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The Guardian
3 days ago
- Business
- The Guardian
Trump officials open up millions of acres in Alaska to drilling and mining
Millions of acres of Alaska wilderness will lose federal protections and be exposed to drilling and mining in the Trump administration's latest move to prioritize energy production over the shielding of the US's open spaces. Doug Burgum, the interior secretary, said on Monday that the government would reverse an order issued by Joe Biden in December that banned drilling in the remote 23m-acre National Petroleum Reserve-Alaska (NPR-A), the New York Times reported. The former president's executive order was part of a package of protections for large areas of Alaska, some elements of which the state was challenging in court when he left office in January. Burgum was speaking in Alaska on Monday accompanied by Environmental Protection Agency administrator Lee Zeldin, and energy secretary Chris Wright. He said the Biden administration had prioritized 'obstruction over production' and Biden's order was 'undermining our ability to harness domestic resources at a time when American energy independence has never been more critical'. In a post to Twitter/X, Wright said oil production was the 'engine of economic growth' in Alaska, funding more than 90% of the state's general revenue. 'Unleashing American energy goes hand in hand with unleashing American prosperity,' he wrote. Donald Trump declared a 'national energy emergency' on the first day of his second term of office in January, promising an avalanche of executive orders friendly to the fossil fuel industry and supporting his campaign message of 'drill, baby drill'. Environmental groups had long feared Alaska would be the US president's number one target given the state's abundance of untapped oil and gas reserves, and immediately criticized the move to open up drilling in an area crucial to the survival of imperiled Arctic species. 'The Trump administration's move to roll back protections in the most ecologically important areas of the Western Arctic threatens wildlife, local communities, and our climate, all to appease extractive industries,' Kristen Miller, executive director of the Alaska Wilderness League, said in a statement. 'This is another outrageous attempt to sell off public lands to oil industry billionaires at the expense of one of the wildest places left in America. 'These lands are home to caribou, migratory birds, and vital subsistence resources that Indigenous communities have relied on for generations. The public fought hard for these protections, and we won't stay silent while they're dismantled.' The NPR-A lies about 600 miles north of Anchorage, and is bordered by the Chukchi Sea to the west and Beaufort Sea to the north. It is the largest single area of public land in the US, the Times reported. It was created at the beginning of the 20th century as an emergency fuel reserve for the military, and expanded to full commercial development in 1976 by an act of Congress. Lawmakers, however, ordered that land conservation measures and wildlife protections should be given prominence. Trump's efforts to turbocharge drilling in Alaska, however, have not been as popular as he would have liked. Despite a promise to 'open up' the 19m-acre Arctic national wildlife refuge, a proposed auction of leases in January, authorized by the previous Congress but a crucial plank of the incoming president's energy strategy, did not attract any bidders. 'There are some places too special and sacred to exploit with oil and gas drilling,' Laura Daniel-Davis, the acting deputy secretary of the interior department, told the Times.
E&E News
3 days ago
- Business
- E&E News
Interior to reverse Biden ban on drilling in Alaska
The Trump administration announced Monday it is moving ahead with plans to reopen millions of acres of undisturbed public land to oil and gas drilling, amid a visit by top officials to Alaska this week. The Bureau of Land Management will issue a proposed rescission of a Biden-era rule that banned drilling on nearly half of the National Petroleum Reserve-Alaska (NPR-A), reverting to regulations in place prior to May 7, 2024. 'Congress was clear: the National Petroleum Reserve in Alaska was set aside to support America's energy security through responsible development,' Interior Secretary Doug Burgum said in a statement. 'The 2024 rule ignored that mandate, prioritizing obstruction over production and undermining our ability to harness domestic resources at a time when American energy independence has never been more critical.' Advertisement The proposed change, which will be published in the Federal Register, will trigger a 60-day comment period. Reverting to previous regulations would open up 11 million acres to drilling as well as removing conditions — such as considering Indigenous knowledge and solidifying protections for sensitive ecological areas — on oil and gas leases in the reserve. The Interior Department said it had completed 'a thorough legal and policy review' following the White House Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs' announcement last week that it had completed its own analysis. Burgum, who visited Alaska with Energy Secretary Chris Wright and EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin, repeatedly slammed the Biden-era regulations during a Sunday forum that also included Republican Alaska Sens. Lisa Murkowski and Dan Sullivan. 'The job the three of us have at the federal level is to unwind the 70 — I'll call them sanctions —the 70 EOs that restricted Alaska,' Burgum said, referring to Wright and Zeldin. He later added: 'Alaska was getting sanctioned more than Iran in the last four years.' Burgum also criticized proponents of environmental protections in the state for attempting to 'treat Alaska like a snow globe.' 'Do they want to save the environment or are some of those people just trying to restrict our ability to be competitive?' he said. In the statement announcing BLM's decision and the looming Federal Register notice, Burgum pointed to the Trump administration's push to increase oil and gas extraction on public lands. That includes Burgum's own order to grow fossil fuel production. Burgum also appeared on Fox News with Wright. Burgum cited the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge and NPR-A as 'two areas that President [Donald] Trump has set free for development.' The announcement drew criticism from environmentalists, who argued the Naval Petroleum Reserves Production Act that created the area is intended for both conservation and energy production. 'Everyone who cares about public lands and is concerned about the climate crisis should be outraged by this move to exploit America's public lands for the benefit of corporations and the president's wealthy donors,' said Matt Jackson, the Wilderness Society's Alaska senior manager. 'Worst of all, this move will accelerate the climate crisis at a time when the ground beneath Alaska communities is literally melting away and subsistence foods are in decline.'
Yahoo
4 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Trump Moves to Lift Biden-Era Curbs on Arctic Oil Drilling
(Bloomberg) -- The Trump administration is moving to repeal Biden-era curbs blocking oil drilling across most of the mammoth petroleum reserve in Alaska that's home to an estimated 8.7 billion barrels of recoverable oil. Billionaire Steve Cohen Wants NY to Expand Taxpayer-Backed Ferry Where the Wild Children's Museums Are The Economic Benefits of Paying Workers to Move Now With Colorful Blocks, Tirana's Pyramid Represents a Changing Albania At London's New Design Museum, Visitors Get Hands-On Access Interior Secretary Doug Burgum announced the planned policy shift late Sunday at a town hall in Utqiagvik, a village on the Chukchi Sea coast, as he and fellow members of President Donald Trump's cabinet visit Alaska to promote energy development in the region. The measure would open up new opportunities for oil and gas development in the 23 million-acre National Petroleum Reserve-Alaska, an Indiana-sized parcel in the northwest of the state that was set aside as a source of energy for the Navy a century ago. The action responds to a directive Trump issued after his inauguration in January, when he signed an executive order compelling a host of policy changes meant to expand oil, natural gas and mineral development in Alaska. The reserve holds an estimated 8.7 billion barrels of recoverable oil, according to a 2017 assessment by the US Geological Survey. And its production is set to skyrocket, with the development of recent discoveries. Alaska has forecast that crude production from the reserve will climb to 139,600 barrels per day in fiscal 2033, up from 15,800 barrels per day in fiscal 2023. Trump's measure would repeal a 2024 rule imposed under former President Joe Biden, which designated 13 million acres of the reserve as 'special areas,' limiting future oil and gas leasing, while maintaining leasing prohibitions on 10.6 million acres of the NPR-A. The rule has complicated future oil drilling and production in the reserve where companies including ConocoPhillips, Santos Ltd., Repsol SA and Armstrong Oil & Gas Inc. have been active. ConocoPhillips is developing its 600-million-barrel Willow project in the refuge, which is expected to produce first oil in 2029. Burgum's announcement was greeted by applause inside a heritage center in Utqiagvik, where local residents had gathered to speak with officials from the Trump administration, as well as Senator Dan Sullivan and Alaska Governor Mike Dunleavy, about resource development. Burgum, who leads the National Energy Dominance Council, was joined by the panel's vice chair, Energy Secretary Chris Wright and Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Lee Zeldin. Wright said he anticipated increased oil development in Alaska — possibly quadrupling oil output on its prolific North Slope — and decried years of policies he said were 'smothering' the region's potential. Rex Rock Sr., the head of the Arctic Slope Regional Corporation, one of 13 Alaska Native Regional Corporations created under federal law, said that the 2024 rule restricting energy development in the far north didn't have the backing of the region. Conservationists called Biden's rule essential to protect a large stretch of unspoiled land in the Arctic, a vast region of tundra and wetlands that teems with wildlife. And they condemned the decision to unwind it Monday, calling it part of a broader Trump administration bid to give oil companies free rein to exploit public lands without sufficient safeguards for wildlife, fish or the indigenous people who depend on them for subsistence. 'Everyone who cares about public lands and is concerned about the climate crisis should be outraged by this move to exploit America's public lands for the benefit of corporations and the president's wealthy donors,' said Matt Jackson, Alaska senior manager for the Wilderness Society. 'The Trump administration is destroying safeguards for globally significant and invaluable resources and the local communities who depend on them for their way of life.' Beyond local conservation concerns, climate activists have opposed new oil development - especially of the scale promised on Alaska's north slope, arguing there is no room for that crude in a warming world. The new proposal will give the public 60 days to comment, setting the stage for a potentially rapid reversal and new leasing in the reserve. Conservationists who cheered the original protections could seek to challenge the pivot in federal court. (Updates with response from conservationists from fourth-last paragraph.) YouTube Is Swallowing TV Whole, and It's Coming for the Sitcom Millions of Americans Are Obsessed With This Japanese Barbecue Sauce Mark Zuckerberg Loves MAGA Now. Will MAGA Ever Love Him Back? Will Small Business Owners Knock Down Trump's Mighty Tariffs? Trump Considers Deporting Migrants to Rwanda After the UK Decides Not To ©2025 Bloomberg L.P. Sign in to access your portfolio
Yahoo
4 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Trump Moves to Lift Biden-Era Curbs on Arctic Oil Drilling
(Bloomberg) -- The Trump administration is moving to repeal Biden-era curbs blocking oil drilling across most of the mammoth petroleum reserve in Alaska that's home to an estimated 8.7 billion barrels of recoverable oil. Billionaire Steve Cohen Wants NY to Expand Taxpayer-Backed Ferry Where the Wild Children's Museums Are The Economic Benefits of Paying Workers to Move Now With Colorful Blocks, Tirana's Pyramid Represents a Changing Albania NYC Congestion Toll Brings In $216 Million in First Four Months Interior Secretary Doug Burgum announced the planned policy shift late Sunday at a town hall in Utqiagvik, a village on the Chukchi Sea coast, as he and fellow members of President Donald Trump's cabinet visit Alaska to promote energy development in the region. The measure would open up new opportunities for oil and gas development in the 23 million acre National Petroleum Reserve-Alaska, an Indiana-sized parcel in the northwest of the state that was set aside as a source of energy for the Navy a century ago. The action responds to a directive Trump issued after his inauguration in January, when he signed an executive order compelling a host of policy changes meant to expand oil, natural gas and mineral development in Alaska. The reserve holds an estimated 8.7 billion barrels of recoverable oil, according to a 2017 assessment by the US Geological Survey. And its production is set to skyrocket, with the development of recent discoveries. Alaska has forecast that crude production from the reserve will climb to 139,600 barrels per day in fiscal 2033, up from 15,800 barrels per day in fiscal 2023. Trump's measure would repeal a 2024 rule imposed under former President Joe Biden, which designated 13 million acres of the reserve as 'special areas,' limiting future oil and gas leasing, while maintaining leasing prohibitions on 10.6 million acres of the NPR-A. The rule has complicated future oil drilling and production in the reserve where companies including ConocoPhillips, Santos Ltd., Repsol SA and Armstrong Oil & Gas Inc. have been active. ConocoPhillips is developing its 600-million-barrel Willow project in the refuge, which is expected to produce first oil in 2029. Burgum's announcement was greeted by applause inside a heritage center in Utqiagvik, where local residents had gathered to speak with officials from the Trump administration, as well as Senator Dan Sullivan and Alaska Governor Mike Dunleavy, about resource development. Burgum, who leads the National Energy Dominance Council, was joined by the panel's vice chair, Energy Secretary Chris Wright and Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Lee Zeldin. Wright said he anticipated increased oil development in Alaska — possibly quadrupling oil output on its prolific North Slope — and decried years of policies he said were 'smothering' the region's potential. Rex Rock Sr., the head of the Arctic Slope Regional Corporation, one of 13 Alaska Native Regional Corporations created under federal law, said that the 2024 rule restricting energy development in the far north didn't have the backing of the region. Environmentalists had argued Biden's rule was essential to protect a large stretch of unspoiled land in the Arctic, a vast region of tundra and wetlands that teems with wildlife. And, they insisted, in a warming world there's insufficient justification for burning the large cache of oil the reserve contains. The new proposal will give the public 60 days to comment, setting the stage for a potentially rapid reversal and new leasing in the reserve. Conservationists who cheered the original protections could seek to challenge the pivot in federal court. YouTube Is Swallowing TV Whole, and It's Coming for the Sitcom Millions of Americans Are Obsessed With This Japanese Barbecue Sauce Mark Zuckerberg Loves MAGA Now. Will MAGA Ever Love Him Back? Will Small Business Owners Knock Down Trump's Mighty Tariffs? Trump Considers Deporting Migrants to Rwanda After the UK Decides Not To ©2025 Bloomberg L.P. Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
E&E News
7 days ago
- Business
- E&E News
Interior moves closer to allowing drilling in Alaskan reserve
The Trump administration took steps this week toward reopening the country's largest tract of largely undisturbed public land to oil and gas drilling. The White House Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs completed its review on Wednesday of a draft rule to rescind a Biden-era regulation that banned drilling on nearly half of the National Petroleum Reserve-Alaska (NPR-A). The draft rule now returns to the Interior Department's Bureau of Land Management, which would need to publish the proposal in the Federal Register and take public comment before finalizing. BLM said in a statement to POLITICO's E&E News that it plans to pursue removal of the Biden-era rule, but it did not provide a timeline. The Office of Management and Budget, which houses OIRA, did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Advertisement The move comes amid the Trump administration's aggressive push to increase oil and gas activity on U.S. lands. Interior Secretary Doug Burgum ordered agencies to encourage fossil fuel production to 'unleash' American energy, and the administration has also drastically cut environmental review timelines for energy projects.
