White House photo

Loveland, Ohio, You may have heard our current president quoted for saying, “We are going to drill, baby, drill,” recently in the news or on social media. But what does all of this mean? Why is there so much excitement over this statement?

For starters, Donald Trump is not the one to coin the phrase “drill, baby, drill.” In fact, former Republican governor of the state of Maryland, Michael Steele, first used the phrase in 2008 to add enthusiasm to drilling from Alaska in order to reduce energy costs in America. The increasingly popular phrase is one passed down through the Republican party.

Our former president, Joe Biden, had called to reduce the drilling and mining in Alaska in hopes of helping the planet. Now that President Trump has been inaugurated, this is going to change.

However, many are opposed to the idea of drilling because of the environmental degradation that is attached to it. Many scientists argue that we need to decrease more fossil fuel extractions, not increase them, so as not to increase the Greenhouse Effect anymore than it already has been. Drilling oil from Alaska is undoubtedly going to harm any and all ecosystems in the Arctic, possibly even leading to mass extinctions. Alongside that, the melting of our ice caps will increase, assisting in polluting our air and spreading respiratory diseases globally. There is a possibility for the damage done by Trump’s resumption of drilling oil from Alaska to have irreversible effects on our planet.

With that being said, there is merit in drilling oil in Alaska. Millions of jobs will be created with the drilling reenacted. Also, a large amount of American tax dollars go towards oil and drilling, and that money is eventually used for American services in infrastructure and transportation, giving more leeway for the government to reduce the cost of necessities. In simple terms, since Alaska is far more local than other foreign oil extraction sites, it costs less to transport this fuel to Americans, making gas and groceries cheaper in the US.

The argument of drilling in Alaska is quite polarizing, but that’s not to say there isn’t an agreement somewhere. Both former Vice President, Kamala Harris, and current President, Donald Trump, have agreed upon the fact that drilling, fracking, and mining should continue. However, that’s where the agreement ends. Donald Trump’s right-wing Project 2025 will drastically change the position that the Environmental Protection Agency has in America. If we are to look at Trump’s past, he rolled back over 100 environmental regulations in his first four years in office.  

It’s important to note that gaining energy from renewable sources such as solar, wind, or geothermal is arguably more cost-effective over time and greener than mining and drilling. Many argue that in order to secure a healthier future, we must invest in renewable and cleaner energy sources, and others believe that the cost of these sources is unnecessarily high for a return on investment that will take many years to actualize. 

President Trump’s right-wing phrase “drill, baby drill” comes with environmental consequences and economic benefits, no matter what, and there is validity on either side of the argument. The future of US energy policy depends on finding a way to meet in the middle, boosting our economy and environment, ensuring future generations a world where humanity and nature live in harmony.