Biden faces dilemma in fight over large Alaska oil project

By BECKY BOHRER and MATTHEW BROWN
Associated Press

JUNEAU, Alaska (AP) — The Biden administration is weighing approval of a major oil project on Alaska’s petroleum-rich North Slope that supporters say represents an economic lifeline for Indigenous communities but environmentalists say runs counter to President Joe Biden’s climate goals. A decision on whether to approve ConocoPhillips Alaska’s project in a federal oil reserve roughly the size of Indiana is expected as soon as early March. The U.S. Bureau of Land Management identified as a preferred alternative a smaller number of drill sites, something the company said it could live with. But the U.S. Interior Department has expressed “substantial concerns” with that alternative and the project. Alaska’s U.S. senators say any further limiting of the project could kill it.