Ian Brickey, ian.brickey@sierraclub.org
WASHINGTON, D.C. –- Today, the Biden administration announced the Final Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement (FSEIS) for the coastal plain of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. The FSEIS was needed in order to re-assess the environmental impacts of the Arctic Refuge oil and gas leasing program because the first analysis by the Trump administration was fundamentally flawed and violated the law.
With the announcement of the FSEIS, the Biden administration has tried to strengthen measures to try to prevent impacts on subsistence for local communities, harm to the calving grounds of the Porcupine Caribou herd, and the adverse effects on threatened polar bears from oil and gas activities. But the FSEIS also makes clear that the Arctic Refuge is still unnecessarily under threat from oil and gas drilling. There is overwhelming evidence that any oil and gas program will have destructive and harmful impacts on the coastal plain.
Despite the fact that the first lease sale, held by the Trump administration in 2021, was an absolute failure and generated a mere $12 million – less than 1% of the revenue promised with the Tax Act – the 2017 Tax Act still legally requires the Department of the Interior to hold a second lease sale in the Arctic Refuge by the end of 2024.
We, alongside the Gwich’in Steering Committee, Tribal Governments, and Iñupiat allies cannot overstate the need for Congress to repeal this destructive and failed legislative mandate and restore protections for this sacred place. Members of our coalition shared the following statements,
“The Arctic Refuge is one of the last landscapes on the North Slope of Alaska that is untouched by oil and gas corporations. Development of oil and gas there is a direct threat not only to these landscapes, but also to wildlife that the Gwich'in and many others depend on. The release of the SEIS today is a reminder that there is more work for Congress to do to stop disastrous drilling. Congress must repeal the provisions of the 2017 act that recklessly opened the Coastal Plain to oil and gas leasing. In the meantime, we urge the Biden Administration to listen to the Gwich’in and take bold action to preserve these lands and waters for generations to come,” said Athan Manuel, director of Sierra Club’s Lands Protection Program
“The Gwich’in people depend on the Porcupine Caribou Herd, and are spiritually and culturally connected to the caribou,” said Tonya Garrett, a spokesperson for the Gwich’in Steering Committee. “Any threat to the caribou, and to the sacred lands upon which they depend, is a threat to our very way of life. The only path forward is to restore protections for the Arctic Refuge coastal plain, and to repeal the leasing program mandated by the 2017 Tax Act.”
"It is inarguable that the Arctic Refuge EIS released by the Trump Administration was inadequate and completely disregarded the impact any oil and gas activities would have on our Tribal communities who rely on that land," stated Galen Gilbert, First Chief of Arctic Village Council. "The recently released FSEIS is an improvement on the initial assessment. However, this is only a step towards protecting our Sovereignty and right to continue our traditional way of life that depends on this sacred place."
“It’s hard to see another environmental impact statement concerning the leasing of lands sacred to the Gwich’in and vital to the Porcupine caribou,” said Brook Brisson, senior staff attorney for Trustees for Alaska. “Congress hastily passed the 2017 Tax Act to open the Arctic Refuge to oil extraction, and while the Biden administration has tried to fix that faulty analysis, the only way to truly repair it is for Congress to restore protections.”
“Industrializing the coastal plain would bring irreparable harm to caribou, polar bears and other wildlife, and threaten the cultural and spiritual existence of the Gwich’in people,” said Nicole Whittington-Evans, Alaska senior program director for Defenders of Wildlife. “We again call upon Congress to repeal this reckless mandate and restore protections to the Refuge.”
“Of all the things that we could be doing to become more resilient as global temperatures rise, it’s unfortunate that time is still being squandered on an Arctic Refuge lease sale plan. Congress should repeal this plan, which would devastate communities, climate, and wildlife,” said Erik Grafe of Earthjustice, who serves as Deputy Managing Attorney in Anchorage. “The coastal plain should never be transformed into an oilfield, and this environmental review confirms the irreparable harm oil development would cause.”
“While this final environmental impact statement is much improved from earlier versions, the simple truth is that any oil and gas drilling in the Coastal Plain of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge threatens the Gwich’in People and the diverse wildlife populations — such as polar bears, caribou, musk oxen, and hundreds of migratory birds — that depend on the region for their survival,” said Abby Tinsley, vice president for conservation policy at the National Wildlife Federation. “This crown jewel of the national refuge system should not be developed. It’s time for Congress to overturn the portion of the 2017 Tax Act that led to this unfortunate situation.”
“The Coastal Plain of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge is no place for oil and gas activities, and Congress must repeal the program. Unsustainable and risky oil and gas development will exacerbate climate change impacts and is not the answer. Dependence on oil and gas revenue has to change,” said Steve MacLean, Managing Director, U.S. Arctic Program at World Wildlife Fund. “Instead of looking for additional lease opportunities, we should be looking for economically viable, alternative livelihood solutions that will support local communities in a just transition away from fossil fuels and new drilling. To ensure permanent protections, Congress must repeal the legislative mandate for oil and gas leases in the Refuge established in the 2017 Tax Act, by canceling the second lease sale, and restoring protections for this sacred place.”
“The 2017 Tax Act’s mandate forces the hand of the Bureau of Land Management, but that doesn’t make this lease sale a good idea. We urge oil companies to stay away from the refuge and leave it to the caribou, polar bears and migratory birds who depend on it,” said Ellen Montgomery, Public Lands Campaign Director at Environment America.
“Any step toward leasing lands on the Arctic Refuge's coastal plain for extractive industries is unfortunate,” said Sean McDermott, Arctic Program coordinator with the Northern Alaska Environmental Center. “Indigenous land protectors have advocated tirelessly for these lands and waters. It’s crucial that the federal government adopt the strongest possible protections for the region.”
“The coastal plain of the Arctic Refuge is one of the most sacred and biologically important places in the world and is clearly no place for oil and gas development,” said Desiree Sorenson-Groves, President and CEO of the National Wildlife Refuge Association. “Congress should reject this taxpayer boondoggle once and for all and pass permanent protections that will ensure Indigenous people and wildlife can rely on the Refuge for millennia to come."
“The region’s Gwich'in communities consider the coastal plain sacred because it is the calving ground of the Porcupine Caribou Herd that has sustained them for countless generations. We will continue to work in favor of healthy, thriving ecosystems, and ensuring that Indigenous lifeways will continue in perpetuity,” said Meda DeWitt, Alaska Senior Manager for The Wilderness Society. “The formidable public opposition and the undeniable realities of climate change underscore the imperative that drilling on these sacred lands is misguided and unsound. Congress must act to repeal the drilling provision in the 2017 tax legislation.”
"Today’s action by the Biden administration better protects the Arctic Refuge, and for that, we are grateful,” said Kristen Miller, executive director of Alaska Wilderness League. “The election results have made the threat to America’s Arctic clear. The fight to save the Arctic Refuge is back, and we are ready for the next four years.”
“The Arctic National Wildlife Refuge is critically important to Indigenous communities, wildlife, and our climate future, said Garett Rose, senior attorney at NRDC. Today’s environmental review lays out in stark detail just how damaging oil and gas drilling is in this unmatched landscape. The oil and gas industry cannot be allowed to run roughshod over the Refuge’s irreplaceable natural values. We remain committed to using every tool at our disposal to protect this remarkable place.”
“Once drilled, iconic lands like the Arctic Refuge cannot be undrilled. The Trump administration's inadequate analysis not only violated the law, it also ignored the voices of the Gwich'in and the impacts to Indigenous communities and ways of life,” said Nicole Ghio, Senior Fossil Fuels Program Manager at Friends of the Earth. “The Biden Administration has made improvements in the FSEIS released today, but we need Congress to repeal its drilling provisions.”
About the Sierra Club
The Sierra Club is America’s largest and most influential grassroots environmental organization, with millions of members and supporters. In addition to protecting every person's right to get outdoors and access the healing power of nature, the Sierra Club works to promote clean energy, safeguard the health of our communities, protect wildlife, and preserve our remaining wild places through grassroots activism, public education, lobbying, and legal action. For more information, visit www.sierraclub.org.