Bureau of Land Management photo by Bob Wick
On March 3, dozens of activists braved the rain, wind, and cold to gather in front of the White House and deliver a message to President Biden: Be a climate hero and reject the Willow project.
ConocoPhillips’ massive proposed Willow oil and gas drilling plan on Alaska’s North Slope would be one of the largest fossil fuel operations on federal public lands. It would have harmful effects on the communities, wildlife, and landscapes of Arctic Alaska, and its impact on global climate would be nothing short of devastating.
No one knows this better than the Alaska Native communities who live near where ConocoPhillips wants to drill. Elders spoke of previously healthy communities racked by cancer diagnoses once oil and gas companies came to town. Others spoke of the disruption drilling would have on area wildlife, and by extension, traditional ways of living. And young people spoke to the effects Willow would have on the climate and what kind of world we will leave the next generation.
And it wasn’t just in DC where people rallied to stop Willow. From Washington State to Montana to Minnesota, Sierra Club members, supporters, and activists delivered the same message: President Biden, defuse this carbon bomb and say no to ConocoPhillips.
President Biden has laid out ambitious goals for taking on the climate crisis. Rejecting the Willow project is an opportunity for him to be a climate hero. Time is running out to defuse this carbon bomb. Our communities, wildlife, and climate can’t be collateral damage for ConocoPhillips’ profits