Trump to allow oil drilling in Arctic National Wildlife Refuge for first time in 30 years
The Trump administration today finalised plans to auction off the rights to drill for oil and gas in one of the country’s most iconic wild places.
The 1.6m acre coastal plain at the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge will be leased to the highest bidder in a move that sees US President Donald Trump continue to ignore calls to tackle climate change.
It means fossil fuel development will return to the area, which is home to polar bears and foxes, as well as migrating caribou and waterfowl among other animals, for the first time in 30 years.
Interior Secretary David Bernhardt defended the decision by saying it followed through on the 2017 budget bill that instructed the federal government to conduct oil and gas leasing on the refuge.
“President Trump’s leadership brought more than three decades of inaction to an end,” Bernhard said.
“This is no ordinary oil and gas program on public lands.”
He added that the plan had been “carefully tailored” to minimise the impact on the surrounding environment.
The federal government are required to conduct two lease sales of 400,000 acres each before the end of 2024 under that 2017 law.
The first sale must happen before the end of 2021 but Bernhardt said it could happen as soon as this year.
“I am confident that we can move forward quite promptly after this decision is rendered,” he said.
The coastal plain provides a habitat to more than 270 different species, including 900 denning polar bears, 250 musk oxen and 300,000 snow geese.
Drilling was authorised on the refuge by Congress in 1980. It has since been blocked, however, until the Trump administration.
Environmentalists and some Alaskans have pledged to protest against the decision, which will cause disruption to the ecosystem and affect food sources for natives.