Thank you NM Senators
Over the final months of 2017, Defenders of Wildlife and our conservation partners were deeply engaged in the fight to protect the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge from being opened to oil and gas exploration. Through the budget reconciliation process, which requires only a simple majority to pass the Senate rather than the typical 60-vote threshold, a provision opening the Refuge’s coastal plain to oil and gas exploration was attached to the Republican tax reform package.
The 1.5 million acre coastal plain is the biological heart of this crown jewel of the National Wildlife Refuge System, and from our national grassroots networks to our team of DC lobbyists, Defenders devoted itself to this fight whose implications reverberate far beyond Alaska and cut to the heart of our conservation values.
Throughout this fight, we regularly rallied our supporters in Congress to speak out through letters, press conferences, in committee hearings and on the floor of the House and Senate. Although New Mexico is far from Alaska — both geographically and ecologically — both of our senators, Tom Udall and Martin Heinrich — were consistent and vociferous supporters of keeping the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge wild, and Defenders of Wildlife is excited to acknowledge and celebrate their leadership on this issue.
Thank you to New Mexico’s Senators
Our Senators are working daily to preserve our nation’s most precious wildlands, both here, and in other states, and their success should be lauded.
Included in last month’s GOP tax bill was a provision to open the coastal plain of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge to oil and gas exploration. In addition to supporting one of North America’s largest remaining caribou herds, the coastal plain also provides nesting grounds for hundreds of species of migratory birds and is home to all three species of North American bears. Drilling would irreparably harm the biological heart of the refuge and seriously undermine its ability to support wildlife.
Throughout the months long fight that led to this damaging provision being snuck into the tax bill, both Senators Udall and Heinrich demonstrated unwavering support for this crown jewel of the Refuge system. By leading press conferences, speaking out on the floor of the Senate and in committee hearings, they stood-up for wildlife and wild places. We need more of this kind of leadership across the political spectrum. Thank you to both Senators for fighting to protect the integrity of our public lands.
-Robyn Richards (Albuquerque, NM)
