On Capitol Hill, the Senate agreed Wednesday to allow oil companies to drill in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. The measure passed by a 51-49 vote. The 1.5 million acres of land have been under federal protection for 45 years. Environmentalists describe the area as an ecological treasure. The Republican leadership managed to get the measure passed by including it in a budget bill which made it immune from a Democratic filibuster. Environmentalists are now planning on new ways to block the oil drilling. In order for the refuge development to get final approval, Congress must still pass a final budget with the Senate provision included. This was something Congress was unable to do last year. Karen Wayland of the Natural Resources Defense Council said “This was really a vote for Big Oil, not for the solid majority of Americans who oppose turning America’s last great wilderness into a vast, polluted oil field.”