Dear Signers,

We update you with many thanks for your support and much hope.

The big news is that the Biden Administration and our trail blazing Secretary of the Interior Deb Haaland, have terminated the oil leases that were awarded in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge through the Trump mandated oil lease auctions contained in the 2017 Tax Reform Bill.

This is a major step towards acknowledging that the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge deserves PERMANENT PROTECTION, but it is only as good as the current administration's tenure in office. 

The Governor of Alaska is already filing suit in court to block the actions taken to terminate the oil leases.

We took our time to send this update in order to get feedback from a number of environmental organizations. There is a consensus that this is a great step, but it will require extensive reading into the documents to understand exactly what is on the table. 

The Biden Administration will still honor the 2017 Tax Reform Bill mandated 2024 lease auction, for oil leases in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. Therefore we will see leases newly made available in 2024.

There is no doubt that we wholeheartedly applaud the actions taken Sept. 6th and are especially grateful to Secretary Deb Haaland for her vision and courage in protecting our last remaining wild places.

Yet we understand that a new Republican administration will most probably reverse the course of these events. They will push for winners of the 2024 oil leases in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge lease auction to quickly develop their leases. Also the Governor of Alaska could prevail in court and reinstate the terminated leases.

We must maintain pressure through every possible means to get permanent protection for the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge.

We MUST also support the environmental organizations heading up the court battles that actually prevent drilling from starting until we can get permanent protection.

Please ask your friends to sign our petition as it is a platform for continued pressure on our elected officials.

And please continue to financially support organizations that are leading legal challenges to drilling in the Alaskan Arctic. The fight to stop Conoco Phillips and their Willow Project is a major task underway and it is in the courts where we can find interim protection for our wild places.

Organizations to consider supporting with your donations:

• Change.org
• Sierra Club
• Center for Biological Diversity
• NRDC
• Backcountry Hunters and Anglers

We will be back in touch in the coming weeks to offer you action options.

Stay tuned and stay active for our wild places!