Joe Biden administration to restrict Alaska oil and gas drilling

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The White House on Wednesday rescinded controversial oil leases on Alaskan wildlife refuges that were awarded in the final days of the Trump administration as part of a broad effort to curb drilling in the Arctic.

The lease for the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge was issued on Jan. 6, 2021, days before Trump left office, but was suspended six months later by the Biden administration’s Department of the Interior.

The cancellation due to “multiple legal flaws” comes as President Joe Biden’s White House looks to flaunt its environmental credentials in the face of criticism for supporting fossil fuel projects.

“President Biden is implementing the most ambitious climate and conservation agenda in history,” said Interior Secretary Deb Harlan. “The steps we are taking today further that commitment.”

The move, which comes with tighter restrictions on exploration for Alaska’s state oil reserves, is seen as largely symbolic because there has been little interest in drilling on leased territories, all of which are ultimately owned by state agency Alaska Industries. Development Bureau Holds and Export Authority.

“Cancelling Trump’s lease is helpful because it has legal and scientific flaws,” said Carl Tobias, a law professor at the University of Richmond. “However, Alaska is the only entity that has expressed interest in drilling at ANWR. , few other entities appear to be interested in NPR.”

Although drilling has yet to take place in the licensed areas, Wednesday’s announcement was praised by environmentalists and some Indigenous leaders, while pro-industry voices lamented attacks on the industry.

The Sierra Club described it as a “historic initiative” that will preserve the state’s landscape. “Oil and gas drilling in Arctic reserves is incompatible with the long-term survival of the Arctic,” said Ben Jelos, executive director of the group.

Bernadette Demientieff, chair of the Gwich’in Community Steering Committee, a local Aboriginal group, called the leases “illegal” and applauded the government’s decision.

“We thank the Biden administration and Interior Secretary Deb Harlan for taking this step . . . and we urge administration and congressional leaders to abolish the oil and gas program and permanently protect the Arctic Reserve,” Demitiev said.

Republican allies of the oil industry in Congress slammed the decision.

“President Biden’s war on American energy continues,” said Sen. John Barrasso, Republican of Wyoming and the ranking member of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee. “He’s ignoring the law and making us more dependent on foreign oil. That’s not just bad energy policy, it’s bad foreign policy.”

Senator Lisa Murkowski, Republican of Alaska, called the decision “irrational” and said it was the latest sign of “incoherent energy policy” in the Biden administration.

Morrie Lemen, executive director of the Arctic Slopes Inupiat Community, another indigenous group, said the decision would also hurt economic activity in the area.

“This action directly impacts the livelihoods and economic future of our tribal members. Our voices, our traditions, and our connection to this land cannot be silenced or ignored,” Lemen said.

The Biden administration’s decision to approve ConocoPhillips’ $8 billion Willow oil project on NPR a few months ago drew the ire of environmentalists.

On Wednesday, the White House also formalized rules to protect the NPR, America’s largest public land, a move signaled as far back as March. The rules would ban about 40% of the region from new oil and gas leases.

Biden has walked a tightrope on climate and energy security, setting aggressive decarbonization goals for a country that consumes a fifth of the world’s oil production, but he has also urged drillers to boost output to rein in gasoline that rose to record highs last year Priced and in good condition. higher than when he took office.

The U.S. Geological Survey estimates that the reserve holds about 8 billion barrels of recoverable oil, a fraction of U.S. reserves. Drilling of shale deposits in forty-eight southern US states has made the country the world’s largest oil producer.