The same ‘Drill Baby, Drill’ crowd are now the ‘Spill Baby, Spill Crowd- SC urges Congress to say NO to Arctic Drilling

Lawmakers are the closest they’ve been in decades to letting oil and natural gas companies drill in northeast Alaska’s Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR). The Senate Budget Committee released their budget blueprint for the upcoming fiscal year. A major part of the plan includes overhauling the tax code to allow $1.5 trillion in tax cuts over the next decade for individuals and corporations. What they are doing is cutting the environmental funding by $1 billion or more. The budget resolution also opens the door to drilling in the coastal plain of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, and provides tax cuts to corporate polluters at the expense of public health and communities across the nation. By using the budget reconciliation process, protections for the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge can be overturned by a simple majority vote. Jeff Tittel, Director of the New Jersey Sierra Club released the following statement:

“We need to stand up against offshore drilling and protect our coasts, whether it is here or in the Arctic. The next thing we know they will target offshore drilling in the Atlantic Ocean next. One quart of oil pollutes a million gallons of water, so this is a serious threat. The oil would be taken to refineries in our area, while we will see more pipelines like Dakota Access and Keystone XL further putting us at risk. We have to explore new technologies for wind and wave power and remove obstacles that stand in the way of clean energy. We should be focusing on promoting safe and renewable energy like wind power and not opening up our oceans to drilling.

“While there are five times more jobs in clean energy than fossil fuels, Trump is pushing for dirty fuels that threatens our economy. Despite his alternative facts, the data shows that there are vastly more jobs in renewable energy such as solar than there are in the fossil fuel industry. Trump is attacking renewable energy and slashing environmental and climate budgets. He wants to decimate the EPA and take away funding for NOAA climate programs. He wants to open public lands and the arctic for drilling, as well as threaten our coasts.

“Despite the Refuge’s importance to wildlife and people alike, oil companies have set their sights on drilling in this sensitive area for decades — a threat that has intensified as they go to greater lengths to find oil. The Refuge is ground zero for climate change impacts — over the past 40 years, Alaska has warmed twice as fast as the rest of the country. We can’t risk compounding this problem by adding drilling to the equation.

“To pay for his tax cuts to millionaires, Trump wants to eliminate important programs on renewable energy and electric vehicles. At the same time, he’s keeping almost all the loopholes and subsidizes for Big Oil and the other fossil fuel industries. This is part of his war on the environment and clean energy. In the current budget, there’s already about $15 billion in subsidies for fossil fuels. It also eliminates the 10% investment tax credits for solar and wind industries to build factories. This hurt both the producers and consumers of renewable energy.

“We’re targeting all of Representatives, especially Republican Congressmen Smith, MacArthur, LoBiondo, and Lance, say NO to Arctic drilling and no to this or any budget proposal. Congress must reject any budget reconciliation bill that includes drilling in America’s Arctic Refuge or cuts to programs that protect health and our communities. Instead of listening to the public who opposes offshore drilling, the Senate Republicans are continuing the fossil foolishness of the past. We need to make sure our coasts are protected. The same ‘Drill Baby, Drill’ crowd are now the ‘Spill Baby, Spill Crowd.’ We need all of our representatives in Washington to oppose this environmentally damaging budget proposal,” said, Jeff Tittel, Director of the New Jersey Sierra Club.  

Because of these immense threats, now is the time to protect the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, one of the most environmental sensitive places on the planet, once and for all. Please take action to protect the Arctic Refuge and reject this disastrous budget plan.