"A federal judge on Monday rejected a bid by environmentalists to temporarily suspend the U.S. government’s approval of ConocoPhillips' (COP.N) multibillion-dollar oil drilling project in Alaska’s Arctic.
U.S. District Judge Sharon Gleason in Anchorage had been asked by environmental groups and a Native American community in two lawsuits filed last month for an order blocking construction on the $7 billion Willow project over concerns it would exacerbate climate change and damage pristine wildlife habitat.
Gleason said an injunction was inappropriate because the groups wouldn't be irreparably harmed by the construction that ConocoPhillips has scheduled for this month, which includes building roads and a gravel mine."