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Pros and Cons of Expanding Oil Drilling in Alaska

The Pros of Expanding Drilling in Alaska

There are several advantages to drilling for oil in Alaska.

Expanding the drilling for oil will help reduce the prices of gas. America has to import a large amount of oil to meet the needs of Americans every year. Importing this large amount of oil is very expensive, and it contributes to the ridiculously high price of gasoline.
If oil drilling was expanded in Alaska, then the US would be able to produce a lot more oil domestically, so it would not have to import such a large amount. This would save billions of dollars.
Drilling can help save energy; for detailed information about energy savings, albertaenergyproviders.com”> is a useful resource.

Cons of Expanding Drilling in Alaska

Drilling for oil can do serious damage to wildlife habitats and to animals themselves. For instance, in places where oil is drilled, the marine animals that live near the oil drilling equipment are greatly disturbed. Whales are disoriented by the seismic waves caused by drilling; this disorientation has caused many beachings and deaths of whales.
Oil spills have devastating effects on animals and the environment. If drilling for oil is expanded in Alaska, there is a much greater risk of an oil spill; those oil spills can kill wildlife and send damaging chemicals into the water and on land.
Many animals will lose their habitats if Alaska expands its drilling. For drilling to be expanded, more roads have to be built, and drilling equipment must bore into the Earth. All of this will displace animals from their habitats.
Pollution of Air - The process of expanding drilling causes a lot of pollution. Oil spills can cause terrible smog and acid rain. If Alaska drills more, then it will run the risk of polluting its clean air and replacing it with smog.
Negative Social Impacts - It’s been found that expanding oil drilling is likely to cause greater health problems in the populations where oil is drilled.

Expanding oil drilling in Alaska has both advantages and disadvantages. It is difficult to decide what course of action would be best.