Wednesday, March 22, 19:30 GMT:
The US government has approved one of the largest oil drilling projects in history on federal land. His $8 billion Willow Oil Project, located on Alaska’s North Slope, aims to produce an estimated 576 million barrels of oil over the next 30 years.
Environmentalists say the move represents not only disaster ahead, but a betrayal of the US promise to fight climate change.last week environmental groups sued Oppose the US government to stop the planned development. Approval of the Willow Project runs counter to U.S. President Joe Biden’s 2020 election promise to end all new oil and gas drilling on state land.
The project’s three drilling sites are Designated for future oil exploration a century agoLocal supporters, including legislators and many North Slope Alaska Natives, have supported the Willow Project because it aims to create thousands of jobs and provide the tax revenue needed to improve public services. is viewed as a victory for the community.
However, some neighboring Inupiak communities still fear the threat of pollution and development that could devastate the local ecosystem and upend their subsistence lifestyle.
The second of three episodes of The Stream dedicated to the climate emergency delves into the Willow Project and the debate over continued oil development in the Arctic.
