The Coastal Plain of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge is critically important to many bird species that migrate to or through North Central Washington. As of fall 2023, the Coastal Plain remains pristine and unencumbered by oil and gas development. How long this will continue to be the case remains to be determined.
Recent History:
For decades industry argued that the Coastal Plain be opened for oil and gas leasing and development. In 2017, it finally succeeded with passage of the Tax Act which included a provision mandating leasing there. In 2019, the Trump Administration rushed through a legally flawed and inadequate approval process. Millions spoke out against it to no avail, pointing to significant concerns with the process and analysis of impacts oil and gas exploration and development there would have. On January 6, 2021, just before the Trump Administration expired, the first lease sale took place.
The Biden Administration, shortly after assuming power, suspended “all activities related to implementation of the Coastal Plain Oil and Gas Leasing Program pending completion of a comprehensive analysis under the National Environmental Policy Act”. Subsequently, in August 2021 the Secretary of the Interior issued Order Number 3401, stating “My review of the Coastal Plain Oil and Gas Leasing Program (Program) as directed by EO 13990 has identified multiple legal deficiencies in the underlying record supporting the leases, including, but not limited to: (1) insufficient analysis under the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), including failure to adequately analyze a reasonable range of alternatives in the environmental impact statement (EIS); and (2) failure in the August 17, 2020, Record of Decision (ROD) to properly interpret Section 20001 of Public Law 115-97 (Tax Act). Sec. 4 Directive. Based on those identified deficiencies, the Department of the Interior (Department) will conduct a new, comprehensive analysis of the potential environmental impacts of the Program and address the identified legal deficiencies. While that analysis is pending, I direct a temporary halt on all Department activities related to the Program in the Arctic Refuge”.
In August 2023, with the above requirements having been completed, the Bureau of Land Management released its Draft Coastal Plain Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement (DSEIS) and opened a comment period that closed on November 7th. NCWAS reviewed the draft and submitted comments on November 6 (click here to read it).
The NCWAS letter supports option D rather than A. Option A, the “no action” alternative, would obviously appear to be the best choice. However, because selection of it would violate the 2017 Tax Act, it has no chance of being selected. Of the remaining options, D would clearly provide the strongest protection for the Coastal Plain’s habitats.
In September 2023, the Secretary of Interior cancelled all remaining leases granted under the January 2021 sale. Unfortunately, under the alternative selected in the Final SEIS, as mandated by the 2017 Tax Act, a second sale for the area is planned to occur in 2024.
Environmental Justice and Bank Financing:
Protecting the Arctic Refuge is not only about conservation but also environmental justice. Fossil fuel development in the coastal plain of the Arctic Refuge would threaten the way of life for the Gwich’in and other Arctic Indigenous peoples. The case for protecting this sacred land is so clear that we have now seen a multitude of major U.S. and international banks and insurance companies announce they will not fund any new oil and gas development in the Arctic Refuge and across the Arctic region. For a current list of companies making this pledge, click here to reach the Gwich’in Steering Committee’s Corporate Governance page.
The Big Picture:
The Coastal Plain is the biological heart of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. Even under the most stringent set of rules and regulations, oil and gas development there would lead to severe and irreversible consequences for the wildlife the refuge is meant to protect. It is, therefore, patently incompatible with the purposes for which the refuge was established. While we believe option D is the best of the DSEISs bad choices, we also believe the fossil fuel industry has no place there. We continue to be adamantly opposed to industrial development of any kind on the Coastal Plain.
National Audubon: Arctic Refuge page
Alaska Wilderness League Grassroots Toolkit
Lois Norrgard, National Field Organizer for AWL, has been very helpful in providing timely information and assisting with communication to interested individuals and organizations.
If you would like to be more involved on this important issue, please contact Mary and Tim Gallagher at marywillardgallagher@live.com