Greens Sue Biden Over Willow Oil Project Approval
The groups charge BLM with failing to consider the project’s impacts on lands used for subsistence by Alaska Natives and argue the Fish and Wildlife Service failed to properly consider Willow’s potential impacts on endangered species such as polar bears.
March 14, 2023 | Source: POLITICO | by Alex Guillen
A coalition of environmental groups on Tuesday filed a quick legal challenge against the the Biden administration’s decision to approve the controversial Willow oil project in Alaska.
Biden’s decision to allow ConocoPhillips to build its massive project on federal land in the Alaska wilderness has caused an uproar among environmentalists. They argued in their lawsuit that the approval violated four environmental laws despite the fact that the Bureau of Land Management greenlit a smaller version of the project than ConocoPhillips had sought.
“Willow would result in the construction and operation of extensive oil and gas and other infrastructure in sensitive arctic habitats and will significantly impact the region’s wildlife, air, water, lands, and people,” the groups wrote in their lawsuit, which asks the Alaskan court to vacate the Biden administration’s approval of the project.