Written by: Emily Clites<\/p>\n
On March 13, 2023, the Biden administration cleared the way for ConocoPhillips\u2019 extensive oil drilling project, the Willow Project, to begin on the federally owned National Petroleum Reserve in Alaska (\u201cNRP-A\u201d).[1]<\/a> ConocoPhillips is an energy company that has been operating in Alaska for more than 50 years and is the state\u2019s largest oil producer.[2]<\/a> The company estimates that the project will produce 180,000 barrels of oil per day, 600 cumulative barrels of recoverable oil, both construction and long-term jobs, and potentially between $8 billion and $17 billion in revenue for the federal government, Alaska, and surrounding communities.[3]<\/a><\/p>\n A video released via Twitter by Secretary of the Interior Deb Haaland, called the project a \u201ccomplex issue that was inherited.\u201d[4]<\/a> This is due to ConocoPhillips\u2019 existing leases from previous administrations dating as far back as the 1990s, which left the Biden Administration \u201climited decision space.\u201d[5]<\/a> These leases give ConocoPhillips the right to develop and strong legal protection should the government try to block that right.[6]<\/a> President Biden expressed that while his inclination was to disapprove the project, the advice he received from counsel was that the administration may very well lose in court if he took that path.[7]<\/a> The Department of Interior did reduce the size of the original project, denying the company all five drill sites and instead limited it to three, which reduced the drill pads by 40%.[8]<\/a> ConocoPhillips additionally agreed to relinquish exactly 68,000 acres of their current leases in the NPR-A.[9]<\/a><\/p>\n The project has generated bipartisan political approval. Democratic Representative Mary Peltola called the project \u201cdeeply important\u201d to the future of Alaska for the jobs and revenue the project will provide and its ability to \u201cjump-start\u201d Alaska\u2019s economy.[10]<\/a> Republican Senator Lisa Murkowski expressed satisfaction at the Biden Administration\u2019s approval for the project calling it \u201csignificant for Alaska\u201d, and describing it as creating jobs, revenue, and income that the state \u201cdesperately needs\u201d.[11]<\/a> A combination of Alaska Native groups have expressed support for the project\u2019s potential to bring revenue.[12]<\/a><\/p>\n However, the project has generated significant backlash. Environmentalists have dubbed the project a \u201ccarbon bomb.\u201d[13]<\/a> Federal analysis estimates that the Willow project would cause 280 million metric tons of carbon emissions, which translates to 9.2 million metric tons of carbon pollution annually.[14]<\/a> Some activists feel betrayed by President Biden, who had promised voters during his 2020 campaign there would be, \u201cno more drilling on federal lands.\u201d[15]<\/a> Tribal members and leaders in the Alaskan Native village of Nuiqsut have expressed concern that their village would bear the worst of Willow Project\u2019s health and environmental impacts.[16]<\/a><\/p>\n Environmental group Earthjustice filed a complaint against various federal agencies requesting an injunction, alleging that the Biden administration\u2019s environmental analysis concluded the project would not have a major impact on the environment or climate crisis.[17]<\/a> Earthjustice alleged that the project violated the National Environmental Policy Act and failed to consider the potential climate effects to threatened ice-dependent species\u2019 survival, recovery, and their habitats.[18]<\/a> Environmental group Trustees of Alaska filed a similar suit with a similar basis.[19]<\/a> Earthjustice\u2019s request for an injunction has already been denied.[20]<\/a><\/p>\n While construction has been cleared for the Willow Project, the future remains uncertain. Given the swift backlash the project faced, Earthjustice and Trustees of Alaska may not be the only groups to launch legal challenges against this project. It would be unsurprising if the project continued to face similar lawsuits concerning its environmental impacts moving forward. However, Earthjustice\u2019s short-lived legal challenge may indicate that the Willow Project has a stronger path forward than climate activists would hope.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n [1]<\/a> Ella Nilsen, The Willow Project Has Been Approved. Here\u2019s What to Know About the Controversial Oil-Drilling Venture, <\/em>CNN (Mar. 14, 2023, 3:46 PM), https:\/\/www.cnn.com\/2023\/03\/14\/politics\/willow-project-oil-alaska-explained-climate\/index.html<\/a>.<\/p>\n [2]<\/strong><\/em><\/a> Willow Project<\/em>, ConocoPhillips Alaska, https:\/\/powerincooperation.com\/willow-info-center\/#quick-facts<\/a> (last visited April 29, 2023).<\/p>\n [3]<\/a> The Willow Project<\/em>, ConocoPhillips Alaska (April 2023), https:\/\/static.conocophillips.com\/files\/resources\/23copa013-willow-fact-sheet-4-7-v1.pdf<\/a>.<\/p>\n [4]<\/a> @SecDebHaaland, Twitter (Mar. 13, 2023, 7:53 PM), https:\/\/twitter.com\/SecDebHaaland\/status\/1635428951047766017?s=20<\/a>.<\/p>\n [5]<\/a> Id<\/em>.<\/p>\n [6]<\/a> Timothy Puko, What Is Willow? How an Alaska Oil Project Could Affect the Environment., <\/em>The Washington Post (Apr. 22, 2023, 5:35 PM), https:\/\/www.washingtonpost.com\/climate-environment\/2023\/03\/17\/willow-project-alaska-oil-drilling-explained\/<\/a>.<\/p>\n [7]<\/a> Id<\/em>.<\/p>\n [8]<\/a> Press Release, U.S. Department of the Interior, Interior Department Substantially Reduces Scope of Willow Project<\/em> (Mar. 13, 2023), https:\/\/www.doi.gov\/pressreleases\/interior-department-substantially-reduces-scope-willow-project<\/a>.<\/p>\n [9]<\/a> Id<\/em>.<\/p>\n [10]<\/a> Press Release, U.S. Rep. Mary Sattler Peltola (Feb. 1, 2023), https:\/\/peltola.house.gov\/news\/documentsingle.aspx?DocumentID=81<\/a>.<\/p>\n [11]<\/a> Press Release, United States Sen. for Alaska Lisa Murkowski (Mar. 16, 2023), https:\/\/www.murkowski.senate.gov\/press\/release\/murkowski-willow-project-reapproval-significant-for-alaska<\/a>.<\/p>\n [12]<\/a> Nilsen, supra<\/em>, note 1.<\/p>\n [13]<\/a> Alaska, The Willow Project, and The Future of Fossil Fuels, <\/em>NPR (Mar. 22, 2023, 1:05 PM), https:\/\/www.npr.org\/2023\/03\/22\/1165353140\/alaska-the-willow-project-and-the-future-of-fossil-fuels<\/a>.<\/p>\n [14]<\/a> Lisa Friedman, How Biden Got From \u2018No More Drilling\u2019 to Backing a Huge Project in Alaska, <\/em>The New York Times (Mar. 13, 2023), https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2023\/03\/13\/climate\/willow-biden-oil-climate.html<\/a>.<\/p>\n [15]<\/a> Id<\/em>.<\/p>\n [16]<\/a> Nilsen, supra<\/em> note 1.<\/p>\n [17]<\/a> Id<\/em>.<\/p>\n [18]<\/a> Id<\/em>.<\/p>\n [19]<\/a> Id<\/em>.<\/p>\n [20]<\/a> Federal Judge Allows Construction to Proceed in ConocoPhillips\u2019 Willow Project in Alaska, <\/em>Defenders of Wildlife (Apr. 3, 2023), https:\/\/defenders.org\/newsroom\/federal-judge-allows-construction-proceed-conocophillips-willow-project-alaska<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Written by: Emily Clites On March 13, 2023, the Biden administration cleared the way for ConocoPhillips\u2019 extensive oil drilling project, the Willow Project, to begin on the federally owned National Petroleum Reserve in Alaska (\u201cNRP-A\u201d).[1] ConocoPhillips is an energy company that has been operating in Alaska for more than 50 [\u2026] <\/p>\n