RTR.
WASHINGTON -- The Obama administration said Thursday it is designating more than 200,000 square miles in Alaska and off its coast as "critical habitat" for polar bears, an action that could add restrictions to future offshore drilling for oil and gas.
Federal law prohibits agencies from taking actions that may adversely affect critical habitat and interfere with polar bear recovery.
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The total area proposed for critical habitat designation would cover about 200,541 square miles -- about half in the rugged Chukchi Sea off Alaska's northwest coast. About 93 percent of the area proposed for the polar bear is sea ice, with the remaining 7 percent made up of barrier islands or land-based dens of snow and ice.
From Alaska's point of view, there are a couple of problems with this latest action. One is that our polar bear population is doing just fine, thankyouverymuch. As late as WAY back in 2008 (you remember 2008, don't you?), the federal government agreed with that assessment. Canada's polar bears had dwindling numbers for whatever reason, but not so, here.
The other is that people might need the oil. Our gas is up to $3.26 per gallon already, so one could reasonably assume that an increased supply would be a good thing.
Of course, that's just my opinion, and YMMV.
1 comment:
I thought of you as soon as I heard this on the news. I think you are absolutely right that he does not have the Constitutional right to take this land; not just by Alaska's Constitution, but also by the US Constitution. The federal government has way over stepped its bounds. Each state is to be respected as a sovereign entity and a member of a Republic. Perhaps if the feds don't want to repspect that Alaska should peacefully secede.
I have been reading a lot about the Alaska Independence Party. Sounds to me like they have some good points. This is obviously just to push his global warming agenda and limit energy developement in Alaska.
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