"Alaska’s Arctic National Wildlife Refuge ranks as one of the wildest places on Earth. In the winter, it’s a haven for some of the last polar bears that traverse land and sea. In the summer, millions of birds descend to build their nests and gather fuel for their journey south.

People have fought over this expanse, as large as South Carolina, for half a century.

The battle pits many Alaskans, along with the oil industry and Republican officials, against environmentalists, most Democrats and many wildlife scientists.

The question of who gets to determine its fate — and whether to dig up the oil and gas that lie beneath it — could be decided this fall."

Juliet Eilperin, Carolyn Van Houten and Alice Li report for the Washington Post October 22, 2024. [2]