A Message on the Arctic Wildlife Refuge Vote
National Audubon President, John Flicker

Today the US Senate took a major step toward opening up the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge to oil drilling. In many ways this is just one more battle in the long effort to protect the Arctic Refuge that began when President Carter signed the Alaska Lands Act in 1980. This is one of the last great wilderness areas left on the planet. We have a responsibility to preserve it for our children and future generations. We are all disappointed, but we won’t stop working to protect the Arctic Refuge. The vast majority of Americans oppose oil drilling in the Refuge. There will be more opportunities for their voices to be heard. We will win in the end.

The coastal plain of the Refuge is the most biologically-productive area and the center of wildlife activity. The Porcupine caribou herd migrates annually to the coastal plain to give birth to and nurse its young. More than 100 bird species from four continents utilize the coastal plain during migration. Birds that use the coastal plain of the refuge visit all 50 states during the year. Over the last several years we have faced one challenge after another defending the Refuge, including a similar vote in the last Congress which we won. Throughout this ongoing struggle, I have been tremendously proud of Audubon. We left no stone unturned raising our voices, encouraging others to do the same and finding the energy to never give up even when we knew the odds were long. We didn’t give up because of what is at stake, and because we know how strongly our members and the American people feel about it.

Today was an unfortunate vote against common sense and the environment. It was a vote for the past, a past where our consumption of resources is assumed to have no boundaries. This was a vote for failed energy policies that will only lead to increased global warming. This vote was extremely close, and I believe it will not stand.

Before they begin to actually cause damage on the ground, we will find a way to reverse it.

As we pick ourselves up and prepare for the next round, I want to thank the countless Audubon volunteers and members who have taken their time over the years, and especially in the last several months to speak out, to act, and to meet with lawmakers on this issue. I know that Audubon has made a difference and we will continue to do so. Our Board members who pitched in at the national and state level deserve our thanks not only for helping with this difficult but necessary conservation effort, but also for all the time and energy they put in to help Audubon. I also want to thank the Audubon staff who have worked long and hard, organizing, strategizing and representing us all in the fight.

Our Washington DC Office, with Mike Daulton, deserves tremendous credit for keeping the fight going, for helping win the vote in the last Congress, and for making this vote so close. The fact that this vote remained close was due to all of our efforts and the other Alaska Coalition members. While we didn’t win this time, the close vote sends a strong message that this isn’t over. It should give anyone planning to invest in Arctic Oil some pause to assess the certainty and political risk of their investment. This also shows why it is so important that we are a grassroots organization and that we continue to build our strength in the field. The more relationships we have with elected officials from the local as opposed to national perspective will only increase our ability to make a difference in the future, and believe me, there will be a future fight over this remarkable wilderness.

Finally I want to thank one more state, Alaska. Stan Senner and his team have been not only leaders for Audubon but also leaders for the entire Alaska Coalition. Stan has been our anchor throughout and has had the support of the entire organization for this Alaska conservation priority, in part due to his leadership and in part due to his ability to make sure we all know that some of the birds we see in our backyard use this place. We should all be proud, and we should all get ready for the next one.

John Flicker, President, National Audubon Society