Canada urges against hasty U.S. move on Arctic oil
Date: 25-Sep-01
Country: CANADA
Author: David Ljunggren
Canada has long objected to U.S. plans to drill in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR), saying it would ruin the calving ground of the Porcupine caribou herd upon which native Gwich'in Indians in both Alaska and Canada depend.
But Oklahoma Senator James Inhofe is threatening to add language this week to a multibillion-dollar defense-spending bill to allow drilling in ANWR as a way to secure future U.S. oil supplies.
"It's particularly important at times when you have a crisis on your hands to make sure you don't make hasty and ill-considered decisions," Canadian Environment Minister David Anderson told Reuters.
"It's also very important at times like this, when energy security is a major issue, that you consider all factors and not go ahead without the normal analysis and the thought that would go into such a decision," he said in an interview.
Canada, which says both countries should provide permanent protection for the wildlife populations that straddle the border, has already slapped a development ban on areas frequented by the Porcupine herd.
"We still believe (drilling) to be the wrong decision, we do not believe the American security situation in any way justifies a change in that position," said Anderson.
Canadian Energy Minister Ralph Goodale last week said there plenty of other energy sources in North America that could be developed before ANWR needed to be touched. These included the vast tar sands of Alberta, which are believed to be richer that the entire reserves of Saudi Arabia.
Supporters of opening the refuge say U.S. oil supplies from the Middle East are at risk and the Alaska wilderness reserves are needed to make up any possible shortfall.
"That is in our view a highly questionable approach. This should be based on long-term strategic considerations - none of this oil, if it were drilled, is going to come on flow for a number of years," Anderson told Reuters.
He said there was no evidence of a shortfall in supplies from the Middle East and pointed to an almost 15 percent fall in the price of crude oil yesterday as supply fears eased.
Anderson was speaking from the western city of Winnipeg, Manitoba, after briefing provincial ministers on the international efforts to combat global warming.
Delegates from around 180 countries failed in July to agree to changes to the 1997 Kyoto Protocol on cutting emissions of the greenhouse gases blamed for global warming. They are due to try again next month in Marrakesh, Morocco, and Anderson said he expected that meeting to go ahead.
"Our hope is that the civilized world will be able to deal with the issue of terrorism and still maintain its values in a number of areas," he said.
"We have a large number of global issues, including global warming, which cannot simply be ignored...We have long-term interests as nations and they continue even though we clearly have a major short-to medium-term problem - I'm talking years now - on terrorism."
