Oil prices high enough to push inflation to a six month high, fueling one town's plan to charge speeders for the gas it costs cops to chase them, have sparked a more serious battle in Washington and in some of the nation's most tourist-friendly regions. The Associated Press reports President Bush is asking Congress to end a 27-year-old ban on offshore drilling for oil and gas along 80 percent of the nation's Outer Continental Shelf. The president also wants to open Alaska's Arctic National Wildlife Refuge to oil exploration. Supporters of the idea point to estimates suggesting that the off-limits areas contain nearly 18 billion barrels of undiscovered oil. They also say exploration won't harm the environment; opponents disagree and argue that conservation and alternative fuels are the key.

Another plan is also on the drawing board: a House bill to extend the ban through the year 2009. A Gallup survey last month found 57 percent favored allowing oil exploration in currently off-limits coastal and wilderness areas; 41 percent were opposed – an interesting contrast to March 2007, when gas prices were a bit lower and the percentages were reversed: 41 percent for expanding oil drilling and 57 percent opposed.

When survey questions ask people to choose between the environment and the economy, the results tend to shift around depending on how well the economy's doing. Right now, surveys find people feeling negative about the economy, and a March Gallup poll found 49 percent who said protecting the environment should be given priority, even at the risk of curbing economic growth. Some 42 percent said growth should be the priority. Back in 2000, nearly two-thirds gave priority to the environment.

A Fox News/Opinion Dynamics poll (pdf) and a Los Angeles Times/Bloomberg poll (pdf) this spring found the economy led the list, and the environment ranked very low, when voters pointed to issues that will affect their decision in the presidential election. For more on the environment, check out our issue guide.