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WEEKLY NEWS 2: Senate Allows Drilling in Alaska

A close U.S. Senate vote on March 16 permits oil drilling to take place in an Alaska wildlife refuge.

By a vote of 51 to 49, the Senate gave the green light for drillers to prospect the 1.5 million-acre Artic National Wildlife Refuge.

Lon Sonsalta, mayor of Kaktovik, a town located in the Alaskan wildlife refuge, told the Associated Press that many people have expressed concern about the drilling, fearing the protection of hunting grounds, camping areas and cemeteries.

For the past 10 years, supporters for the drilling have wanted to tap the billions of barrels of oil believed to be underneath the refuge. They have said that producing more oil in the United States would help bring down energy costs and would solve the uneven trade with other countries.

The news of this vote came one day before worldwide oil prices reached a new all-time high of more than $57 per barrel on March 17. The Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries, which controls much of the world’s supply of oil, warned in a monthly report (also released March 17) that growing economies in countries like the United States would continue to push the oil prices up through the rest of this year.

--Written by Leah Williams

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