SAN FRANCISCO (KCBS RADIO) – Despite objections from numerous environmental groups and activists, the Biden administration moved forward with approving the Willow Project, a massive 30-year drilling project in northern Alaska.
The ConocoPhillips’ Willow Project has now been given the green light and is expected to produce upwards of 576 million barrels of oil a day once it is up and running.
The project will now open up the North Slope of Alaska to oil drilling, something many have criticized as the president said during his campaign for office in 2020 that he would never do.
“No more drilling on federal lands. Period,” Biden said in 2020 when he was asked about how he would address oil companies wanting to drill in Alaska.
However, Biden appears to have switched tune, as he has approved what his administration is calling a reduced version of the $7 billion plan from ConocoPhillips.
The final details of the project will now see three drill sights open up in Alaska, and the Biden administration shared Sunday that it is looking to restrict other oil exploration in the region.
The Interior Department called the move “substantially reducing” the size of the project. Biden approved a version of the project that dials the number of drill sites back from the five initially given the okay by the Trump administration.
The department said it is also requiring ConocoPhillips to give up 68,000 acres of existing oil and gas leases, including those for the Teshekpuk Lake Special Area.
Despite this, many shared their displeasure with the president for allowing the project to progress.
Among those is Sunrise Movement Executive Director Varshini Prakash, who said in a statement, “President Biden is letting the fossil fuel industry have their way,” instead of listening to the “millions of young people” who supported him and his party.
“President Biden’s decision to move forward with the Willow Project abandons the millions of young people who overwhelmingly came together to demand he stop the project and protect our futures,” Prakash said in the statement.
Still, there are those who support the project, including many in Alaska who say it will bring economic benefits to the region.
“Willow is finally reapproved, and we can almost literally feel Alaska’s future brightening because of it. After years of relentless advocacy, we are now on the cusp of creating thousands of new jobs, generating billions of dollars in new revenues, improving quality of life on the North Slope and across our state, and adding vital energy to TAPS to fuel the nation and the world,” Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) said in a statement.
As for the company behind the controversial project, ConocoPhillips CEO Ryan Lance says that his company is going to begin construction “immediately.”
“This was the right decision for Alaska and our nation,” Lance said.
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