The Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR) is a 19-million-acre wildlife refuge located on the coastal plain of Alaska’s North Slope. Environmentalists say that ANWR is one of the last pristine wilderness areas remaining on Earth. They want this extraordinary and untouched ecosystem to be protected forever. Wildlife such as polar, black and grizzly bears, caribou, Dall sheep, seabirds and golden eagles all call ANWR home. Advocates say that ANWR is our only conservation area with a complete range of arctic ecosystems including coast, tundra, mountains and taiga and boreal forests. The question of whether to drill for oil in this preserve has been an ongoing controversy for over 40 years. What is not in dispute is the amount of oil that lies beneath this refuge. Estimates show that ANWWR contains about 10 billion barrels of recoverable oil and could yield more than 800 million barrels of oil per year.

An executive order by former President Biden permanently banned drilling in more than 10 million acres of Alaska’s North Slope from oil development, including ANWR. However, after winning the 2024 election, President Trump signed an executive order on his first day in office to reverse the Biden-era protections and pursue further oil and gas development in Alaska. His Interior Department announced plans in March 2025 to advance new leasing in the ANWR coastal plain. A lease sale was held but it failed to attract any bids from the oil and gas industry.

Drilling opponents claim environmental damage will occur not only during drilling operations, but when storing and transporting oil, disposing of wastes, and constructing roads, buildings, airstrips and ports - to say nothing of the potential for oil spills.

Drilling proponents counter that great precautions were taken to protect the environment and wildlife during the construction of the Trans-Alaska pipeline. They claim oil can be safely extracted from ANWR in a way that does not destroy its beauty.

Pending Legislation: H.R.3067 - Arctic Refuge Protection Act
Sponsor: Rep. Jared Huffman (CA)
Status: House Committee on Natural Resources
Chair: Rep. Bruce Westerman (AR)