Drill, Deny, Destroy: Trump’s First Day Actions on Alaska’s Resource Future
On his very first day in office, Trump made it abundantly clear that his administration intends to prioritize fossil fuel expansion, climate denial, and political theater over meaningful governance. His inaugural address, early executive actions, and policy signals left no doubt: the next four years will bring an attempted, all-out assault on Alaska, environmental protections, public lands, and any progress made toward climate solutions. But don’t worry, we still have hope.
First, the bad: Just hours after being sworn in, President Donald Trump not only rescinded 80 Executive Orders signed by the previous Biden administration, but he also issued an Executive Order titled Unleashing Alaska’s Extraordinary Resource Potential, a step toward accelerating the exploitation of Alaska’s natural resources at the expense of its environment, Indigenous communities, and future. Framed as an economic and national security initiative, the Order positions Alaska’s public lands - including the Arctic Refuge, Western Arctic, Ambler Road, Tongass National Forest, and nearly every area across the state - as the key to boosting U.S. energy dominance, but in reality, it aims to sacrifice lands and waters for short-term profits, environmental degradation, and an unchecked fossil fuel agenda.
Now, the silver lining: When you look at the substance of Trump’s Day One actions on Alaska, not much was actually accomplished. The heavy lifting - like how his administration can actually follow our Nation’s law and achieve his aims - is still very unclear. We all know that Trump has a hard time following the law. We also have strong supporters in Congress that care deeply about the future of Alaska’s public lands. Together, with your help, we can hold him accountable every step of the way.
But beyond the rhetoric, what do these early actions actually mean for the future? How do his statements compare to reality? And what do they tell us about the path ahead? Here are some key takeaways from Day One and what they could mean for Alaska and our fight ahead.
Trump’s Oil and Gas Ambitions are Stuck in the Past
Trump’s presidency is not defined by forward-thinking solutions or bold new ideas, but by a desperate clinging to the past–a past that, in many ways, has already passed us by. His revival of the "drill, baby, drill" slogan from 2008 is outdated and a reflection of a president out of touch with the reality of America’s future. When he took office, Trump’s promised energy "dominance" was supposed to push the U.S. into a new era of oil production, yet we’re already producing more oil than ever before. Fast forward from the 2008 ‘drill, baby, drill’ era to today: U.S. oil production has more than doubled, and we’ve become the world’s largest producer of oil and gas. We’re no longer dependent on foreign oil, and in fact, the U.S. has been a net exporter of petroleum since 2019.
Trump is pursuing policies that just don’t align with the direction the country and the world are heading. While the Executive Order boasts of enhancing U.S. energy security and reducing trade imbalances, the reality is that it pushes the nation further down the path of fossil fuel dependence at a time when we should be rapidly transitioning away from it. By emphasizing LNG development and reinforcing the Trans-Alaska Pipeline System, Trump is betting on a dying industry while actively worsening the climate crisis. The devastation from climate-related disasters is already clear across the globe—wildfires, floods, and extreme heat events. In Alaska, warming temperatures are thawing permafrost, threatening infrastructure, and causing devastating coastal erosion.
At the heart of Trump’s policy is the myth that increased drilling and extraction will somehow make the U.S. energy independent, despite the fact that the global oil market operates on an interconnected, volatile scale. The reality is that extraction, particularly from fragile areas like the Arctic Refuge, is a policy of stagnation, not innovation. But we don’t have to be stuck in the past. The American people have shown time and again that they want real climate action, and the tide is turning toward a future where our public lands, communities, and climate will fight to be protected.
Climate Impacts Without Climate Solutions
When Trump highlighted the tragedy of the California wildfires in his inauguration speech, he invoked the images of suffering—yet failed to make the connection between these climate-driven catastrophes and his Big Oil agenda. The fact that he glossed over the broader devastation of these fires is a telltale sign of his priorities, and how he fails to grasp reality. The truth is, wildfires, hurricanes, and floods aren’t selective. They don’t care about how much money you have or where you live. They’re consequences of a rapidly changing climate, and they’re a threat to every American.
Alaska, Caribou, North Slope oil fields, Rangifer tarandus, Porcupine herd, moving past Prudhoe Bay Arctic Drilling Rig, North Slope, Alaska, 1978
The continued push to drill on Alaska’s public lands would release massive amounts of carbon into the atmosphere. It’s estimated that developing in places like the Arctic Refuge would release 7.7 billion metric tons of CO2—the equivalent of adding 1.5 million cars to the road for 40 years. This would affect the health and safety of all Americans, especially those in climate-vulnerable regions because what happens in Alaska doesn’t just stay there. In recent years, the fight against drilling in Alaska has been a powerful example of collective action—tribal leaders, coalitions, environmental advocates, financial institutions, and everyday people have come together to reject the exploitation of these lands and waters. That kind of resistance has worked before, and it’s going to work again.
His day one Executive Orders attempt to roll back critical environmental protections put in place to safeguard the planet and its ecosystems. The Alaska-focused Executive Order is a clear example of corporate welfare disguised as national interest. It prioritizes immediate financial gain for the fossil fuel industry over long-term environmental sustainability. It chooses to prioritize infrastructure that supports a fading industry. And it does all of this with no regard for the real-world consequences—destruction of habitats, loss of biodiversity, and furthering the climate catastrophe.
Trump is playing a dangerous game of denial, failing to address the undeniable reality of climate change and instead pushing an agenda that actively worsens it. This isn’t leadership. This is an abdication of responsibility.
Symbolism Over Substance
Trump’s day one was also filled with symbolic gestures that carried deeper, more harmful implications. One of the most telling was his move to rename Denali back to Mount McKinley, a petty reversal of Obama’s decision to restore the mountain’s traditional Indigenous name. This wasn’t about honoring history—it was about asserting control over Alaska and dismissing the voices of the Native peoples.
Gwich’in leaders and advocates with the Representative Deb Haaland (D-NM), now Interior Secretary Haaland, protesting oil development in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. (Alaska Wilderness League)
It’s clear through these Orders that this administration has a deep contempt for the rights of Alaska’s Indigenous communities. The administration’s attempt to push forward with aggressive resource development, including the destruction of sacred sites in the Refuge, disregards the sovereignty and land rights of Alaska Native peoples. The Gwich’in, for example, have long opposed drilling in the Arctic, as it would disrupt their traditional hunting grounds and undermine their way of life. Yet this Executive Order continues to ignore their voices and dismisses the cultural and spiritual significance of the land.
This order also aims to undermine the subsistence protections granted last week by the Biden administration in the Western Arctic, designed to protect caribou and communities from the impact of oil and gas development from projects like Willow. By facilitating rapid industrialization of lands that have been historically significant to Native peoples while simultaneously erasing subsistence protections, the Order erodes the hard-fought victories won by Indigenous communities and sets a dangerous roadmap for future development on Native lands across the country.
What Lies Ahead
Trump’s first day in office and his subsequent actions, despite not actually accomplishing much besides just headline actions, are setting the stage for a presidency defined by a relentless push for extraction, climate denial, and an unwavering commitment to corporate interests *cough* Elon Musk *cough*.
The Trump administration may have attempted to open the door for exploitation, but we’re committed to keeping land and water protections strong. Whether through legal battles, public advocacy, or our broad coalition of conservation organizations, we will not let Alaska be destroyed for short-term profit.
The struggle to protect Alaska’s wild spaces is a fight for the future of the planet, for the rights of Indigenous peoples, and for the climate stability that we desperately need. It’s a fight we will continue to wage, every day, until Alaska’s extraordinary resource potential is recognized for what we already know it truly is: a place worth preserving.
