President Biden, We Can’t Solve Climate Change Without Protecting the Western Arctic

A statement by Earthjustice urging the Biden administration to stop defending the Willow Project and other oil and gas developments in the Western Arctic to align with climate goals and protect Indigenous ways of life.

• The ConocoPhillips Willow Master Development Plan would significantly industrialize the Arctic tundra through the construction of five drill sites, a central processing facility, an operations center pad, 37 miles of gravel roads, ice roads, airstrips, 385 miles of pipelines, and a gravel mine.
• The Willow project is estimated to release 260 million metric tons of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere, which Earthjustice compares to the annual emissions of 66 new coal-fired power plants operating without carbon controls.
• Oil and gas activities in the Western Arctic are disrupting the traditional way of life for the Native Village of Nuiqsut, specifically by altering caribou behavior and restricting access to traditional hunting grounds due to increased industrial traffic and noise.
• The Peregrine exploration program in the southeastern portion of the Reserve could potentially result in up to 645 million barrels of oil, exceeding the expected output of the Willow development by 55 million barrels.
• The Western Arctic's land-management framework was shifted during the Trump administration from the more protective Integrated Activity Plan to a revised version that facilitates oil industry encroachment into ecologically sensitive areas.

APA

Bowe, R. (2021). President Biden, We Can’t Solve Climate Change Without Protecting the Western Arctic. Earthjustice. https://earthjustice.org/experts/rebecca-bowe/biden-administration-climate-change-western-arctic-fossil-fuels

Chicago

Bowe, Rebecca. President Biden, We Can’t Solve Climate Change Without Protecting the Western Arctic. Earthjustice, 2021. https://earthjustice.org/experts/rebecca-bowe/biden-administration-climate-change-western-arctic-fossil-fuels.

Wikipedia

{{cite press release |last1=Bowe |first1=Rebecca |title=President Biden, We Can’t Solve Climate Change Without Protecting the Western Arctic |publisher=Earthjustice |date=11 August 2021 |url=https://earthjustice.org/experts/rebecca-bowe/biden-administration-climate-change-western-arctic-fossil-fuels |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@misc{bowe2021president, author = {Bowe, Rebecca}, title = {{President Biden, We Can’t Solve Climate Change Without Protecting the Western Arctic}}, publisher = {Earthjustice}, year = {2021}, month = aug, url = {https://earthjustice.org/experts/rebecca-bowe/biden-administration-climate-change-western-arctic-fossil-fuels}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }