Climate change protesters briefly shut down highway in DC

A group of climate change activists managed to temporarily shut down a section of I-395 in Washington, D.C., near the National Mall on Monday in an environmental demonstration.

Supporters of the environmental group Declare Emergency were seen in photos and videos that circulated on social media holding up traffic on the interstate in D.C. near the 3rd Street Tunnel. The group said in a Facebook post that multiple protesters were arrested following the incident.

The D.C. Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) told The Hill that the demonstration lasted “less than 1 hour,” with police confirming that seven individuals were arrested for allegedly “crowding, obstructing or incommoding.” 

Declare Emergency posted photos of people in bright green vests lying on the ground and holding signs with traffic behind them.

The Washington Post reported the group was demonstrating to discourage the Biden administration from expanding drilling or mining for fossil fuel on federal and Indigenous land. 

The Hill has reached out to Declare Emergency for comment.

The group has previously used similar tactics when protesting in The District, according to photos posted online, and argues that the planet is in danger without action to reverse greenhouse gas emissions.

Their latest D.C. demonstration comes as the Biden administration seeks to ease pain at the pump for consumers amid continued high gas prices.

President Biden last week ordered the largest-ever withdrawal of oil from the United States’ strategic reserves. He and some other Democrats have also urged the oil industry recently to drill more where they already have permits in an effort to increase production and help drive down dependence on foreign oil.