David Voigts.

The coastal plain of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge is a special and unique place in northernmost Alaska that supports calving caribou, denning polar bears, migratory birds that visit every state in the U.S., and is a sacred place of the Gwich’in people. However, it is also thought to contain significant oil reserves. The Trump administration intends to exploit these reserves and has mandated lease sales by July 2026.

Past lease sales have drawn almost no serious interest because oil development in the arctic would be one of the most expensive, complicated, and financially risky bets in the entire industry. However, this has not deterred the administration from trying to force drilling in this ecologically important area.

The major oil companies have walked away from investing in arctic oil because of the many obstacles, leaving only smaller companies hoping to make a quick buck. The reality is that their bids for drilling leases will probably be small, leaving taxpayers holding the bill; and the high expense of drilling in this hostile environment means that projects may fail as markets shift to cleaner, cheaper energy sources. This would result in losses to investors and the Refuge permanently damaged.

If you think drilling for oil in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge is a bad idea, you can let the U.S. Bureau of Land Management know by emailing comments before March 5, 2026, to BLM_AKSO_AK932_AKLeasesales@blm.gov.

David Voigts is a retired ecologist and the current Conservation Chair for the Prairie Rapids Audubon Society. He is a Tama County native, graduating from Dinsdale High School, and lives in rural Jesup on his wife’s family farm.