydroelectricity, to progress.

SWA #22

a)   A problem the United States faces today is the decision of whether or not drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR) would be more beneficial than detrimental to the overall well-being of our country in relation to the environment, economy, and foreign affairs.  The debate has gone on for years, with different congresses making different decisions as power has shifted from party to party.  Environmentalists make the claim that drilling in ANWR will destroy the landscape and habitat of many wild animals, while economists and the local residents of ANWR state that the pipeline will bring jobs and revenue to local governments as well as the national government.

b)   After conducting research of the debate on drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR) and reading claims by economists, local residents, and environmentalists, it is clear that drilling in Alaska will greatly benefit the United States both economically and in foreign affairs.

SWA #21

Student Essay #3:

The issue is how to solve deforestation and the author speaks in depth of the importance of this topic throughout his/her paper.  They also make the four distinct perspectives very clear in their thesis: local and indigenous people, businesses, medical researchers, and environmentalists.  The thesis is very well written, concise, and easy for the reader to understand. Their introduction and conclusion did a great job of leading into and out of the essay.  The introduction grabs the reader's attention and introduces the topic at the same time, making it very interesting and informative at the same time.  The conclusion answered the "so what?" question and also makes a good lead in to the next essay.  I would say the essay was effective because it brought into light four different perspectives on one problem and made those perspectives easy to understand.  It is to the point so it keeps the reader's attention and has good information in it so the reader is still learning and gaining knowledge on the topic.  It is a well-written essay and it is hard to make improvements on the author's writing.

SWA #20

Thesis:  A major debate that has been argued, discussed, and reconsidered multiple times over many years is the development of oil and gas drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge in Alaska.  The topic has been visited by most of the mainstream media and big name politicians, and is currently being deliberated by Congress.  There are supporting and objecting opinions across the board on this topic, with perspectives ranging from the residents who will be most directly affected, to oil and gas companies who will profit from the drilling.  There is opposition from environmentalists who do not want to see the landscape contaminated by pipelines and support from those who believe drilling will help decrease our dependence on foreign companies.

Issue:  This debate has been ongoing for years over whether the United States should participate in oil and gas development in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR) in the state of Alaska.  ANWR covers 19 million acres (approximately the size of the state of South Carolina), but only the coastal plain on the northern edge of ANWR, which is about 1.5 million acres, will be affected by drilling.  There are potentially billions of barrels of recoverable oil and trillions of cubic feet of recoverable gas.  In fact, ANWR “could produce more than 150 billion cubic feet of natural gas per year, which is about the volume of gas consumed by the state of South Carolina in 2000.”

Perspectives:

• Alaskan Residents:  Many of the residents that live near ANWR support oil and gas development in the coastal plain.  They believe that it will benefit their local communities through providing a local tax base, jobs and funding for schools, water, and sewage systems, and give local governments a bigger voice in permitting and environmental regulation.

• Oil Companies:  BP and Conoco, specifically, support drilling in ANWR for the profits but they also have proposals and ideas of how to drill without impacting the environment too much.

• Environmentalists:  The main cause of concern for environmentalists is the impact that drilling will have on the environment.  They do not want it to ruin the pristine location of ANWR or the beauty of the surrounding landscape.  Another major concern is the impact on the natural wildlife, such as caribou, that oil and gas drilling will have.

• Economists:  A major reason in support of drilling in ANWR is the decreased dependence on foreign oil companies.  This move, in their opinion, would not only help economically in terms of being able to have a bigger say in gas prices, but also in foreign affairs, like the “necessity” of becoming involved in overseas conflicts due to the United States’ need for large amounts of oil.

• My opinion:  I believe that the United States should begin oil and gas development in ANWR.  The coastal plain which will be affected by this project is frozen tundra, with little to no wildlife and very little vegetation.  The only animal life that would be affected by the pipelines and drilling would the caribou that travel through, and they go through that area for only weeks.  I also believe that drilling in our own country will help to lower gas prices and decrease our foreign dependency.

Conclusion:  It is very important for people to stay informed and aware of the issues that Congress is deliberating and, should any citizen feel the need, to contact their representatives to inform them of where they stand on those issues.  The decision that Congress makes about drilling in ANWR will have a lasting impact on Americans’ daily lives, no matter what the final decision is.  It will affect oil and gas prices and could possibly have a huge influence on our country’s foreign policies.  Therefore, it is necessary to inform the Congressmen and Congresswomen of this nation where its citizens’ stand on this issue.

SWA

N/A. "Arctic Wildlife Refuge: Why Trash an American Treasure for a Tiny 
     Percentage of Our Oil Needs?" NRDC: Natural Resources Defense Council. 
     NRDC, 19 Dec. 2011. Web. 14 Mar. 2012. <http://www.nrdc.org/land/ 
     wilderness/arctic.asp>. ~Oil from the refuge would hardly make a dent in 
     our dependence on foreign imports -- leaving our economy and way of life 
     just as exposed to wild swings in worldwide oil prices and supply as it is 
     today.  
      
     ~ Traversed by a dozen rivers and framed by jagged peaks, this spectacular 
     wilderness is a vital birthing ground for polar bears, grizzlies, Arctic 
     wolves, caribou and the endangered shaggy musk ox, a mammoth-like survivor 
     of the last Ice Age.  




- - -. "Opposition to Drilling for Oil & Gas (ANWR, Etc.)." 
     DiscoverTheNetworks.Org: A Guide to the Political Left. 
     DiscoverTheNetworks.Org, 2012. Web. 14 Mar. 2012. 
     <http://www.discoverthenetworks.org/viewSubCategory.asp?id=165>. 
     ~Greenpeace USA says that “America's Serengeti” would become “a wasteland 
     of roads, pipelines, drilling platforms and oil spills,” further 
     endangering wildlife that “is already gravely threatened by global 
     warming.”  
      
     ~The Natural Resources Defense Council exhorts legislators not to “trash an 
     American treasure” by signing legislation that would permit drilling in 
     ANWR. 
      
     ~Former President Jimmy Carter adds, “The simple fact is, drilling is 
     inherently incompatible with wilderness. The roar alone of road building, 
     trucks, drilling, and generators would pollute the wild music of the 
     Arctic, and be as out of place there as it would be in the heart of 
     Yellowstone or the Grand Canyon." 
      
     ~In reality, ANWR's Area 1002 is a barren, frozen wasteland 
     for much of the year. During its eight-month winter, temperatures drop as 
     low as 70 degrees below zero. The region is shrouded in near-total darkness 
     for five months, and for 56 days there is no sunlight at all. No trees live 
     in this inhospitable region, and wildlife is present for only about six 
     weeks each year. 
      
     ~Opponents of drilling warn that local caribou populations would 
     suffer mass death as a result of any industrial intrusion by man. 

3/12/12

1. As Kang put it, baseball puts a "false shine on a rotten apple," and his whole point of the article is claiming that baseball glosses over racism and division, claiming that everyone is equal and has equal opportunities and is accepted.  However, underneath that facade, racism and division is still rampant within baseball and other sports.
2. Kang speaks of baseball as the American Sport by alluding to the fact that people in the US feel like they are a part of a group and included in something patriotic when speaking about, watching, and understanding baseball.  His examples throughout the article show that he felt an inclusiveness with his community and friends when speaking about baseball.

SWA #17

"Conoco and BP Propose Alaska Gas Pipeline Project." ANWR.org. Arctic Power,
     2012. Web. 12 Mar. 2012. <http://www.anwr.org/Headlines/
     Conoco-and-BP-propose-Alaska-Gas-Pipeline-Project.php>. " The
     pipeline will have a capacity of 4 billion cubic feet of gas per day and
     equal a rough equivalent of 6-8% of US daily consumption."
     
     "The gas pipeline proposed will take 10 years to
     build and cost $30 billion dollars making it the largest construction
     project in North America ever."
     
     "he two oil majors stated that they were open to
     partnerships with 3rd parties in completion of the project, possibly
     TransCanada."


"Natural Gas Facts: Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR)." Netl.gov. National
     Energy Technology Laboratory, N/A. Web. 12 Mar. 2012.
     <http://www.netl.doe.gov/publications/factsheets/policy/Policy006.pdf>.
     ~19 million acres
     
     ~Coastal Plain Area is on northern edge of ANWR and consists of 1.5
     million acres
     
     ~Potentially holds billions of barrels of recoverable oil and
     trillions of cubic feet of recoverable gas
     
     ~ANWR is about the size of SC
     
     ~"In 1980, Public Law 96-487, Alaska National Interest Lands
     Conservation Act
     (ANILCA), was passed by Congress to provide for the designation and
     conservation of certain public lands in the State of Alaska. ANILCA set
     aside more than 100 million acres in Alaska as national parks, preserves,
     wildlife refuges, and wilderness areas. In section 1002 of this act,
     Congress specifically left open the question of future management of the
     1.5-million-acre Coastal Plain of ANWR (“1002 area”) because of its
     potentially enormous oil and gas resources, and its important environmental
     and ecological value. The Act gives Congress the authority to enact
     legislation to allow oil and gas development in the area."
     
     ~"ANWR could produce more than 150 billion cubic feet of
     natural gas per year, which is about the volume of gas consumed by the
     state of South Carolina in 2000."