"Proposed Interior Department rules for drilling in the Western Arctic are spurring two contradictory views: that President Joe Biden has thwarted an oil boom in northern Alaska or paved the way for one.
Which perspective turns out to be right has significant implications for climate change and the future of the oil industry in the Arctic, considering the size of the petroleum reserves in the region.
The Bureau of Land Management proposal, which could strengthen Interior’s ability to block future drilling on protected lands in the National Petroleum Reserve-Alaska, follows Biden’s controversial decision earlier this year to approve the massive Willow oil project in the same reserve. Drillers say the NPR-A rules could infringe on their development rights, while green groups say it fails to shift the NPR-A away from its origins as a potential stockpile of crude oil. How Interior officials apply the new language could determine which side will eventually claim victory.
Earthjustice attorney Jeremy Lieb said the proposed NPR-A rules, while an improvement, don’t address the serious question of how ongoing oil development in the reserve will “align with climate commitments.”"
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