Alaska seeks oil revival while grappling with a warming future
EXIT GLACIER, Alaska — America's 49th state is a study in contrasts: Rapidly melting glaciers like this one attract tourists, while the oil industry underpinning its economy is getting a fresh boost from Washington after decades of decline.
Why it matters: Few places put the causes and consequences of global warming in such close proximity, making Alaska a vivid window into the world's reliance on fossil fuels as climate impacts mount.
Driving the news: "Alaska is a powerhouse," Energy Secretary Chris Wright said last week in Anchorage at the state oil and gas trade group's annual conference, according to Alaska News Source.
"I think you could have an incredible several years, several decades coming with just some common sense policies to set Alaskans free." State of play: Alaska has emerged as perhaps the Trump administration's biggest geographic focus for expanding U.S. oil and gas development, with the government pushing new leasing , easier permitting , Arctic drilling and a massive natural gas pipeline.
A major new North Slope oil field started producing in May, and another is expected to begin producing in 2029 .
Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska) told Axios this moment is a "second wind" for the state's oil industry.
The big picture: No offense to Texas, but everything is actually bigger in Alaska.
It's more than double the size of Texas and has more coastline than all other states combined.
It ranks near the top for both proven oil and gas reserves in the nation, and it has the largest icefield wholly contained in the U.S., the Harding Icefield, which feeds Exit Glacier.
Reality check: Alaska's heyday as a top oil powerhouse is likely behind it.
Its oil production has been declining since the late 1980s, and projects underway aren't expected to restore anything close to that.
Friction point: Some of Washington's efforts are facing hurdles.
The Interior Department's June lease sale in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, a vast wilderness home to polar bears, caribou and hundreds of bird species, generated little industry interest .
A separate sale for new drilling in Cook Inlet near Anchorage received zero bids.
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