Senate to vote today on drilling in Alaska

WASHINGTON --The Senate will vote today on whether to authorize drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, a move that would clear the way for exploration in a piece of the vast Alaska expanse that environmental groups have long sought to shield from oil companies.

Supporters of drilling in the Arctic refuge, one of President Bush's top energy priorities, expressed confidence that they have enough votes to fend off a challenge by Democrats.

Previous efforts have failed in the Senate, but the elections in November resulted in three supporters of drilling replacing three opponents.

''I think the stars are lining up for this," said Senator John Thune, a South Dakota Republican who defeated one of the biggest opponents of drilling, then-Democratic leader Tom Daschle, in November. ''This can be done -- both the exploration phase and the production phase -- to minimize the footprint that's left and any impact on the environment or wildlife."

Senator John F. Kerry joined environmental groups in mounting a last-minute lobbying effort to sway the votes of seven moderate Republicans. Kerry sent an e-mail to his supporters yesterday seeking donations for an ''emergency ad campaign" on the Internet aimed at those lawmakers, including New Hampshire's senators, Judd Gregg and John E. Sununu.

''It's time we stood up in the Senate and fought for America's real energy future and stop selling off our Arctic treasures to the highest bidder," Kerry said at a news conference yesterday morning. ''The president has a plan to sell off our public lands to the special interests that will make us no less dependent on foreign oil and will not lower prices for consumers at the pump."

Kerry, a Massachusetts Democrat, is cosponsoring the measure to repeal the drilling provision along with Senator Maria Cantwell, Democrat of Washington.

Even if the Senate votes to authorize drilling and the measure is signed into law, legal challenges are likely to be filed before private companies can begin drilling and exploration. But the Senate has been the biggest obstacle in recent years to allowing drilling at a portion of the 19.6 million-acre refuge, which the Bush administration has estimated could yield 10 billion barrels of oil.

Previous votes have failed in the Senate -- one vote was 52 to 48 last year -- but Republicans picked up four seats in November, including three held by supporters of drilling. The Senate now has 51 members who are on record in support of opening a portion of the Arctic refuge to drilling, though opponents have been seeking to shift votes. GOP leaders included the drilling authorization in their budget proposal, skirting the need to overcome a filibuster with 60 votes.

Developers in Alaska and lobbyists for the oil industry have been seeking to open the refuge to exploration since 1980, when it was vastly expanded and some 100 million acres of Alaska land were transferred for federal use. But environmental groups have steadfastly opposed any drilling on the land, saying the United States should protect the pristine land that is home to dozens of rare species of mammals, fish, and birds.

According to the oil industry, about 2,000 of the 1.5 million acres that constitute the refuge's coastal plan would be open for drilling. Bush has been actively pushing for exploratory drilling to begin in Alaska since the 2000 campaign, and it was a key part of his administration's energy plan in 2001.

Democrats contended that the measure should be discussed and voted on in a separate forum, not as part of the annual debate over a budget resolution. They also said the need for oil should not outweigh concerns over the preservation of pristine ecosystems.

''While I agree that we are too dependent on foreign oil, drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge is simply not the answer," said Senator Dianne Feinstein, a California Democrat. ''This important question of whether to open the refuge to drilling . . . warrants an independent debate on the floor of the United States Senate."

With gas prices near record highs, Republicans argued that the time is right to have private companies explore the potentially huge oil reserves in Alaska. Thune said that only a ''tiny slice" of the wildlife preserve would be available for drilling and that new technology is in place to ensure minimal impact on wildlife.

Senator Pete V. Domenici, chairman of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee, has been an ardent proponent of opening up what is thought to be the nation's largest onshore oil reserve to drilling.

''Instead of begging OPEC to drop its oil prices, let's use American leadership and ingenuity to solve our own energy problems," Domenici, a New Mexico Republican, said in a statement.

Rick Klein can be reached at rklein@globe.com.