Alaska is already facing the impacts of climate change and, as Governor Bill Walker points out, entire villages are being washed away by rising sea levels.
The governor's solution for the problem, however, is to make matters worse.
When asked if extra drilling would help pay for adapting to these impacts, Walker responded “absolutely,” telling the BBC reporter that the state should proceed “in a responsible way as we have in the past.” Walker argued that a portion of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge should be opened up to drilling, in order to increase the state’s revenue.
Lawmakers have called for opening up the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge for drilling for many years, but as far as I know this is the first time someone has called for opening the land up for drilling as a way of adapting to climate change.
One ordinarily does not extinguish a fire with lighter fluid.
If Alaskan lawmakers are looking for solutions, the state's representatives in Congress could start by supporting the president's climate initiatives and perhaps even propose legislation aimed at funding recovery and adaptation projects nationwide. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) already funds small adaptation projects for Native American tribes. Maybe we could expand that program.
Distracting ourselves from a broken leg by breaking a finger certainly isn't the solution.