While addressing climate change may be an increasingly complicated task, Joe Lieberman of Connecticut and 24 Democrats in the U.S. Senate have found an immediate procedure for coming to the aid of the refuge by presenting a plan for blocking the oil and gas exploration that has been proposed for ANWR in recent years. The L.A. Times reported last month that the senators wrote to President Obama, urging him to use today’s anniversary as an opportunity for granting the land status as a national monument. Opposition to the idea has swelled rapidly in many quarters, though environmentalists strongly favor it.

In a state known for its proposed “bridge to nowhere,” some destinations might be best left off the beaten track.