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ON SHORE, THE ARCTIC REFUGE REMAINS AT RISK The Beaufort Sea lies perilously close to the biological heart of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge—the coastal plain that is the calving ground of the 170,000-member caribou herd that migrates there each spring. This area also is vital to grizzlies, polar bears, wolves, muskoxen (an animal that dates back to the Ice Age), and millions of migratory songbirds and waterfowl that nest there. The oil industry has been lobbying for decades for the chance to drill the coastal plain, and the industry’s political allies have pushed hard in Congress for such authorization. Arctic found a lot of “really good studies” but also some “still-glaring holes,” she said in an interview. Shell spokesman Curtis Smith criticized the USGS report. “We think it falls far short of acknowledging the data and expertise that exists today,” he said, adding that Shell is ready to move forward safely in the Arctic. “In the unlikely event of an oil spill, what we saw in the Gulf (of Mexico) is not something we’d ever want to pursue: a number of small vessels chasing ribbons of oil. That’s why our oil spill response plan is predicated on being on site immediately.” Smith acknowledged that the Arctic is a “very harsh, remote” environment and that if Shell had a spill it couldn’t just call the Coast Guard. “You have to bring everything with you. That’s been our plan all along.” A fleet of 16 to 20 large oil-spill responders would circle the drill ship 24/7, Smith said. He pointed out that BP’s Deepwater Horizon rig was drilling at 5,000 feet under high pressure in the Gulf of Mexico. Shell would be drilling in 120 to 150 feet of water on the Arctic’s shallow OCS. “The wells we want to drill in Alaska are considered very straightforward,” Smith said. But Epstein, an engineer who has been appointed to a federal advisory committee on offshore drilling, pointed to a 2009 shallow-water blowout in Australia that gushed for ten weeks. Attempts to cap the well, at a depth of 240 Working with many partners, The Wilderness Society has been able to turn aside every bill. We are supporting S. 33 and H.R. 139, which would add the coastal plain to the National Wilderness Preservation System—and thus bar drilling in this unique place. In August the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service’s new draft management plan for the refuge opened the door to considering a wilderness recommendation for the coastal plain. This is a positive step, but the decision to actually designate the land as wilderness rests with Congress. feet, failed, and millions of gallons of oil spewed into the ocean. Another red flag was the August 2011 offshore pipeline spill near Scotland in the North Sea. That was a Shell operation, and the company’s response was widely viewed as sub-par. Ultimately, Epstein contended, the decisions on whether to drill in the Beaufort and Chukchi may say something about society’s values. Are we more focused on the long term, or the short term? Is the oil worth the risk of potentially undermining the traditional ways of Native communities like Point Hope? Are we prepared to take on the challenges posed by climate change? The Wilderness Society, Hank, and others are determined to defend northern Alaska, but they face equally determined opponents. Marilyn Berlin Snell is a San Franciscobased journalist. Her work has appeared in Discover, The New Republic, and The New York Times. In 2004, she teamed with ABC’s “Primetime” to produce a TV version of her investigation of a U.S.-based company’s payments to terrorists in the Philippines. The program was nominated for an Emmy. © A.S. Hamrah 18 1-800-THE-WILD © Lincoln Else
© Steven Kazlowski/AlaskaStock.com Native communities along Alaska’s northern coast depend on whales and other sea life. “Not worth the risk” Point Hope, population 674, lies on a gravel spit that juts several miles into the Chukchi Sea. One of the oldest continuously occupied Inupiat Eskimo areas in Alaska, its residents (Tikeraqmuit Inupiat Eskimos) depend on fishing and whaling for survival. Mayor George Kingik says that anything that threatens his constituents’ way of life is not worth the risk. “The whole community depends on our ocean, so that’s what we need to protect. I’m just going to tell you: We go against the drilling issue here.” The Inupiat have learned over thousands of years how to hunt in the Chukchi and Beaufort seas, but Kingik does not believe drilling companies under- www.wilderness.org stand the challenges. “The Arctic is different than the Lower 48,” he said. “We have strong currents, it’s always pretty rough up here.” The village of Point Hope is part of the North Slope Borough, which covers the entire North Slope region of Alaska and has its own governing body. Though Point Hope remains unwaveringly opposed to drilling, Curtis Smith noted that Shell has successfully built “partnerships” with others, including the North Slope Borough. Some Natives have concluded that potential economic gains outweigh the risks to the natural world. —Marilyn Berlin Snell 19
Page 1 and 2: Migratory birds tell climate change
Page 3 and 4: Table of Contents 17 The Final Fron
Page 5 and 6: ENERGY: We secured greater protecti
Page 7 and 8: IDAHO In 2009, climaxing an eight-y
Page 9 and 10: © Erin Paul Donovan Our coalition
Page 11 and 12: Harbingers of Climate Change Acreek
Page 13 and 14: On the highest mountains in the Nor
Page 15 and 16: The Final Frontier By Marilyn Berli
Page 17: © Patrick J. Endres/AlaskaPhotoGra
Page 21 and 22: Currier’s uncle spent the winter
Page 23 and 24: commitment to conservation was outs
Page 25 and 26: © Howie Garber a story: Following
Page 27 and 28: © © Bradly J. Boner Skiers and ot
Page 29 and 30: © Jeff L. Fox camp, miles hiked pe
Page 31 and 32: Getting people out in these spaces
Page 33 and 34: It is now open season on open space
Page 35 and 36: www.wilderness.org Aravaipa Canyon
Page 37 and 38: © Darren Huski www.wilderness.org
Page 39 and 40: © Tom Till www.wilderness.org East
Page 41 and 42: © Sean Babbington Building an Army
Page 43 and 44: © Caara Fritz BEN GREUEL, SIERRA C
Page 45 and 46: Noble Basin, about 40 miles south o
Page 47 and 48: Member Profile Wilderness Investors
Page 49 and 50: © Eric Mohl ten-year Mission 66 pr
Page 51 and 52: Wildsong Edited by John Daniel Desi
Page 53 and 54: www.wilderness.org 53
Page 55 and 56: Complex. Because of the primeval na
Page 57 and 58: Bodie Hills Visitor Information Bod
Page 59 and 60: © Lynn Donaldson my wilderness has
Page 61 and 62: Conservation Enthusiast CROSSWORD P
Page 63: A Tribute to David Getches David Ge

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