Trump administration announces plan to open up 1.5 million acres of Alaskan wildlife for drilling

The Trump administration on Monday announced it will open up 1.5 million acres of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge to oil and gas drilling efforts.

The declaration was signed by Interior Secretary David Bernhardt and will open up the refuge's Coastal Plain, which accounts for about 8% of refuge's total acreage. 

Climate change activist groups are opposed to the move on the grounds of a negative environmental impact, but the administration is arguing that the decision will create thousands of jobs. 

"Over the course of this oil and gas program, it could create thousands of new jobs and generate tens of billions of dollars," Bernhardt said. 

Jennifer Rokala, the executive director of the Center for Western Priorities, said: “This plan will not only harm caribou, polar bears, and other wildlife, it is foolish in the face of rapidly advancing climate change. Bernhardt is approving a plan to despoil America’s wildest landscape for oil that we will be using less of in coming decades, all for the benefit of his former and future clients,” she continued. Bernhardt formerly held a position as an oil lobbyist. 

The Sierra Club has threatened to sue the administration over this decision.