The Willow Project is proof that no one in the government cares about the well-being of its people or the environment. President Joe Biden set the goal to cut greenhouse gas emissions by 50% by 2023, but the Willow Project will do the exact opposite of that. 

The Willow Project was proposed by the company ConocoPhillips, and they plan to drill into the oil field in Willow, Alaska, to produce up to 180,000 barrels of oil a day. According to the Anchorage Daily News, “Alaska Republican U.S. Sen. Dan Sullivan said the development could be ‘one of the biggest, most important resource development projects in our state’s history.’” 

But what about the environment? This new plan would produce more than 278 trillion tons of greenhouse gas emissions over the next 30 years. The Biden administration claims that by planting more trees to capture and store carbon dioxide, they could possibly offset 50% of the emissions from the Willow Project. 

This is an extremely small solution to an enormous problem. By allowing this company to go through with the Willow Project, they will be putting endangered species in even more danger. 

The Arctic is already warming more than anywhere else in the world because of climate change, and because of this project, it will be at an even greater risk. The permafrost is already melting at an alarming rate and ConocoPhillips has even said they will need to use giant chillers to keep the ground frozen. 

Scientists have been warning us for years now that we must start moving away from fossil fuels if we want to reverse the damage caused to the Earth. The Willow Project will last for 30 years, which, according to Environment America, is long past the point climate scientists warned we must transition away from fossil fuels. 

The Willow Project is a huge step backwards for climate change. By passing this project, Biden is signing away any hope for Alaska’s environment. There were countless petitions going around to stop this project, but they were ignored. 

The Willow Project is going to ruin the Arctic environment and cause numerous species to suffer, and possibly go extinct. The passing of this project proves that the government does not care about the environment and how something like this will impact their people. 

Photo via Pexels