Conservation groups have asked a federal judge for a preliminary decision to stop construction work this winter at the Willow oil field on Alaska’s North Slope, days after the Biden administration approved the $8 billion project.
ConocoPhillips had begun building an ice road but agreed to delay activity associated with gravel mining and road building — putting dozens of jobs on hold — while the court considers the request, according to paperwork filed in the case.
The Biden administration early last week approved the controversial project that would produce oil for three decades. Multiple Alaska groups and lawmakers support the project to boost the state’s struggling economy, but conservation groups contend that Willow would accelerate global warming.
Several conservation groups last week filed two lawsuits in U.S. District Court in Anchorage against the Biden administration to stop the project, arguing that its impacts on the environment have not been fully considered, nor have project alternatives that could reduce its potential harm.
In one case, the groups suing include Sovereign Iñupiat for a Living Arctic, the Alaska Wilderness League and others. The Arizona-based Center for Biological Diversity and other national groups have filed suit in a similar case.
In their requests for a first-step decision to stop road construction and gravel mining, the groups said the activity would cause irreparable harm, such as mine blasting and traffic that would displace caribou and affects Alaska Native hunters who rely on them.
The U.S. Department of Justice, representing the Interior Department and other agencies, asked the judge for a quick ruling on the preliminary decision, between March 28 and April 3.
ConocoPhillips began building an ice road just after the project was approved. The road would take about a week to build and lead to the surface mine where gravel will be extracted to build a 3-mile gravel road from an existing oil field.
ConocoPhillips has agreed to halt any construction that would impact the surface of the ground until April 4, to allow the court to review the request for a preliminary injunction, the Justice Department filing said.
The full Willow project is expected to take six years to build, creating about 2,000 construction jobs.
This winter’s short construction season is expected to end April 25, the Justice Department said. Major North Slope construction in the oil patch occurs in winter, until the ice and snow that protects the tundra begin melting.
ConocoPhillips and the Arctic Slope Regional Corp., representing Alaska Natives from the North Slope, have intervened in the court dispute on the side of the federal government. The North Slope Borough, encompassing eight villages, is also seeking to intervene on the government’s side.
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