Biden admin approves massive gas pipeline project in huge blow to climate activists

The Biden administration green-lit an 807-mile natural gas pipeline project in Alaska that environmentalists blasted as a threat to the climate and wildlife.

The Department of Energy (DOE) issued a supplemental record of decision, reaffirming its original approval of the project in 2020 under the Trump administration, but amending it to include additional environmental protections. In addition to the pipeline, the $38.7 billion project proposed by the state-owned Alaska Gasline Development Corporation (AGDC) also includes liquefied natural gas (LNG) export infrastructure.

"The Department of Energy today issued an order amending a 2020 decision to impose new environmental requirements that prevents venting carbon dioxide, in addition to reaffirming all prior environmental conditions," the DOE said in a statement. "This order does not approve construction of the project — that was done by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) in 2020." 

"This order also does not evaluate the long-term viability of the project related to factors outside of DOE’s regulatory scope," the statement continued. "FERC, an independent agency, has regulatory oversight of the siting, construction, and operation of the Alaska LNG project. The State of Alaska’s [AGDC] is developing an Alaska LNG project and has not yet reached a final investment decision on whether to construct the project at all."