Anwr

As the price of gas increases and the economic struggle continues, the need for cheap, reliable fuel is a demand.   One way to lower the price of gas is to begin drilling in the Northern part of Alaska, known as ANWR.   ANWR stands for Arctic National Wildlife Refuge.   It is believed to have large amount of oil that could decrease the prices of oil.   ANWR is also a place with great wildlife that is unlike any other.   So that is where the debate begins.   Are the American people willing to sacrifice the wildlife in this area for oil that will eventually lead to more pollution around the world?   On the other hand, are people willing to sacrifice oil, which is becoming more and more important to our society, for just wildlife?   In this paper, I will discuss the pros and cons of drilling in ANWR.
Before I go into the positive and negative effects of drilling in ANWR, I will discuss the area.   ANWR is located in northeastern Alaska.   The area of ANWR encompasses approximately19 million acres(4). The area is almost equivalent to the size of the state South Carolina.   ANWR at 19 million acres is bigger than 10 other states.   The area is split up into two different regions, the coastal plain and the wilderness area.   The area that we would drill in would be in the coastal plain.   This area would only be 2,000 of the 19 million acres.   These area contains coastal lagoons, barrier islands, salt marshes, and river deltas (2).  
Drilling in ANWR could possibly lead to some devastating effects.   ANWR is home to a wide variety of animals and plants, these include: caribou, polar bears, wolves, migratory birds, sea ducks, geese, swans, shorebirds, and whales and seals along the coastline (4).   Polar bears are already being affected by the loss of ice, and ANWR’s coastal plain is home to a large population of polar bears.   By increasing population to this region adds only another problem that the animals will face (3).   Are the American people willing to sacrifice these animals...