In this regard, Dunn notes that, "These include soil and water contamination from spills; alteration of vegetation and drainage from roads; and the disturbance of subsistence hunting opportunities for muskoxen, polar bears, caribou, and other wildlife. Nor do these new technologies mitigate the atmospheric effects of local haze, acid rain, and global warming" (2). Critics of further exploitation of the Refuge and wilderness maintain that viable alternatives to these resources already exist, and more fuel-efficient vehicles would eliminate the need for additional development of Alaska's pristine environment altogether (Dunn 2).

Proponents suggest that the critics are misplaced in their assumptions about further exploitation, though. According to Lieberman (2005), the ANWR is ripe for plundering and is unworthy of further federal protections: "There are plenty of truly pristine places in Alaska worth preserving, but ANWR's coastal plain isn't one of them. As it is, Alaska has 141 million acres of protected...
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