If you want to kill a proposal in advance in Washington’s Beltway these days, you leak it to the media. It was done before the Supreme Court decision overturning the 1973 abortion ruling called Roe v. Wade last May, and it was done again on Friday, March 10, when unnamed sources leaked to Bloomberg News that a decision has been reached on Alaska’s Willow Project, which environmentalists have made into the new boogeyman.
In the case leaked on Roe v. Wade, the leak did not change the actual outcome of the ruling by the Supreme Court, however. It appears environmentalists may be hoping for a different outcome than the one Bloomberg is reporting.
Bloomberg writes, “The Biden administration has decided to authorize a mammoth ConocoPhillips oil project in northwest Alaska, rejecting arguments from environmental activists who insist it will push the world closer to climate catastrophe, according two people familiar with the matter.”
“After weeks of deliberations, senior advisers have signed off on the move, which represents one of the most momentous climate decisions yet for President Joe Biden.
“The approval is set to be released next week by the Interior Department, said the people, who asked not to be named because an announcement has not been made. Under the draft plan, ConocoPhillips would be permitted to drill from three locations across its Willow site in the National Petroleum Reserve-Alaska, unlocking an estimated 600 million barrels of oil as well as some 280 million tons of carbon dioxide emissions tied to burning it.”
It appears to be partially correct, in that the announcement is not being made this week, as many had hoped for. It would be economically life-changing for Alaska if the three drilling pads were approved, although other rumors say the Biden Administration will reduce the approval to two pads.
The news came out late in the afternoon on a Friday in Washington, D.C.
The project, while substantial for Alaska, is not massive, but could provide 188,000 barrels of oil a day into the Trans Alaska Pipeline System. ConocoPhillips would like to begin work this winter, but the days to actually do work in the Arctic are fewer now, as spring thaw will eventually take out the ice roads.
Sen. Dan Sullivan’s office declined to comment on the news report.
