Biden Admin Cited 'Indigenous Knowledge' as Reason To Block Oil and Gas Leases

[libertybele]

Biden Admin Cited 'Indigenous Knowledge' as Reason To Block Oil and Gas Leases

When the Biden administration stepped in last year to block seven oil and gas leases in Alaska, it said it was doing so in part to recognize the "Indigenous Knowledge" of the Native Americans who originally inhabited the land.

The move was indicative of the administration's embrace, in late 2022, of "Indigenous Knowledge"—that is, Native American folk wisdom—as part of their scientific assessments. so when Secretary of the Interior Deb Haaland announced on Sept. 6 2023, that the entire United States Arctic Ocean was off limits to new oil and gas leasing, and canceled seven oil and gas leases issued by former president Donald Trump after a review, she cited  "the best available science" and said the decision was also a "recognition of the Indigenous Knowledge of the original stewards of this area."

That announcement has prompted a scientific integrity complaint by Protect the Public’s Trust, a watchdog group. "Indigenous Knowledge," the complaint says, privileges "subjective beliefs over and above evidence derived from the application of the scientific method."

"The American public can rightly hold serious concerns that the Biden administration’s decision making, through the use of Indigenous Knowledge, is susceptible to manipulation without even the pretense of adhering to scientific principles," Protect the Public’s Trust director Michael Chamberlain wrote in the complaint.

Haaland’s remarks are the latest example of how "Indigenous Knowledge," a pseudoscience which posits native people possess unique insights into the laws of the universe, has pervaded the federal government. A variety of federal agencies have hosted "Indigenous Knowledge" seminars. And Health and Human Services is poised to order all of its sub agencies, which include the Food and Drug Administration and the Center for Disease Control, to incorporate "Indigenous Knowledge" into its decision making at some point this year.

The Department of the Interior did not respond to a request for comment.............

https://freebeacon.com/biden-administration/biden-admin-cited-indigenous-knowledge-as-reason-to-block-oil-and-gas-leases/

[The_Reader_David]

Indigenous knowledge is irrelevant to oil and gas exploration.  It is relevant to things like forest management (if California listened to its indigenous peoples they would do controlled burns and not have wildfire problems) and grassland management (we in Kansas know to burn the prairie from time to time as the Plains Indians did before us.  Why Oklahoma can't figure that out and is always having wildfires, I don't know, and no, it's not because the Indians there were dispossessed of their native lands in the American South in the Trail of Tears, they just aren't paying attention to what prevents wildfires).  It's relevant to biomedical research into the properties of plants native to the traditional homelands of various tribes.  But oil and gas exploration, no.

[Hoodat]

Secretary of the Interior Deb Haaland announced on Sept. 6 2023, that the entire United States Arctic Ocean was off limits to new oil and gas leasing, and canceled seven oil and gas leases issued by former president Donald Trump

So basically, they're going to let Russia have all the oil instead.