Action Alerts

We need the strongest possible protections for the Arctic

What's At Stake

Threats to the Arctic are more pressing than ever ā€“ from the climate crisis to oil and gas development. But the Biden administration announced an opportunity to help protect it. Urge the Department of the Interior (DOI) and Secretary Haaland to finalize the strongest Arctic protections possible.Ā 

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The Biden Administration set itself up to protect irreplaceable wildlife and habitat in the Western Arctic this spring, when it adopted new regulations governing oil and gas activities. Ā This is vital to protecting wildlife such as polar bears, three large caribou herds, and important wetland habitat for birds that travel from all seven continents to nest. As Indigenous groups and individuals have emphasized to DOI, it is critical to protecting Alaska Native subsistence hunting traditions. Ā This action couldnā€™t come at a more important time.Ā 

The Arctic is on the front line of climate change and is warming at a rate four times faster than the rest of the planet. Arctic wildlife needs large, undisturbed areas to thrive. Ā The Western Arctic is under threat from Big Oilā€™s plans for new fossil-fuel drilling.. Ā This is the place where ConocoPhillips is pursuing its Willow development ā€” the largest oil development on federal lands ā€” with plans for even greater expansion on the over one million acres of leased land it holds here. Ā Send a letter to the DOI and Secretary Haaland today urging them to adopt much needed protections for irreplaceable resources. Ā 

Photos of Caribou taken in the Western Arctic in and around the Teshekpuk Lake area for Earthjustice. (Kiliii Yuyan for Earthjustice)
Caribou in the Western Arctic around the Teshekpuk Lake area. (Kiliii Yuyan for Earthjustice)

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Your Actions Matter

Your messages make a difference, even if we have leaders who don't want to listen. Here's why.

You level the playing field.

Elected officials pay attention when they see that we are paying attention. Read more.

They may be hearing from industry lobbyists left and right, but hearing the stories of their constituents ā€” thatā€™s your power.

Our legislators serve at the pleasure of the people who gave them their job ā€” you.

Make sure your elected officials know whose community and whose values they represent. When you contact your elected official, youā€™re putting a face and a name on an issue.

Whether or not you voted for them, they work for you, for the duration of their term.

Make sure your elected officials know whose community and whose values they represent. (Find your local, state, and federal elected officials.)

Your action is with us in court.

If a federal agency finalizes a harmful action, the record of public comments provides a basis for bringing them into court. Read more.

Throughout each of the public comment periods we alert you to, Earthjusticeā€™s attorneys are researching and writing in-depth, technical comments to submit ā€” detailing how the regulation could and should be stronger to protect the environment, our communities, and our planet.

We need you to join us ā€” your specific experiences, knowledge, and voice are crucial to add to the Administrative Record through the comment periods.

Lawsuits we file that challenge weak or harmful federal regulations rely on what was submitted during the comment period. The court can only look at documents that are in the Administrative Record ā€” including the public comments ā€” to decide if the agency did something improper.

Your actions aid our litigation. Taking action and submitting comments during a comment period is substantively important.

Itā€™s the law.

Federal agencies must pause what theyā€™re doing and ask for ā€” and consider ā€” your comment. Read more.

Many of us may have never heard of the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) and the Administrative Procedure Act (APA), but laws like these require our government to ask the public to weigh in before agencies adopt or change regulations.

Regulations essentially describe how federal agencies will carry out laws ā€” including decisions that could undermine science, or weaken safeguards on public health.

Public comments are collected at various points throughout the federal governmentā€™s rulemaking process, including when a regulation is proposed and finalized. (Learn about the rulemaking process.) These comments become part of the official, legal public record ā€” the ā€œAdministrative Record.ā€

When the public responds with a huge outpouring of support for environmental protections, these individual messages collectively undercut politicians' attempts to claim otherwise.

What this means is each of us can take a role in shaping the rules our government creates ā€” and ensuring those rules are fair and effective.