Arctic National Wildlife Refuge - AbsoluteAstronomy.com

The Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR or Arctic Refuge) is a national wildlife refuge

National Wildlife Refuge

National Wildlife Refuge is a designation for certain protected areas of the United States managed by the United States Fish and Wildlife Service. The National Wildlife Refuge System is the world's premiere system of public lands and waters set aside to conserve America's fish, wildlife and plants...

in northeastern Alaska

Alaska

Alaska is the largest state in the United States by area. It is situated in the northwest extremity of the North American continent, with Canada to the east, the Arctic Ocean to the north, and the Pacific Ocean to the west and south, with Russia further west across the Bering Strait...

, United States

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

. It consists of 19286722 acres (78,050.7 km²) in the Alaska North Slope

Alaska North Slope

The Alaska North Slope is the region of the U.S. state of Alaska located on the northern slope of the Brooks Range along the coast of two marginal seas of the Arctic Ocean, the Chukchi Sea being on the western side of Point Barrow, and the Beaufort Sea on the eastern.The region contains the...

region. It is the largest National Wildlife Refuge in the country, slightly larger than the Yukon Delta National Wildlife Refuge

Yukon Delta National Wildlife Refuge

The Yukon Delta National Wildlife Refuge is a United States National Wildlife Refuge covering about in southwestern Alaska. It is the second-largest National Wildlife Refuge in the country, only slightly smaller than the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. It is a coastal plain extending to the...

. The refuge is administered from offices in Fairbanks

Fairbanks, Alaska

Fairbanks is a home rule city in and the borough seat of the Fairbanks North Star Borough in the U.S. state of Alaska.Fairbanks is the largest city in the Interior region of Alaska, and second largest in the state behind Anchorage...

History

The move to protect this corner of Alaska began in the early 1950s. National Park Service planner George Collins

George Collins

George Collins may refer to:* George Collins , English footballmanager from 1919 to 1936* George W. Collins , U.S. Representative from Illinois...

and biologist Lowell Sumner recruited Wilderness Society

The Wilderness Society (United States)

The Wilderness Society is an American organization that is dedicated to protecting America's wilderness. It was formed in 1935 and currently has over 300,000 members and supporters.-Founding:The society was incorporated on January 21, 1935...

President Olaus Murie

Olaus Murie

Olaus Murie , called the "father of modern elk management", was a naturalist, author, and wildlife biologist who did groundbreaking field research on a variety of large northern mammals. He also served as president of The Wilderness Society, The Wildlife Society, and as director of the Izaak Walton...

and his wife Margaret Murie

Margaret Murie

Margaret Thomas "Mardy" Murie was a naturalist, author, adventurer, and conservationist. Dubbed the "Grandmother of the Conservation Movement" by both the Sierra Club and the Wilderness Society, she helped in the passage of the Wilderness Act, and was instrumental in creating the Arctic...

into an effort to permanently protect the area. They were joined by thousands of the era's prominent conservationists.

The region first became a federal protected area

Protected areas of the United States

The protected areas of the United States are managed by an array of different federal, state, tribal and local level authorities and receive widely varying levels of protection. Some areas are managed as wilderness, while others are operated with acceptable commercial exploitation. , according to...

in 1960 by order of Fred Andrew Seaton

Fred Andrew Seaton

Frederick Andrew Seaton was United States Secretary of the Interior during Dwight Eisenhower's administration.-Biography:Seaton was born in Washington, D.C., but grew up and attended high school in Manhattan, Kansas...

, Secretary of the Interior

United States Secretary of the Interior

The United States Secretary of the Interior is the head of the United States Department of the Interior.The US Department of the Interior should not be confused with the concept of Ministries of the Interior as used in other countries...

under U.S. President

President of the United States

The President of the United States of America is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president leads the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United States Armed Forces....

Dwight D. Eisenhower

Dwight David "Ike" Eisenhower was the 34th President of the United States, from 1953 until 1961. He was a five-star general in the United States Army...

. In 1980, Congress

United States Congress

The United States Congress is the bicameral legislature of the federal government of the United States, consisting of the Senate and the House of Representatives. The Congress meets in the United States Capitol in Washington, D.C....

passed the Alaska National Interest Lands Conservation Act

Alaska National Interest Lands Conservation Act

The Alaska National Interest Lands Conservation Act was a United States federal law passed in 1980 by the U.S. Congress and signed into law by President Jimmy Carter on December 2 of that year....

.

Eight million acres (32,000 km²) of the refuge, the Mollie Beattie Wilderness

Mollie Beattie Wilderness

The Mollie Beattie Wilderness is located in the northeastern section of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. It is the second-largest designated wilderness area in the United States, after the Wrangell-Saint Elias Wilderness. It has an area of approximately , and comprises over 40 percent of the...

, are designated as wilderness area

National Wilderness Preservation System

The National Wilderness Preservation System of the United States protects federally managed land areas designated for preservation in their natural condition. It was established by the Wilderness Act upon the signature of President Lyndon B. Johnson on September 3, 1964...

. The expansion of the refuge in 1980 designated 1.5 million acres (6,100 km²) of the coastal plain as the 1002 area and mandated studies of the natural resource

Natural resource

Natural resources occur naturally within environments that exist relatively undisturbed by mankind, in a natural form. A natural resource is often characterized by amounts of biodiversity and geodiversity existent in various ecosystems....

s of this area, especially petroleum

Oil exploration

Hydrocarbon exploration is the search by petroleum geologists and geophysicists for hydrocarbon deposits beneath the Earth's surface, such as oil and natural gas...

. Congressional authorization is required before oil drilling may proceed in this area. The remaining 10.1 million acres (40,900 km²) of the refuge are designated as "minimal management," a category intended to maintain existing natural conditions and resource values. These areas are suitable for wilderness designation, although there are presently no proposals to designate them as wilderness.

There are presently no roads within or leading into the refuge, however there are a few scattered Indian settlements within. On the northern edge of the refuge is the Inupiat village of Kaktovik

Kaktovik, Alaska

Kaktovik is a city in North Slope Borough, Alaska, United States. As of the 2000 census, the population of the city was 293.-Geography:Kaktovik is located at ....

pop. 258 and on the southern boundary the Gwich'in settlement of Arctic Village

Arctic Village, Alaska

Arctic Village is an unincorporated Native American village and a census-designated place in Yukon-Koyukuk Census Area, Alaska, United States. As of the 2000 census, the population of the CDP was 152. The village is located in the large Gwitch'in speaking region of Alaska, and the local dialect...

pop 152. A popular wilderness route and historic passage exists between the two villages, traversing the refuge and all its ecosystem

Ecosystem

An ecosystem is a biological environment consisting of all the organisms living in a particular area, as well as all the nonliving , physical components of the environment with which the organisms interact, such as air, soil, water and sunlight....

s from boreal

Boreal ecosystem

The term boreal is usually applied to ecosystems localized in subarctic and subantarctic zones, although Austral is also used for the latter....

, interior forest to Arctic Ocean coast. Generally, visitors gain access to the land by aircraft

Aircraft

An aircraft is a vehicle that is able to fly by gaining support from the air, or, in general, the atmosphere of a planet. An aircraft counters the force of gravity by using either static lift or by using the dynamic lift of an airfoil, or in a few cases the downward thrust from jet engines.Although...

, but it is also possible to reach the refuge by boat or by walking (the Dalton Highway

Dalton Highway

The James W. Dalton Highway, usually Dalton Highway is a 414-mile road in Alaska. It begins at the Elliott Highway, north of Fairbanks, and ends at Deadhorse near the Arctic Ocean and the Prudhoe Bay oil fields...

passes near the western edge of the refuge). In the United States

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

, the geographic location most remote from human trails, roads, or settlements is found here, at the headwaters of the Sheenjek River

Sheenjek River

The Sheenjek River is a 200-mile long river in the U.S. state of Alaska. It begins in the eastern part of the Brooks Range and flows southward until joining with the Porcupine River northeast of Fort Yukon, Alaska. It derives its name from the Gwich'in word, written in the modern orthography,...

Geography

The refuge supports a greater variety of plant and animal life than any other protected area in the Arctic Circle

Arctic Circle

The Arctic Circle is one of the five major circles of latitude that mark maps of the Earth. For Epoch 2011, it is the parallel of latitude that runs north of the Equator....

. A continuum of six different ecozone

Ecozone

An ecozone is the broadest biogeographic division of the Earth's land surface, based on distributional patterns of terrestrial organisms.Ecozones delineate large areas of the Earth's surface within which organisms have been evolving in relative isolation over long periods of time, separated from...

s spans about 200 miles (300 km) north to south.

Along the northern coast of the refuge, the barrier island

Barrier island

Barrier islands, a coastal landform and a type of barrier system, are relatively narrow strips of sand that parallel the mainland coast. They usually occur in chains, consisting of anything from a few islands to more than a dozen...

s, coastal lagoon

Lagoon

A lagoon is a body of shallow sea water or brackish water separated from the sea by some form of barrier. The EU's habitat directive defines lagoons as "expanses of shallow coastal salt water, of varying salinity or water volume, wholly or partially separated from the sea by sand banks or shingle,...

s, salt marsh

Salt marsh

A salt marsh is an environment in the upper coastal intertidal zone between land and salt water or brackish water, it is dominated by dense stands of halophytic plants such as herbs, grasses, or low shrubs. These plants are terrestrial in origin and are essential to the stability of the salt marsh...

es, and river delta

River delta

A delta is a landform that is formed at the mouth of a river where that river flows into an ocean, sea, estuary, lake, reservoir, flat arid area, or another river. Deltas are formed from the deposition of the sediment carried by the river as the flow leaves the mouth of the river...

s of the Arctic coastal tundra

Arctic coastal tundra

The Arctic coastal tundra is an ecoregion of the far north of North America, an important breeding ground for a great deal of wildlife.-Setting:...

provide habitat for migratory waterbirds including sea ducks, geese, swan

Swan

Swans, genus Cygnus, are birds of the family Anatidae, which also includes geese and ducks. Swans are grouped with the closely related geese in the subfamily Anserinae where they form the tribe Cygnini. Sometimes, they are considered a distinct subfamily, Cygninae...

s, and shorebirds. Fish such as dolly varden

Dolly Varden trout

The Dolly Varden trout, Salvelinus malma malma, is a subspecies of anadromous fish in the salmon family, and is technically a char. Although many of the fish are anadromous, the fish also exists in landlocked waters.- Range :The subspecies S. m...

and arctic cisco

Cisco (fish)

The ciscoes are salmonid fish of the genus Coregonus that differ from other members of the genus in having upper and lower jaws of approximately equal length and high gillraker counts...

are found in nearshore waters. Coastal lands and sea ice are used by caribou

Reindeer

The reindeer , also known as the caribou in North America, is a deer from the Arctic and Subarctic, including both resident and migratory populations. While overall widespread and numerous, some of its subspecies are rare and one has already gone extinct.Reindeer vary considerably in color and size...

seeking relief from biting insects during summer, and by polar bear

Polar Bear

The polar bear is a bear native largely within the Arctic Circle encompassing the Arctic Ocean, its surrounding seas and surrounding land masses. It is the world's largest land carnivore and also the largest bear, together with the omnivorous Kodiak Bear, which is approximately the same size...

s hunting seals

Pinniped

Pinnipeds or fin-footed mammals are a widely distributed and diverse group of semiaquatic marine mammals comprising the families Odobenidae , Otariidae , and Phocidae .-Overview: Pinnipeds are typically sleek-bodied and barrel-shaped...

and giving birth in snow dens during winter.

The Arctic coastal plain stretches southward from the coast to the foothills of the Brooks Range

Brooks Range

The Brooks Range is a mountain range in far northern North America. It stretches from west to east across northern Alaska and into Canada's Yukon Territory, a total distance of about 1100 km . The mountains top out at over 2,700 m . The range is believed to be approximately 126 million years old...

. This area of rolling hills, small lakes, and north-flowing, braided rivers is dominated by tundra vegetation consisting of low shrub

Shrub

A shrub or bush is distinguished from a tree by its multiple stems and shorter height, usually under 5–6 m tall. A large number of plants may become either shrubs or trees, depending on the growing conditions they experience...

s, sedge

Cyperaceae

Cyperaceae are a family of monocotyledonous graminoid flowering plants known as sedges, which superficially resemble grasses or rushes. The family is large, with some 5,500 species described in about 109 genera. These species are widely distributed, with the centers of diversity for the group...

s, and moss

Moss

Mosses are small, soft plants that are typically 1–10 cm tall, though some species are much larger. They commonly grow close together in clumps or mats in damp or shady locations. They do not have flowers or seeds, and their simple leaves cover the thin wiry stems...

es. Caribou travel to the coastal plain during June and July to give birth and raise their young. Migratory birds and insects flourish here during the brief Arctic summer. Tens of thousands of snow geese

Snow Goose

The Snow Goose , also known as the Blue Goose, is a North American species of goose. Its name derives from the typically white plumage. The genus of this bird is disputed...

stop here during September to feed before migrating south, and musk ox

Musk Ox

The muskox is an Arctic mammal of the family Bovidae, noted for its thick coat and for the strong odor emitted by males, from which its name derives. This musky odor is used to attract females during mating season...

en live here year-round.

South of the coastal plain, the mountains of the eastern Brooks Range rise to over 9000 feet (3,000 m). This northernmost extension of the Rocky Mountains

Rocky Mountains

The Rocky Mountains are a major mountain range in western North America. The Rocky Mountains stretch more than from the northernmost part of British Columbia, in western Canada, to New Mexico, in the southwestern United States...

marks the continental divide, with north-flowing rivers emptying into the Arctic Ocean

Arctic Ocean

The Arctic Ocean, located in the Northern Hemisphere and mostly in the Arctic north polar region, is the smallest and shallowest of the world's five major oceanic divisions...

and south-flowing rivers joining the great Yukon River

Yukon River

The Yukon River is a major watercourse of northwestern North America. The source of the river is located in British Columbia, Canada. The next portion lies in, and gives its name to Yukon Territory. The lower half of the river lies in the U.S. state of Alaska. The river is long and empties into...

. The rugged mountains of the Brooks Range are incised by deep river valleys creating a range of elevations and aspects that support a variety of low tundra

Tundra

In physical geography, tundra is a biome where the tree growth is hindered by low temperatures and short growing seasons. The term tundra comes through Russian тундра from the Kildin Sami word tūndâr "uplands," "treeless mountain tract." There are three types of tundra: Arctic tundra, alpine...

vegetation, dense shrubs, rare groves of poplar

Poplar

Populus is a genus of 25–35 species of deciduous flowering plants in the family Salicaceae, native to most of the Northern Hemisphere. English names variously applied to different species include poplar , aspen, and cottonwood....

trees on the north side and spruce

Spruce

A spruce is a tree of the genus Picea , a genus of about 35 species of coniferous evergreen trees in the Family Pinaceae, found in the northern temperate and boreal regions of the earth. Spruces are large trees, from tall when mature, and can be distinguished by their whorled branches and conical...

on the south. During summer, peregrine falcon

Peregrine Falcon

The Peregrine Falcon , also known as the Peregrine, and historically as the Duck Hawk in North America, is a widespread bird of prey in the family Falconidae. A large, crow-sized falcon, it has a blue-gray back, barred white underparts, and a black head and "moustache"...

s, gyrfalcon

Gyrfalcon

The Gyrfalcon — Falco rusticolus — is the largest of the falcon species. The Gyrfalcon breeds on Arctic coasts and the islands of North America, Europe, and Asia. It is mainly resident there also, but some Gyrfalcons disperse more widely after the breeding season, or in winter.Individual vagrancy...

s, and golden eagle

Golden Eagle

The Golden Eagle is one of the best known birds of prey in the Northern Hemisphere. Like all eagles, it belongs to the family Accipitridae. Once widespread across the Holarctic, it has disappeared from many of the more heavily populated areas...

s build nests on cliffs. Harlequin duck

Harlequin Duck

The Harlequin Duck is a small sea duck. It takes its name from Arlecchino, Harlequin in French, a colourfully dressed character in Commedia dell'arte. The species name comes from the Latin word "histrio", "actor". In North America it is also known as Lords and ladies...

s and red-breasted merganser

Red-breasted Merganser

The Red-breasted Merganser is a diving duck.-Taxonomy:The Red-breasted Merganser was one of the many species originally described by Linnaeus in his 18th-century work, Systema Naturae.-Description:...

s are seen on swift-flowing rivers. Dall sheep

Dall Sheep

The Dall sheep , Ovis dalli, is a species of sheep native to northwestern North America, ranging from white to slate brown in color and having curved yellowish brown horns...

and wolves are active all year, while grizzly bear

Grizzly Bear

The grizzly bear , also known as the silvertip bear, the grizzly, or the North American brown bear, is a subspecies of brown bear that generally lives in the uplands of western North America...

s and arctic ground squirrels

Ground squirrel

The ground squirrels are members of the squirrel family of rodents which generally live on or in the ground, rather than trees. The term is most often used for the medium-sized ground squirrels, as the larger ones are more commonly known as marmots or prairie dogs, while the smaller and less...

are frequently seen during summer but hibernate in winter.

The southern portion of the Arctic Refuge is within the Interior Alaska-Yukon lowland taiga

Interior Alaska-Yukon lowland taiga

The Interior Alaska-Yukon lowland taiga ecoregion, in the Taiga and Boreal forests Biome, of far northern North America.-Setting:This is a region of spruce taiga forest covering much of the central and northern interior of the U.S...

(boreal forest

Taiga

Taiga , also known as the boreal forest, is a biome characterized by coniferous forests.Taiga is the world's largest terrestrial biome. In North America it covers most of inland Canada and Alaska as well as parts of the extreme northern continental United States and is known as the Northwoods...

) ecoregion. Beginning as predominantly treeless tundra with scattered islands of black and white spruce trees

Spruce

, the forest becomes progressively denser as the foothills yield to the expansive flats north of the Yukon River. Frequent forest fires ignited by lightning result in a complex mosaic of birch, aspen, and spruce forests of various ages. Wetlands and south-flowing rivers create openings in the forest canopy. Neotropical migratory birds breed here in spring and summer, attracted by plentiful food and the variety of habitats. Caribou travel here from farther north to spend the winter. Year-round residents of the boreal forest include moose

Moose

The moose or Eurasian elk is the largest extant species in the deer family. Moose are distinguished by the palmate antlers of the males; other members of the family have antlers with a dendritic configuration...

, lynx

Lynx

A lynx is any of the four Lynx genus species of medium-sized wildcats. The name "lynx" originated in Middle English via Latin from Greek word "λύγξ", derived from the Indo-European root "*leuk-", meaning "light, brightness", in reference to the luminescence of its reflective eyes...

, marten

Marten

The martens constitute the genus Martes within the subfamily Mustelinae, in family Mustelidae.-Description:Martens are slender, agile animals, adapted to living in taigas, and are found in coniferous and northern deciduous forests across the northern hemisphere. They have bushy tails, and large...

, wolverine

Wolverine

The wolverine, pronounced , Gulo gulo , also referred to as glutton, carcajou, skunk bear, or quickhatch, is the largest land-dwelling species of the family Mustelidae . It is a stocky and muscular carnivore, more closely resembling a small bear than other mustelids...

s, black

American black bear

The American black bear is a medium-sized bear native to North America. It is the continent's smallest and most common bear species. Black bears are omnivores, with their diets varying greatly depending on season and location. They typically live in largely forested areas, but do leave forests in...

and grizzly

Grizzly Bear

The grizzly bear , also known as the silvertip bear, the grizzly, or the North American brown bear, is a subspecies of brown bear that generally lives in the uplands of western North America...

bears, and wolves.

Each year, thousands of waterfowl and other birds nest and reproduce in areas surrounding Prudhoe Bay and Kuparuk fields and a healthy and increasing caribou herd migrates through these areas to calve and seek respite from annoying pests.

Drilling

The question of whether to drill for oil in the ANWR has been an ongoing political controversy in the United States

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

since 1977. The controversy surrounds drilling for oil

Oil well

An oil well is a general term for any boring through the earth's surface that is designed to find and acquire petroleum oil hydrocarbons. Usually some natural gas is produced along with the oil. A well that is designed to produce mainly or only gas may be termed a gas well.-History:The earliest...

in a 1500000 acres (6,070.3 km²) subsection on the coastal plain, known as the "1002 area." Much of the debate over whether to drill in the 1002 area of ANWR rests on the amount of economically recoverable oil, as it relates to world oil markets, weighed against the potential harm oil exploration might have upon the natural wildlife

National Wildlife Refuge

, in particular the calving ground of the Porcupine caribou

Porcupine caribou

The Porcupine caribou or Grant's caribou is a subspecies of the caribou found in Alaska and adjacent parts of Canada. It resembles the Barren-ground Caribou and is sometimes included in it....

External links

Text of Wilderness Act of 1964
Official ANWR website
360 panoramas of the ANWR documenting the changing climate, by Dr. Matthew Nolan, Professor, University of Alaska, Fairbanks
Congressional Research Service (CRS) Reports regarding the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge
An article about the land and the people of Arctic Wildlife Refuge

The source of this article is wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. The text of this article is licensed under the GFDL.

History

Geography

Drilling

See also

External links