Authors note: I wrote this essay to tell people about the oil situation in Alaska. There are ups, downs, and mainly risks in drilling for oil in Alaska.
With gas prices skyrocketing politicians are trying to lift a ban against offshore drilling, a intense debate has again come up over the risks and rewards of this approach to oil drilling in Alaska.(source one) There are many risks to this possible drilling so it isn’t really worth it to drill in Alaska.
The anticipated drilling site is home to the Wildlife Refuge. This refuge is like a sanctuary or birthing ground for the animals. It wouldn't be good if they got disturbed it wouldn't be good because they might loose their home or they will move someplace else because of all the activity. When this change happens it isn't easy to find a new home. Some might get killed by a predator.
After that problem there is also another. The amount of oil that is predicted to be recoverable by our drilling isn’t really that much. The amount of oil that is estimated to be recoverable is only going to last the U.S. six months. The problem is the U.S. consumes a lot of things including oil. If the ANWR (Arctic National Wildlife Refuge) decides to drill then it would take 12 years just to start producing oil and reach it’s peak of 876,000 barrels a day ten years later. By then we may have a new power source and it wouldn’t have been worth it. (source two)
Many people are thinking that drilling in Alaska will lower the oil prices down a lot. The problem with that statement is that it’s not decreases in oil recovering, but because the demand of oil increases every year. It is estimated that by 2015 the oil demand will go up seven percent and by 2030 the oil demand will increase by 30 percent therefore not making the prices lower, but maybe even higher than before. (Source three)
Therefore it is not worth it to hurt the wildlife, have the oil run out in half a year,and to have the oil prices stay the same. The oil demand increase estimation may be a little off what it will really be, but with all the new things needing oil the demand still will go up so the price staying the same or going up. Drilling in Alaska in really unnecessary and the people focused on getting more oil should be more concerned about finding a different power source.
1. " Oil Drilling: Risks and Rewards | LiveScience ." Science News – Science Articles and Current Events | LiveScience . N.p., n.d. Web. 14 Mar. 2012. <http://www.livescience.com/4979-oil-drilling-risks-rewards.html>.
2. "Would drilling more Alaskan oil cut prices? - Business - Answer Desk - msnbc.com." msnbc.com - Breaking news, science and tech news, world news, US news, local news- msnbc.com. N.p., n.d. Web. 14 Mar. 2012. <http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/12993250/ns/business-answer_desk/t/would-drilling-more-alaskan-oil-cut-prices/#.T1ZC_npMjfU>.
3. " Oil Drilling: Risks and Rewards | LiveScience ." Science News – Science Articles and Current Events | LiveScience . N.p., n.d. Web. 14 Mar. 2012. <http://www.livescience.com/4979-oil-drilling-risks-rewards.html>.
With gas prices skyrocketing politicians are trying to lift a ban against offshore drilling, a intense debate has again come up over the risks and rewards of this approach to oil drilling in Alaska.(source one) There are many risks to this possible drilling so it isn’t really worth it to drill in Alaska.
The anticipated drilling site is home to the Wildlife Refuge. This refuge is like a sanctuary or birthing ground for the animals. It wouldn't be good if they got disturbed it wouldn't be good because they might loose their home or they will move someplace else because of all the activity. When this change happens it isn't easy to find a new home. Some might get killed by a predator.
After that problem there is also another. The amount of oil that is predicted to be recoverable by our drilling isn’t really that much. The amount of oil that is estimated to be recoverable is only going to last the U.S. six months. The problem is the U.S. consumes a lot of things including oil. If the ANWR (Arctic National Wildlife Refuge) decides to drill then it would take 12 years just to start producing oil and reach it’s peak of 876,000 barrels a day ten years later. By then we may have a new power source and it wouldn’t have been worth it. (source two)
Many people are thinking that drilling in Alaska will lower the oil prices down a lot. The problem with that statement is that it’s not decreases in oil recovering, but because the demand of oil increases every year. It is estimated that by 2015 the oil demand will go up seven percent and by 2030 the oil demand will increase by 30 percent therefore not making the prices lower, but maybe even higher than before. (Source three)
Therefore it is not worth it to hurt the wildlife, have the oil run out in half a year,and to have the oil prices stay the same. The oil demand increase estimation may be a little off what it will really be, but with all the new things needing oil the demand still will go up so the price staying the same or going up. Drilling in Alaska in really unnecessary and the people focused on getting more oil should be more concerned about finding a different power source.
1. " Oil Drilling: Risks and Rewards | LiveScience ." Science News – Science Articles and Current Events | LiveScience . N.p., n.d. Web. 14 Mar. 2012. <http://www.livescience.com/4979-oil-drilling-risks-rewards.html>.
2. "Would drilling more Alaskan oil cut prices? - Business - Answer Desk - msnbc.com." msnbc.com - Breaking news, science and tech news, world news, US news, local news- msnbc.com. N.p., n.d. Web. 14 Mar. 2012. <http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/12993250/ns/business-answer_desk/t/would-drilling-more-alaskan-oil-cut-prices/#.T1ZC_npMjfU>.
3. " Oil Drilling: Risks and Rewards | LiveScience ." Science News – Science Articles and Current Events | LiveScience . N.p., n.d. Web. 14 Mar. 2012. <http://www.livescience.com/4979-oil-drilling-risks-rewards.html>.
