For oil we don’t need?” Cantwell said on the Senate floor Thursday, according to The Hill. Democrats, led by Sen. Maria Cantwell (Wash.), were attempting to attach an amendment to the chamber’s budget plan that would bar drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge , which covers more than 19 million acres in northeastern Alaska. Almost every Senate Republican voted Thursday to block an amendment that would have protected a swath of the Alaskan Arctic from oil exploration, flouting attempts from Democrats and environmental groups to keep the region under government protection. Parts of the ANWR that could be opened for drilling are thought to hold 10.3 billion barrels of oil, according to the U.S. Geological Survey. “Republicans are moving forward with a budget that includes this poison pill to hand over the wildest place left in America to Big Oil.

Source: Huffington Post October 20, 2017 03:33 UTC