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Should The United States Drill For Alaska Dbq Essay

722 Words3 Pages

For centuries the United States has been a beacon of hope for environmentalism, and it is imperative for our country that we preserve this identity. The Arctic National Wildlife Refuge or ANWR is in the secluded northeastern corner of Alaska and could contain large reserves of oil in the Prudhoe Bay region. The question of whether or not to drill for oil has been a controversial topic in American politics for decades, though the evidence will show that drilling for oil is a mistake for this country. This is because it will devastate and destroy the fragile environment. Additionally, drilling in Prudhoe Bay will not solve our oil problems. Further, drilling for oil is not worth the massive tradeoffs. Therefore, the United States should not drill for oil in Alaska because it is not worth it, it does not solve our oil problems and it destroys the environment. To begin, The United States should not drill for oil in Alaska because it will destroy the environment. I …show more content…

I know this because in the text it states, “A study by the US Energy Information Agency (March 2004) shows it would only reduce US oil imports 4%, having no real effect on prices or supply,” (Doc C Paragraph 1). This shows that drilling for oil would not solve our oil problems since it only reduces our reliance on foreign oil a meager 4%. If drilling has no effect on price, supply or our reliance on foreign oil than should we even drill? I also know this to be true because in Doc C it states, “It’s not possible to be self-sufficient given the amount of oil consumed as a nation. The U.S. uses more oil than it could find domestically, even if it were to drill on all public lands. The U.S. uses 25% to 30% of the oil produced in the world, yet has less than 3% of known oil reserves,” (Doc C Paragraph 3).This is important because if becoming self-sufficient is impossible than is drilling even worth

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