A Brief History of ANWR

Alaska's size approximate to the lower 48 states. ANWR, at 19.8 million acres, is about the size of South Carolina. Graphic: U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service

Up for debate in the Senate is an energy bill that calls for opening up a portion of ANWR, called "1002 Area," for oil exploration. Trace the refuge and 1002 Area's history:

• In the early 1900s, oil exploration and development begin in the oil-rich lands of northern Alaska.

• In 1960, concerns over preserving Alaska's natural resources lead Interior Secretary Fred Seaton to designate 8.9 million acres of coastal plain and mountains of Northeast Alaska as the Arctic National Wildlife Range.

• In 1980, President Carter signs a bill balancing the need for developing oil reserves in Alaska and preserving wildlife, called the Alaska National Interest Lands Conservation Act, or ANILCA.

• The law doubles the size of the range to nearly 20 million acres, sets aside 8 million acres as "wilderness," and renames it the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge.

• Requesting further study, Congress postpones its decision on whether to designate as wilderness a 1.5-million-acre section of coastal plain at the northern tip of the range. This area, representing about 8 percent of the refuge, is addressed in section 1002 in ANILCA -- hence its name "1002 Area."