Market Farming

["Kevin Ancell" <kancell AT goodearthgardens.com>]

From: "Dawn M. Ripley" <ripley AT iglou.com>
> I have it on good authority that Oklahoma's Senator Inhofe has attached a
> rider to the Defense Authorization Bill that would allow the proposed
> drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Preserve to take place.
>
> The bill, S.1438, will be debated on and voted on TOMORROW, September 23;
It
> is likely that it will pass as a result of our unchecked preparations for
war.

TOP 10 REASONS TO SUPPORT DEVELOPMENT IN ANWR
1. Only 8% of ANWR Would Be Considered for Exploration Only the 1.5 million
acre or 8% on the northern coast of ANWR is being considered for
development. The remaining 17.5 million acres or 92% of ANWR will remain
permanently closed to any kind of development. If oil is discovered, less
than 2000 acres of the over 1.5 million acres of the Coastal Plain would be
affected.

2. Revenues to the State and Federal Treasury Federal revenues would be
enhanced by billions of dollars from bonus bids, lease rentals, royalties
and taxes. Estimates in 1995 on bonus bids alone were $2.6 billion.

3. Jobs To Be Created Between 250,000 and 735,000 jobs are estimated to be
created by development of the Coastal Plain.

4. Economic Impact Between 1980 and 1994, North Slope oil field development
and production activity contributed over $50 billion to the nations economy,
directly impacting each state in the union.

5. America's Best Chance for a Major Discovery The Coastal Plain of ANWR is
America's best possibility for the discovery of another giant "Prudhoe
Bay-sized" oil and gas discovery in North America. U.S. Department of
Interior estimates range from 9 to 16 billion barrels of recoverable oil.

6. North Slope Production in Decline The North Slope oil fields currently
provide the U.S. with nearly 25% of it's domestic production and since 1988
this production has been on the decline. Peak production was reached in 1980
of two million barrels a day, but has been declining to a current level of
1.4 million barrels a day.

7. Imported Oil too Costly The U.S. imports over 55% of the nation's needed
petroleum. These oil imports cost more than $55.1 billion a year (this
figure does not include the military costs of protecting that imported
supply). These figures are rising and could exceed 65% by the year 2005.

8. No Negative Impact on Animals Oil and gas development and wildlife are
successfully coexisting in Alaska's arctic. For example, the Central Arctic
Caribou Herd (CACH) at Prudhoe Bay has grown from 3,000 to as high as 23,400
during the last 20 years of operation. In 1995, the Central Arctic Caribou
Herd size was estimated to be 18,100 animals.

9. Arctic Technology Advanced technology has greatly reduced the 'footprint"
of arctic oil development. If Prudhoe Bay were built today, the footprint
would be 1,526 acres, 64% smaller.

10. Alaskans Support More than 75% of Alaskans favor exploration and
production in ANWR. The Inupiat Eskimos who live in and near ANWR support
onshore oil development on the Coastal Plain.