Alaska Oil Drilling

While most of the news today will focus solely on the resignation of Secretary of State Colin Powell and Co., a story that is sure to be buried is this one about drilling in Alaska.

The Department of the Interior okayed a plan to start drilling in five sections of the Alaskan North Slope.

Environmentalists have criticized the plan to develop these Alpine satellite fields as a rollback of environmental protections promised during the Clinton administration.

The BLM said it modified the original development proposal to offer greater protection to wildlife and sensitive habitats in the reserve.

Some of the major changes include relocating portions of the gravel access roads and pipeline routes, moving power lines and raising pipelines an additional 2 feet to 7 feet to help migrating caribou.

Awww, isn't that nice? Relocating portions of gravel roads and pipelines. That must have been tough. And moving power lines and raising pipelines for the poor caribou. How about leaving it the fuck alone? Noooo. This is good for America they say.

It allows for the energy development our country needs, while protecting the land, water and wildlife. It will show that this, and future Arctic development, can and will be done in an environmentally sensitive way.

Says Assistant Secretary for Land and Minerals Management Rebecca Watson.

What about devoting a couple billion to the creation of a mass production hydrogen-fuelcell car? How about that? A car whose only by product is h20 - water. How about making all car companies who wish to continue selling cars in the U.S. [where there are more car drivers/owneres] convert at least a third of their product line to be solar/electric/hygrogen/hybrid powered within the next decade? That would make heads turn. Smaller companies with a viable business model who have developed exactly this kind of technology would be brought to the forefront and they would be able to receive the proper funding they deserve.

This fossil fuels will not be here for long. We have to find alternative forms of energy to feed our car driving needs.