{news} Fw: CANADA/US GREEN RELEASE Arctic Green Parties call on leaders to oppose drilling

[Justine McCabe]

 GREEN PARTY OF CANADA
 http://green.ca/
 GREEN PARTY OF THE UNITED STATES
 http://www.gp.org

For Immediate Release:
 Tuesday, September 20, 2005

Contacts
 Green Party of Canada:
 Van Ferrier, Media Relations, 514-804-3684,
 van.ferrier at greenparty.ca
 Green Party of the United States:
 Scott McLarty, Media Coordinator, 202-518-5624,
 mclarty at greens.org
 Starlene Rankin, Media Coordinator, 916-995-3805,
 starlene at greens.org


ARCTIC GREEN PARTIES CALL ON LEADERS TO OPPOSE
 DRILLING


MONTREAL (20 September 2005) -- Green Parties of
 Arctic Council member countries are calling upon
 country leaders to stand against oil and gas
 exploration in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge
 (ANWR), said Green Party of Canada leader Jim Harris
 in a joint statement with the Green Parties of
 Denmark, Finland, and the U.S. today.

Harris made the comments on Arctic Refuge Action Day
 as thousands of concerned citizens gather at the U.S.
 Capitol to voice their opposition to drilling in the
 ANWR.  The statements come just over two weeks before
 the U.S. Senate is expected to finalize a budget bill
 that could allow companies to begin leasing
 exploration tracts.

"In order to reverse global climate change, Arctic
 countries must immediately reduce their uneven share
 of greenhouse gas emissions from burning fossil
 fuels," said Harris who noted the U.S. contributes
 nearly a quarter of global greenhouse gas emissions
 with only 5 percent of the world's population.

The Arctic Council has reported that temperatures in
 the Arctic are rising twice as fast as the rest of the
 world.  Global climate change is causing habitats to
 melt away, wildlife to go extinct and new migration
 patterns that have eroded the livelihoods of Northern
 peoples.

The Bush Administration is also turning a blind eye to
 economic forecasters who warn that spikes in global
 oil prices will harm the world economy if renewable
 energy sources are not made more available.  The price
 of crude oil skyrocketed beyond $US70 per barrel after
 Hurricane Katrina hit the U.S. Gulf coast last month.

"Extracting the 11 billion barrels of oil thought to
 exist in the ANWR will do next to nothing to cushion
 spikes in oil prices due to supply interruptions on
 the U.S. Gulf coast, in Africa, the Middle East or
 Latin America," said Harris.  "There is no good reason
 for the U.S. to jeopardize the world economy and the
 environment for only 17 months of oil -- ten years
 down the road."

The Green Party of Canada calls upon the leaders of
 Arctic Council member countries to follow through on
 their commitment to protecting Arctic ecosystems and
 communities by pressuring the U.S. to abandon oil and
 gas exploration in the ANWR and ratify the Kyoto
 Protocol.


MORE INFORMATION

Green Party of the United States
 http://www.gp.org
 1700 Connecticut Avenue NW, Suite 404
 Washington, DC 20009.
 202-319-7191, 866-41GREEN
 Fax 202-319-7193

Green Party of Canada http://green.ca/

De Grønne (Green Party of Denmark)
 http://www.groenne.dk/

Vihreä Litto (Green League of Finland)
 http://www.vihrealiitto.fi/


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