Action Alert: Protect the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge | Dec. 17

By
Chelsea Pulliam
-

Action Alert: Oppose Oil Lease Sales in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge

– Public Comments due by December 17 –

Photo by Nathaniel Wilder. Source: Northern Alaska Environmental Center.

Thank you to Northern Alaska Environmental Center for the following information.

The Situation

The Department of Interior issued a call for nominations and comments on potential oil and gas lease sale tracts which BLM delineated across the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge’s coastal plain. Please submit comments to the Bureau of Land Management opposing lease sales on the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge coastal plain by December 17.

Why This Matters
The Arctic Refuge coastal plain is an incredibly vast expanse of ecologically rich and life-giving land is Iizhik Gwats’an Gwandaii Goodlit to the Gwich’in Nation, or “The Sacred Place Where Life Begins” – the birthing grounds of the Porcupine caribou herd. It is critical habitat where polar bears den and migratory birds nest. It is one of the last remaining areas in Alaska’s Arctic that exists as it has since time immemorial.

How You Can Help

Please submit comments to the Bureau of Land Management. The agency is only accepting hard copies, and comments must be received by December 17, 2020. Please include your name, phone number, address, and email. The Northern Alaska Environmental Center will hand deliver all comments emailed to them to ensure they are counted. Please submit your comment one of these ways:

  1. Email your comments to blm_akso_ak932_cpcomments@blm.gov.
  2. Email your comments to emily@northern.org with the subject line Arctic Refuge Public Comment. We will print and hand-deliver all comments to the BLM office in Anchorage by December 17.
  3. Mail your comments to: State Director, Bureau of Land Management, Alaska State Office, 222 West 7th Avenue, Mailstop 13, Anchorage, AK 99513-7504. Again, all comments must be received by December 17. 

Tips for Writing Comments:

Your comments should express opposition to leasing all tracts on the coastal plain. Comments will be most effective if they are substantive. Try to focus on fact-based comments rather than emotional appeals. Highlight issues of concern, like the human rights of Arctic Indigenous peoples, insufficient Environmental Impact Statements in the planning phase, climate impacts, and impacts on caribou, polar bears, and migratory birds. For a list of ideas and detailed talking points visit northern.org/featured/take-action-comment-period-opens-for-blms-call-for-nominations-for-the-arctic-refuge-coastal-plain/