Dear Congressman,

I would like to take this opportunity to share with you Canada's longstanding concerns about oil drilling in the calving grounds of the Porcupine Caribou Herd in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, and to ask that you consider opposing any legislation which would permit such drilling.

The Porcupine Caribou migrate through Canada and the United States. Wildlife biologists in both Canada and the United States have identified the coastal plain of Alaska's Arctic National Wildlife Refuge as the optimum calving and post-calving habitat for these caribou. The calving grounds in Alaska are therefore a critical habitat for the herd, and in those years when heavy snows prevent them from reaching the vital coastal plain, the Herd suffers a significant loss of numbers. Only permanent protection of the plain will assure the Herd's sustainability.

Both our countries share the responsibility to preserve the herd and its habitat, and we are both committed to do so as recognized in the 1987 Canada-United States Agreement on the Conservation of the Porcupine Caribou Herd.

Canada has permanently protected from development those sensitive calving areas in the Canadian portion of the herd's range. Canada's protection measures include: in the 1970s, prohibition on development of all lands in the Yukon Territory north of the Porcupine and Bell Rivers; and in the 1980s, establishing the Ivvavik and Vuntut National Parks, despite the significant oil and gas development potential of these areas. These two National Parks encompass an area of approximately 3.5 million acres. This is more than double the acreage of the coastal plain of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge.

The indigenous First Nations people of the region, the Gwich'in, have sent both our governments a consistent message over the years: they wish to protect the herd. The caribou are the central focus of their ancestral culture; more important still, they rely on the caribou for their very survival.

Canada supports sustainable development in habitats that are not critical to wildlife. For many years, Canada and the United States have successfully cooperated on energy resource development to our mutual benefit and indeed our relationship in this regard has been an example to the rest of the world. We can continue to do so, confident in our ability to preserve our shared environment, while securing a reliable energy supply.

With these points in mind, Canada's view on drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge coastal plain is simple: both countries are obligated to provide the same level of permanent protection for the Porcupine Caribou Herd.

The staff of our Embassy would be very happy to share further information with you or your staff, should you so wish.