Dems Take Biden To Court
Several well-known environmental groups have filed a legal action in federal court on Wednesday, contesting the recent decision made by the Biden administration to approve a colossal oil drilling initiative in Alaska.
The group of organizations stated that the Willow Project, an oil drilling plan in the north of Alaska, which is anticipated to yield over 600 million barrels of crude oil during its 30-year existence, was authorized by President Biden, undermining his climate strategy and objectives of significantly reducing greenhouse gas emissions in the upcoming decade. On Monday, the Department of the Interior (DOI) granted final approval for three of the project’s five proposed drilling locations.
In transcript provided by Fox, Earthjustice’s Erik Grafe stated, “There is no question that the administration possessed the legal authority to stop Willow – yet it chose not to. It greenlit this carbon bomb without adequately assessing its climate impacts or weighing its options to limit the damage and say no.”
Grafe added, “The climate crisis is one of the greatest challenges we face, and President Biden has promised to do all he can to meet the moment. We’re bringing today’s lawsuit to ensure that the administration follows the law and ultimately makes good on this promise for future generations.”
The legal action was initiated by Earthjustice, which has previously litigated over the Willow project, on behalf of several organizations, including the Natural Resources Defense Council, Center for Biological Diversity, Greenpeace USA, Defenders of Wildlife, and Friends of the Earth. The suit named several federal agencies and officials, such as DOI Secretary Deb Haaland, as defendants.
Friends of the Earth’s legal director Hallie Templeton stated, “We are enraged that the administration has again approved Willow despite the clear threats posed to the Western Arctic’s vulnerable environment and communities. Our prior victory forcing [the Bureau of Land Management] to re-do its environmental analysis should have proven that more must be done to protect our last remaining wild places from Big Oil’s exploitation.”
Democrats are very upset with President Biden about his recent decision to drill for more oil in the United States, it looks like these issues won’t end so easily.
