President Biden Bans New Oil and Gas Drilling in Large U.S. Offshore Areas
In a significant move, President Joe Biden has permanently banned new oil and gas drilling in vast areas of U.S. offshore territories, including the Atlantic and Pacific coasts, and vital protected waters like the Eastern Gulf of Mexico and the Arctic’s North Bering Sea. The decision, announced on Tuesday, will be a challenge for the incoming Trump administration to overturn.
The ban, enforced under the 1953 Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act, covers approximately 625 million acres, aiming to safeguard critical marine ecosystems and wildlife from potential damage caused by drilling activities.
While the existing president has the power to issue such a ban, the legislative authority to revoke it lies with Congress, meaning a future president would need their approval to lift the ban. This move by Biden is seen as a powerful counter to Trump’s push to excitedly ramp up domestic fossil fuel production.
"The Trump administration is leaving office with a reelection loss, not a mandate to drill off our shores," Biden’s press secretary Jen Psaki said in a statement. "We will not stand idly by and let them sell out our coasts to the highest bidder."
Biden’s decision is driven by a desire to protect environmentally sensitive regions from "irreparable damage" caused by drilling, arguing that these areas do not contribute significantly to the nation’s energy needs. However, Mike Sommers, the president of the American Petroleum Institute, criticized the move, calling it a "political stunt" that could have "serious consequences" for U.S. energy security and job creation.
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