Willow project

US Department of the Interior has approved a scaled-back version of ConocoPhillips' Willow Master Development Plan in the National Petroleum Reserve-Alaska ...

In February, the BLM published a final supplemental environmental impact statement identifying a preferred alternative that removed one of the five proposed drill pads from consideration and deferred consideration of another. ( [Earlier post](https://www.greencarcongress.com/2023/02/20230206-willow.html).) The [Record of Decision](https://eplanning.blm.gov/public_projects/109410/200258032/20075029/250081211/2023%20Willow%20MDP%20Record%20of%20Decision.pdf) (ROD) reduces the size of the project by denying two of the original five drill sites proposed by ConocoPhillips, which is seeking to develop oil and gas leases it acquired beginning in the late 1990s. This reduces the project’s freshwater use and eliminates all infrastructure related to the two rejected drill sites, including approximately 11 miles of roads, 20 miles of pipelines, and 133 acres of gravel, all of which reduces potential impacts to caribou migration and subsistence users, DOI said. The Project as approved in the ROD includes only drill sites BT1, BT2 and BT3 and associated infrastructure—the Willow Processing Facility (WPF), Willow Operations Center (WOC), and airstrip. The project is projected to deliver between $8 billion to $17 billion in new revenue for the federal government, the state of Alaska and North Slope Borough communities. [approved](https://www.doi.gov/pressreleases/interior-department-substantially-reduces-scope-willow-project) a scaled-back version of ConocoPhillips’ Willow Master Development Plan in the National Petroleum Reserve-Alaska (NPR-A).

The vast oil drilling project in Alaska is inconsistent with President Biden's pledges to lead on climate action.

You can further help us by making a donation. ConocoPhillips had initially sought five drilling sites for the project and said it needed at least three to make the project financially viable, The New York Times report further said. It also stipulated that millions of acres of federal land be auctioned off for oil and gas drilling to provide more fossil fuels. The project is expected to produce 180,000 barrels of oil a day, the BBC report said. The final decision approved three drilling pads. The Willow Project is a decades-long oil drilling venture in the National Petroleum Reserve, which is owned by the federal government, according to the news channel CNN. The reserve, which has no roads, is the country’s largest single expanse of pristine land. Oil giant ConocoPhillips had fiercely lobbied for the project along with Alaska’s bipartisan congressional delegation for the past several months. The $8 billion (Rs 65,875.40 crore) project is hugely controversial for its likely environmental impact, even as many hail it for opportunities for thousands of jobs and establishing a new source of revenue for the region. Together we build journalism that is independent, credible and fearless. We are a voice to you; you have been a support to us. Read more:

Led by oil giant ConocoPhillips, the Willow project is an $8 billion proposal to drill oil and gas in Alaska's National Petroleum Reserve.

They believe it would destroy the region’s natural habitat and alter the migration patterns of animals. However, his administration felt the need to reach out to working-class voters, who care about the gasoline price spikes that occurred after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. The announcement was welcomed by Alaska’s lawmakers, who believe that the project would generate thousands of jobs and millions in revenue for their state. Apart from this, President Biden wanted to avoid getting into a legal tussle with ConocoPhillips. According to the New York Times, the project would yield more than 600 million barrels of oil over 30 years, a volume nearly 1.5 times the current supply in the US Strategic Petroleum Reserve. This includes three drill sites and less surface infrastructure than originally proposed.

Interior Secretary Deb Haaland, President Joe Biden and Republican Sen. Lisa Murkowski of Alaska. Kevin Dietsch/Alex Wong/Getty Images.

“But we’ve got to get moving to the court.” The prevailing sense was that they should instead try to shape the project in other ways by adding more protections to federal land and water in Alaska. “This was not something that was ultimately going to reside with the secretary of interior; I think a decision had been made some time ago that this was at the highest political level.” Peltola told the president she believed Willow was an example of a managed, just transition from fossil fuel to clean energy, and that it would benefit impoverished communities on Alaska’s North Slope. “There was no way around the fact that these were valid existing lease rights,” Murkowski said. The group’s lawyers say the Biden administration’s authority to protect surface resources on Alaska’s public lands includes taking steps to reduce planet-warming carbon pollution – which Willow would ultimately add to. “Were there people within the administration that were working to actively kill this? “We realized some time ago this was going to be a decision that was ultimately made at the White House level – not only by senior leaders, but actually with the president’s direct involvement,” Republican Sen. “And this project is a key piece of transitioning, at least for Alaska.” Up until the moment the decision was posted, “I think there were still folks working to kill this.” Haaland did not explicitly say which way the department was leaning on the decision at the time. Those constituents prevailed on her to reject the massive ConocoPhillips drilling venture.