Donald Trump has spent his entire term trying to open up the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR) for drilling, and since losing the election he’s been rushing to finish the job before his term expires.
This week he took an alarming step forward: Donald Trump’s Bureau of Land Management has announced the official sale date for drilling rights in the Arctic Refuge will be January 6th, 2021.
The last time we emailed you, Trump has just “called for nominations,” a process that involves fossil fuel extraction companies mapping off the portions of ANWR that they want to claim for drilling.
There is a 30-day window required from the nomination period, to an official sale date. But the Trump Administration is disregarding that requirement in order to sell off the Arctic Refuge as soon as possible.
SEEC members have been in this fight since Trump began this push at the start of the term. It was SEEC member Rep. Jared Huffman who wrote The Arctic Cultural and Coastal Plain Protection Act that would protect this pristine treasure, and the bill has passed the House of Representatives.
But now we are gearing up for the final stage of this fight. SEEC Member Rep. Mike Levin has spoken out, saying: “The Arctic Refuge is a national treasure, home to indigenous peoples, diverse habitats, and extraordinary landscapes. We can’t let the Trump Administration put that in jeopardy come January.”SEEC Member Rep. Derek Kilmer has also condemned this fast-track effort to destroy ANWR, saying: “Let me be clear: this is unacceptable. Our nation should protect environmentally-sensitive areas like ANWR & focus on expanding efforts around renewable energy – not double down on fossil fuels that put the health of our coasts, lands, & climate at risk.”
Our grassroots movement and our Members in Congress have fought to obstruct and stop drilling in ANWR this entire term. Now, all that work is culminating in the final weeks of Trump’s Administration. We can’t let our guard down now — we have to keep up the fight.