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> Bush looking for oil drilling sites in Alaska wildlife refuge By H. JOSEF HEBERT THE ASSOCIATED PRESS WASHINGTON — Republican gains in the Senate could give President Bush his best chance yet to achieve his No. 1 energy priority _ opening an oil-rich but environmentally sensitive Alaska wildlife refuge to drilling. If he is successful, it would be a stinging defeat for environmentalists and an energy triumph that eluded Bush his first four years in the White House, t A broader agenda that includes reviving y nuclear power, preventing blackouts and expanding oil and gas drilling in the Rockies will be more difficult to enact. Republicans in the House and Senate said this week they plan to push for Alaska refuge drilling legislation early next year, and they predict success, given the 55-44-1 GOP Senate majority in the next Congress. Democrats and some environmental activists say continued protection of the refuge has never been as much in doubt. “It’s probably the best chance we’ve ■ i n r* r» • i i t-» i n /-» I • C UdU, l\wp. lUUldlU 1 UU1UU, A\-IAUU., chairman of the House Resources Committee and a vocal drilling advocate, said in an interview. Sen. Pete Domenici, R-N.M., chairman of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee, said he will press to open the coastal plain of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge ^ (ANWR) as part of the government’s ■ budget deliberations early in 2005. That would enable drilling proponents to skirt an otherwise certain Democratic led filibuster that would be difficult to overcome. “With oil trading at nearly $50 a barrel, the case for ANWR is more compelling than ever,” said Domenici. “We have the technology to develop oil without harming the environment and wildlife.” Bush is also expected in his second term to renew his call for action by Congress on a broader, largely pro production, energy agenda _ 'from easing rules for oil and gas drilling on federal land in the Rocky Mountains to expanding dean-coal technology and improving the reliability of the electricity grid. New tax incentives to spur construction of next-generation nuclear power plants also will be back on the table after Democrats and some moderate Republicans scuttled it last year. Greater use of corn-based ethanol in gasoline also has wide support at the White House and in Congress. Drilling in the Alaska refuge has been all but dismissed as unachievable since drilling opponents two years ago beat back a pro-development measure by a 52-48 vote. Bush did not make an issue of the refuge during the presidential campaign. But with four new GOP senators expected to support ANWR drilling and the loss of a Republican moderate who opposed it, drilling advocates believe they now have at least 52 votes in the Senate, enough to get the measure through Congress as part of the budget process. By Senate rules, opponents of drilling cannot filibuster a budget measure. ANWR qualifies as a budget measure because it will generate income for'the government from oil companies. Interior Secretary Gale Norton said in an interview Tuesday with The Associated Press that drilling in the Arctic refuge remains a Bush priority, r»ort-i/~nlar1v nnw that ml nrir/*« arp hiah “I’ve seen the oil prices go up and down over time, and people seem to assume that when prices get high, they always stay high,” she said. “But you need to get the investments done at that point so you’ve got the projects that are continuing on when the prices are low.” Environmentalists already are gearing up to wage an intense lobbying campaign to keep oil rigs out of the refuge’s coastal plain, a breeding ground for caribou, home to polar bears and musk oxen and site of an annual influx of millions of migratory birds. “This is as serious a threat to the refuge as any that has come before,” said Jim Waltman of the National Wildlife Federation. “But the facts haven’t changed. This is still a magnificent area and it can still be damaged by oil drilling.” But geologists believe 11 billion barrels of oil lie beneath the refuge’s tundra and ice, and drilling supporters contend they cin be tapped without damage to the environment or wildlife. Regardless the outcome in the Alaska refuge dispute, the path to getting a comprehensive energy bill is likely to be full of potholes. Twice in the last four Religious Directora Your ^iide to places of worship in Columbia Canterbury C§5 of Columbia An Episcopal Ministry with young adults Tuesdays at 6:30 p.m. in Kennan Chapel at Trinity Cathedral. Come as uou are fellowship ♦food ♦ service projects ^ worship ♦ meaningful discussions Contact Amanda Goldson 269-9268 or via e-mail agoldso1@yahoo.com Ebenezer Lutheran on the corner of Richland and Sumter WtCC 1 be Ceft CefvindC? Simply put, no. God made sure of this 2,000 years ago with the . gift of Jesus. Here's the bonus: Believing in God ^ makes a big difference not only in the next life, but in this one as well. Come and see. We offer traditional and contemporary 11:00am services. Catch the Ebenezer bus at 10:30am in front of the Russell House For more info: 765-9430 or visit www.ebenezerlutheran.org _-— f college ministry of first baptist church lana—of Columbia join us Sundays worship @ 10:30 FREE lunch IS) 11:45 WIDEopen @12:15 six blocks from USC at the comer of Hampton and Sumter streets 256.4251 • fbccola.com/college.htm wideopen@fbccola.com To advertise on this page call 777-5064 years lawmakers have agreed on 85 percent or more of an energy package only to see final action derailed over narrow, although intensely contentious, issues. Some lawmakers, including Sen. Jeff Bingaman of New Mexico, senior Democrat on the energy committee that will write the legislation, argue that lawmakers should focus instead on passing separate bills on the most urgent and widely supported measures. Some of that already has occurred, such as the recently approved loan guarantees for a proposed $20 billion natural gas pipeline from Alaska to the lower 48 states. THE ASSOCIATED PRESS A National Arctic Wildlife Refuge photo showing a caribou and calf running across a section of the National Arctic Wildlife Refuge, Alaska, in this undated file photo. With a bigger Republican majority in the Senate, President Bush is getting a new and better chance of achieving his No. 1 energy priority — opening an environmentally sensitive but also oil-flush Alaska wildlife refuge to drilling. A broader agenda that includes reviving nuclear power, preventing blackouts and expanding oil and gas drilling in the Rockies will be more difficult. Despite the GOP’s new strength, Senate Democrats can still put the brakes on energy measures they strongly A oppose through filibusters such as the one that blocked an energy bill in 2003. The issue then in dispute was liability protection for makers of the MTBE gasoline additives, which have been found to contaminate water systems. However, given the stronger GOP majority, sustaining such filibusters may be more difficult. Associated Press writer John Heilprin j in Washington contributed to this report. E.JLJI Itf sSttTSSTV' 't V ■ • '•Z&ffp; ' •' 1 ' At m 1 .-■ YOUR CATERING SOLUTIONHi r— I I WE DELIVER! 7 DAYS A WEEK^ ■ 1 1 V fTWT! f|fTpTym7!B ■ iTwl For business. For pleasure. For life. 1601 Main Street • Columbia, SC 29201 (803) 765-9200