Lake Teshekpuk at Risk From Bush’s Drilling Plan
The Wilderness Society is urging people to oppose the Bush Administration’s plans to sacrifice one of the world’s most important ecosystems in Alaska.
Although nearly ninety percent of this region is already open to oil and gas drilling, the ecologically fragile area around Teshekpuk Lake is so important to Native communities and wildlife that it has been protected from drilling by every Interior Secretary for the past quarter century.
Over a million birds, more than 45,000 caribou, and seven Alaska Native communities depend on the unparalleled resources of Teshekpuk Lake. Birds come to the lake from all 50 US states. The area is a critical habitat for yellow-billed loons, brant, and other species; and is a refuge for caribou herds that settle there each summer to give birth.
But now this could all change. The Bureau of Land Management is holding a public consultation about Teshekpuk until November 6. The Wilderness Society is asking people to submit comments by 29th October, so they can be hand delivered in time.
For more information go here.