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| What is Seismic Oil Exploration | ||||||||||||||||||
| This process if often done in the winter, when sound waves are emitted from "thumper trucks" to detect and search for underground oil. | ||||||||||||||||||
| These thumper trucks can weigh up to 56,000 pounds, and they cross a tightly constructed grid layed out on the ground of the Artic Refuge. The trucks emit the sound waves, the sound waves echo off the underground rock layers. | ||||||||||||||||||
| What Does This Do to the Land? | ||||||||||||||||||
| Hauling all of the equipment necessary for oil exploration and the thumper trucks them-selves leaves extremely damaging scares on the Coastal Plain which will be visible for decades to come. | ||||||||||||||||||
| This scars the vegetation of the Coastal Plain which is a rich food source for many of the species that migrate to the Plain or feed their during their natural habits. Scaring this vegetation may lead to disruption of the migration patterns of birds and the herds of caribou that feed their during their winters. | ||||||||||||||||||
| What is the New 3-D Seismic Exploration? | ||||||||||||||||||
| The new process which has been developed for the prospective oil exploration in the Artic Refuge is much more damaging for past processes used. | ||||||||||||||||||
| The grid lines set forth in the 3-D process are much closer together at 660 ft to 1600ft, where as in the 2-D process gridlines were 3mi. to 12mi. apart. | ||||||||||||||||||
| This new 3-D process requires 10 thumper trucks instead of the 4 required in the 2-D process. | ||||||||||||||||||
| The crew in the oil exploration uses a total of 39 vehicles and machines all of which will leave extensive scars on the vegetation on the Coastal Plain, damaging many food sources. | ||||||||||||||||||
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