[Congressional Record Volume 150, Number 89 (Thursday, June 24, 2004)]
[House]
[Pages H4895-H4896]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                            DRILLING IN ANWR

  (Mr. BURGESS asked and was given permission to address the House for 
1 minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. BURGESS. Mr. Speaker, this week is the first week in summer. 
Gasoline prices are high as we enter into the summer driving season. So 
energy independence should be a goal of this Congress. Worldwide demand 
for petroleum has increased in the last decade, but the growth in 
production has been relatively flat.
  The inevitable result is higher prices at the gasoline pump. The 
reality is it takes a long time to go from an oil field to a gas 
station. We have lost considerable time in that regard.
  In 1995 in the 104th Congress, H.R. 2491 would have allowed oil 
exploration and drilling in the Alaska National Wildlife Refuge. The 
Department of Energy has estimated that between 1 and 1.3 million 
barrels of oil a day could be derived from this source. Unfortunately, 
this legislation was vetoed by the previous administration. And that 
was nearly 10 years ago. Given a timeline of 7 to 14 years for building 
a pipeline, it is time that we could scarcely afford.
  Mr. Speaker, I have been to ANWR. The vast coastal plain is 
unsuitable for habitation during the summer months because of its 
marshy consistency. The people who live in ANWR are counting on this 
Congress to do the right thing and allow them, the rightful owners of 
these mineral rights, to begin developing the resources that were 
granted to them upon statehood in 1959.
  As we say in Texas, ``Time's a wasting.''

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