The Willow Project was first introduced while former President Trump was still in office but now has been taken into the hands of the Biden Administration to approve. The ConocoPhillips Willow Project would be “one of the largest oil and gas developments on federal territory.” This would take place in northern Alaska to drill up petroleum. The Biden administration is reevaluating intending to use five drill sites worldwide. This shouldn’t even have to be considered nor should Biden approve of this.

There are many detrimental effects if this is approved which include, but aren’t limited to, climate change-like heating the Arctic more than it already is- and leaving the wildlife homeless. Climate change is a chain reaction. It causes temperatures to rise, which causes ice to melt in the Arctic, which then causes a rise in sea level which puts coastlines at higher risk when storms come in.

If approved, this will release over 287 million metric tons of carbon dioxide, according to GreenMatters, into the environment over 30 years. Not only would this affect the animals that live there, but most importantly our home, Earth. These greenhouse gases that are released into the atmosphere are what causes climate change to be so severe.

“…temperatures in the Arctic continue to rise at three times the global annual average, driving many of the changes underway in the Arctic. Most prominently, snow and ice are melting at an increasing rate,” The Arctic Council said.

This is right now, so just imagine what’ll happen if they start drilling.

While many people believe that this project will benefit us and bring in tons more energy, they fail to realize we’re putting ourselves more at risk than benefiting.

There are alternative methods to obtain gas rather than ruining the homes of so many indigenous animals. We can utilize clean energy and use natural resources we’re given every day. Things like wind, water, and sunlight are just a few ways to create energy that doesn’t harm the Earth in any way according to Green Match. Green Match provides many tips on clean energy that you can use in your everyday life and is all about “Green Lifestyles.”

If you want to make a change and stop this from getting approved, please reach out. Whether it’s signing a petition on Change.org, calling the White House, posting on social media or protesting. Every voice matters and can be heard to put an end to this before it starts.