The lawsuit—brought by the Center for Biological Diversity, Defenders of Wildlife, Friends of the Earth, Greenpeace and the Natural Resources Defence Council —calls on the court to vacate the record of the decision by BLM approving the project, and compel the government to comply with environmental regulation.
Hallie Templeton, legal director for Friends of the Earth, said it was"enraged" by the decision to approve the Willow Project, adding:"We can only hope that the court sees this for what it is: another unlawful, faulty, and disastrous decision that must be stopped." "The science is clear. We cannot afford any new oil or gas projects if we are going to avoid climate catastrophe," Natalie Mebane, climate director for Greenpeace U.S., said."Approving what would be the largest oil extraction project on federal lands is incredibly hypocritical from President Biden, who in his State of the Union called the climate crisis an existential threat."
"We're asking the court to halt this illegal project and ensure the public knows its true climate impacts," said Christy Goldfuss, chief policy impact officer for the Natural Resources Defense Council. Both she and Erik Grafe, an attorney in Earthjustice's Alaska office, described the project as a"carbon bomb."reached out to the Bureau of Land Management and the White House via email for a response.
Ahead of the approval, the Alaskan legislature passed a resolution supporting the approval of the project. It also received the support of Democrat Mary Peltola, Alaska's single House representative, who is Yup'ik.that the project was an"essential step forward in our energy transition," adding:"Alaska is not an empty snow globe—people live here, and we have needs!"
Do they have a better solution? We need onshore oil so we’re less reliant on other countries. This will ultimately speed up our green transition.