No. 42: Big oil's grasp on U.S. policy
Content warning: Project Willow was passed :(
Hi all, welcome back! This issue is a bit heavy, as we will be discussing the Willow Project’s approval, BUT there is also good news!! Sorry it’s been a while since it was included, I’ve missed it too. ;)
Project Willow: the gray area overlooked
(Also news outlets; stop calling this an “environmentalist concern”)
I can’t say I’m surprised President Biden passed this project, but isn’t regression the GOP’s signature move??
Essentially, if you were not aware, it’s a massive oil drilling venture (the largest ever on U.S. communal land) on Alaska’s North Slope in the National Petroleum Reserve (owned by the federal government). It was first approved by the Trump administration in 2020 and initially planned to build five drill pads. The Biden administration, to its credit, reduced it to three (CNN, Heated).
It’s been estimated it will produce about 600 million barrels of oil in its lifetime, largely protested for its environmental consequences. However, there’s more to the story.
The Biden administration felt its hands were tied with the project because Conoco has existing and valid leases in the area, two government sources told CNN. They determined that legally, courts wouldn’t have allowed them to fully reject or drastically reduce the project, the sources said. If they had pursued those options, they could have faced steep fines in addition to legal action from ConocoPhillips.
(CNN)
They’re saying it essentially had to be passed because of a legal loophole. It’s no secret Big Oil has a STRONG grip on American policy.
Oh, and an interesting little detail here. “Did approving the Willow Project break a campaign promise Biden made?
“Yes. During his 2020 presidential campaign, Biden vowed to end new oil and gas drilling on public lands and waters – which he initially carried out as part of an early executive order,” (CNN).
Wow, I can’t believe a politician lied to us.
Meet Your (Policy) Makers
Left-leaning political advisors with influence had thoughts on the Willow Project, too.
Interior Secretary Deb Haaland - Haaland is the first Indigenous individual to serve as cabinet secretary, who originally opposed the project during her time in Congress. In early March her view changed when she admitted the Interior Department had to make ‘difficult’ choices on the matter. She was supposedly not involved in the announcement and did not sign the approval order, instead passing it to her deputy Tommy Beaudreau (PBS, The Hill).
White House National Climate Advisor Ali Zaidi - The Climate Policy Office was established in January 2021 by President Biden. Those in this group work to “coordinate the policy-making process with respect to domestic climate-policy issues; [this] to the President; ensure [they] are consistent with the President’s stated goals and that those goals are being effectively pursued; and monitor implementation of the President’s domestic climate-policy agenda” (The White House).
Appointed in late 2022, Zaidi is a Pakistani-American lawyer and adjunct professor at Stanford who says the approval was influenced by “constraints of the legacy of decisions” from the 1990s and finds it understandable people are “frustrated and upset.”
He adds, “I feel like we’re taking a step back. I think the answer is not to not feel the emotion. The answer is to translate [those emotions] into, ‘How do we get to work harder?’ For me, that is the charge to go further and faster on the decisions that we have in our control” (Stanford Daily).
Vice President, Kamala Harris - Following the Biden administration’s greenlight of the project, Harris took to the press to say… nothing? On The Late Show with Stephen Colbert, she swiftly dodged the question when repeatedly asked, instead focusing on climate triumphs the Biden administration has initiated.
Her response was likely all she was allowed to say, but it still would have been interesting to hear her thoughts, as I imagine she would have initially opposed it.
. . .
Thanks for checking out this new section! I realize they are not all lawmakers, but still hold influence overall. Plus that wordplay was just sitting there… I had to! I also didn’t want to highlight Republicans because although they hold great influence in this, I thought it’d be more interesting to hear varied perspectives from the party that actively works to protect the environment and us (and are kind of hypocrites here).
Further reading:
Lies Big Oil Told Me (Citizen)
Willow is not just an “environmentalist” concern (Heated)
…Some Alaska Natives worry about traditional foods (Grist)
6 Podcasts to Help Tackle Your Climate Anxiety (NY Times)
News Report shows how to deliver climate journalism that works (EBU)
Good climate news
New EPA plan to reduce air pollution - the EPA finalized the “Good Neighbor” Plan to significantly reduce nitrogen oxide pollution from power plants and other industrial facilities in 23 states.
AI program trained to sort recyclables - At University College London, a team has developed a machine learning system capable of isolating compostable and biodegradable plastics from conventional varieties, which could improve recycling efficiency and accuracy.
Wrap-up
Thanks for reading, and I hope you found this interesting! Do you disagree with any of my stances? Feel free to comment your views below :)