John,

A caribou trudges through the frigid landscape at the edge of Northern Alaska. Her fuzzy coat keeps her warm in the unforgiving Arctic tundra.

Abruptly, thousands of caribou hooves go quiet and the herd comes to a halt.

Oil tankers are thundering by on a road ahead that the caribou are too scared to cross. And they're blocked from their annual migration.

Caribou habitat should be off limits to oil drilling. Tell the Biden administration: Protect caribou habitat from drilling.

For thousands of years, massive herds of caribou have trekked through the Western Arctic lands in search of food on the way to their calving grounds.1

But now, the caribou are in danger of being hemmed in by oil drilling operations, not to mention the threat of a potential oil spill.2

Some parts of the Western Arctic are now safe from oil drilling, but other parts are still open to future drilling exploration. And in some places, the drilling infrastructure is already being built.3

How is a caribou supposed to know when it's crossing an invisible line decided by humans?

And the caribou aren't the only animals in trouble. Polar bears, millions of migratory birds, and seals are all facing the looming threat of oil drilling.

The Biden administration can protect more critical habitat in the Western Arctic and keep these animals safe.

Tell the Biden administration: The entire Western Arctic should be off limits to oil and gas drilling.

We already successfully convinced the Biden administration to protect five designated special areas in the Western Arctic -- a total of 13 million acres -- from new oil and gas development.4

But right next door, the Willow project is under construction. This massive oil drilling project is projected to emit as much global warming pollution as 60 coal-fired power plants produce in a year.5

And 10 million acres are still unprotected from oil drilling.6

The oil industry already has a toehold in this part of Alaska. To keep the oil industry from expanding further into critical caribou habitat and doing more damage, we have to keep as much land as we can off limits to oil drilling.

Right now, we can help shape the future of this remote and delicate ecosystem. Will it fall into the clutches of fossil fuel companies, or will it remain intact for generations of wildlife to come?

Submit your comment before the Sept. 16 deadline to protect the Western Arctic from oil drilling.

Acre by acre, we're working to protect the beautiful and wild places of America.

Thank you for standing with us,

Ellen Montgomery

1. Kyle Joly, Jeff Rasic, Rachel Mason and Maija Lukin, "History, Purpose, and Status of Caribou Movements in Northwest Alaska," National Park Service, June 12, 2018.
2. Zack Budryk, "Biden administration seeks feedback on potential new Arctic drilling protections," The Hill, July 12, 2024.
3. Tim Bradner, "ConocoPhillips wraps up first winter season building Willow project; Santos has its Pikka project under construction," The Frontiersman, May 13, 2024.
4. "Biden-Harris Administration Takes Critical Action to Protect Alaska Native Subsistence, Lands and Wildlife," U.S. Department of Interior, April 19, 2024.
5. Ellen Montgomery, "The Biden administration approved the Willow project. Now what?," Environment America, March 13, 2023.
6. Heather Richards and Hannah Northey, "Interior finalizes Arctic oil restrictions, rejects Ambler Road," E&E News by Politico, April 19, 2024.