Word that the U.S. House of Representatives has pulled oil drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR) from the budget may be exciting, but 'it's not the end of the story,' says Yukon MP Larry Bagnell.

The plan to open the coastal plains, which are the calving grounds of the Porcupine caribou herd, to drilling was dropped from the American Budget Reconciliation Act on Wednesday. The action came because of fears that it might prevent the entire budget from being passed in the House.

The vote on the entire legislation package was meant to take place today, but has been delayed.

Bagnell said this morning he suspects the delay is because the numbers couldn't be achieved to pass the bill, and it could mean that drilling in ANWR may reappear in the budget.

'Members who want ANWR are threatening to vote against the budget if the drilling doesn't go in,' said Bagnell.

Even if the budget does get through the House without ANWR again being added, a challenge will still present itself when the two budgets from the House and the Senate go before committee to be reconciled, said Bagnell.

The Senate approved a budget that included drilling in ANWR last week in a 52-47 vote.

Reconciling the two 'drastically different' budgets won't prove to be an 'easy task,' said Bagnell.

'Our strategy now is to continue to put pressure on the moderate Republicans,' said Bagnell.

However, they will be 'under immense pressure' to hold the party line and pass the budget, he said.

It is expected Republican leaders in the House and the Senate will push hard to include ANWR in the final, single budget document.

However, there is the possibility that conflict on the budget may mean it will never come to a vote.

Though Bagnell said he doesn't see the battle as over, he added it is an 'exciting day.'

'This is the first time the House of Representatives has ever voted against drilling. It shows lobbying can have a huge effect and is on the radar in the U.S.'

The concern is ANWR will become an ongoing budget battle, said Bagnell.

It is possible that the drilling of ANWR will again be included in next year's budget and the opposition and lobbying will have to begin all over again.

The best way to rectify the situation is to turn the refuge into a protected area, said Bagnell.

The Porcupine caribou herd is already protected under the 1987 Canada-U.S. Agreement of the Conservation of the Porcupine Caribou Herd. The pact obliges Canada and the U.S. to refrain from any activities that could damage the herd or its habitat.

The Canadian government has stood by this agreement and has provided permanent wilderness status for the herd's habitat in Ivvavik and Vuntut National Parks in the Yukon.

However, the Americans have not even appointed a member to the board created by the agreement since 2000.

The Porcupine caribou herd is the lifeblood of northern Yukon's Vuntut Gwitchin people. If the drilling of the 607,000 hectares of the refuge's coastal plain in Alaska is permitted, many expect it to have devastating effects on the herd.