National Wildlife Refuge Association Supports House Reconciliation Language That Would Reverse Arctic National Wildlife Refuge Drilling Program

Yesterday, the Natural Resources Committee in the U.S. House of Representatives passed their portion of the budget reconciliation package that is being drafted in both chambers of Congress. The committee’s bill included a repeal of the oil and gas leasing program on the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge in Alaska and a buy-back of the existing leases. This language will now be included in the full reconciliation bill and voted on by the full House of Representatives. 

Brown bear sleeping on the tundra in Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, Alaska by K. Carr / USFWS

The Arctic National Wildlife Refuge is the largest land refuge in the National Wildlife Refuge System, with pristine wilderness habitat from the coastal plain down to the Brooks Range. The coastal plain has been a tempting drilling target for oil and gas exploration for decades, and in 2017, an oil and gas development program was started through the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act. This bill was also passed through the reconciliation process. The first lease sale was conducted in January 2021, and the leases were finalized on January 19, 2021. 

Climate change is altering landscapes across the globe, and no place is changing faster than the arctic. The coastal plain of the Arctic NWR is famed for its denning polar bears and as the birthing grounds of the Porcupine caribou herd. Oil and gas development has no place there. 

A young Semipalmated sandpiper chick on the tundra in Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, Alaska by R. Thomas / USFWS

As one piece of the National Wildlife Refuge System, what happens at the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge can happen on any refuge across the country. Located in every state and four territories, the Refuge System is diverse and provides habitat to innumerable species. The National Wildlife Refuge Association will continue to fight to protect the Arctic NWR and all national wildlife refuges.

We would like to extend our gratitude to Chairman Raul Grijalva, Representative Jared Huffman, and the committee for their leadership on this language to protect the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. Your support for this unique habitat will mean long-lasting protection of wildlife, habitat, and the continued way of life for the indigenous peoples of northeastern Alaska.