Gwich’in and Conservation Groups Support PM’s Opposition to Drilling in Arctic Refuge

“The Refuge is a sacred place for all Gwich’in people,” said Norma Kassi of the Vuntut Gwich’in in Old Crow, Yukon. “I visited the Refuge this spring and witnessed thousands of caribou with their calves. At that moment, Justice Thomas Berger, David Suzuki, Monte Hummel, Ken Madsen and I all agreed that we must stick together and seek strong support from our Prime Minister, opposing any oil or gas development. I was thrilled to hear Mr. Martin support this as a human rights issue, which it definitely is for the Gwich’in.”

“Sitting there among the caribou, with Norma and the others, I was unforgettably impressed by the sheer beauty and vulnerability of this place” David Suzuki said. “The idea, that there could be roads, pipelines, gravel pads, oil wells and waste disposal sites without affecting the caribou, is just ridiculous. That should never happen.”

Yet current proposals in the U.S. Congress could open the coastal plain of the Refuge to oil drilling. Although such proposals have been repeatedly defeated over the last 25 years, they have now been buried in a budget bill for this September that requires only 50% majority, rather than the usual 60% needed to pass.

“It’s a classic backdoor political manoeuvre to try to approve something that is unpopular with the majority of Americans as well as 73% of Canadians familiar with the issue,” said Monte Hummel, President Emeritus of WWF-Canada. “So far, we have recruited over 100,000 signatures from Canadians supporting the PM’s opposition to drilling, and we solidly support his view that, ‘the best place to stop it is right now before that bill passes.'”

“I’ve been lucky enough to visit the Refuge and photograph its beauty,” said Ken Madsen, Whitehorse-based author and leader of the Caribou Commons project. “I’m struck by its importance not only for the caribou, but for other wildlife such as polar bears and birds from literally every continent of the world. The U.S. should be living up to its agreements with Canada to conserve the wildlife that depend on the Refuge, rather than promoting development for less than a year’s supply of oil.”

Elizabeth May, Executive Director of the Sierra Club of Canada noted, “Rarely have I seen a Prime Minister saying ‘we will pull out all the stops in, in trying to maintain the ecological integrity of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge,’ or saying, ‘we’re not going to give up, I can tell you that.’ I hope that Mr. McKenna, our Ambassador in Washington, and our Consuls General throughout the U.S., will now take up the cause with the same vigour as the PM.”

Mr. Martin’s statements were made on August 23rd in an interview with the Whitehorse Star. Conservationists believe that the vote in Congress will be so close that strong pressure from Canada could make the difference, as many U.S. legislators are unaware that this is bigger than a domestic issue. Stéphane Dion, Minister of the Environment, and Larry Bagnell, Member of Parliament for the Yukon, have also been outspoken critics of the U.S. drilling proposals, especially during visits to Washington.

Supportive messages from former Prime Minister John Turner and Justice Thomas Berger were delivered at the press conference, and also attending was the Honourable Larry Bagnell, Member of Parliament for the Yukon, and representatives of Ducks Unlimited Canada, Nature Canada, the Canadian Parks and Wilderness Society, and the Canadian Wildlife Federation.