Biden bans offshore drilling in 625M acres of federal waters before Trump admin | Fox News
By: Danielle Wallace (Fox News)
S E E D E D C O N T E N T
closeVideo
Biden issues 'sweeping ban' on oil, gas drilling ahead of Trump administration: 'Not worth the risks'
FOX Business host Taylor Riggs joined 'Fox & Friends First' to discuss how the move impacts President Biden's legacy and how it could impact Trump's ability to drill and ultimately bring energy prices down.
President Biden announced an 11th-hour executive action on Monday that bans new drilling and further oil and natural gas development on more than 625 million acres of U.S. coastal and offshore waters.
Biden, whose term expires in two weeks, said he is using authority to protect offshore areas along the East and West coasts, the eastern Gulf of Mexico and portions of Alaska's Northern Bering Sea from future oil and natural gas leasing. He invoked the 1953 Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act, meaning President-elect Trump could be limited in his ability to revoke the action. Congress might need to intervene to grant Trump authority to place federal waters back into development.
"My decision reflects what coastal communities, businesses, and beachgoers have known for a long time: that drilling off these coasts could cause irreversible damage to places we hold dear and is unnecessary to meet our nation's energy needs," Biden said in a statement. "It is not worth the risks. As the climate crisis continues to threaten communities across the country and we are transitioning to a clean energy economy, now is the time to protect these coasts for our children and grandchildren."
The move garnered quick condemnation from Trump's incoming White House press secretary, Karoline Leavitt.
TRUMP PLANNING TO LIFT BIDEN'S LNG PAUSE, INCREASE OIL DRILLING DURING 1ST DAYS IN OFFICE: REPORT
President Biden speaks at a reception for new Democratic members of Congress in the State Dining Room of the White House, Sunday, Jan. 5, 2025. (AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta)
"This is a disgraceful decision designed to exact political revenge on the American people who gave President Trump a mandate to increase drilling and lower gas prices. Rest assured, Joe Biden will fail, and we will drill, baby, drill," Leavitt wrote on X.
Biden patted himself on the back for what he categorized as a legacy move in the fight against climate change.
"From Day One, I have delivered on the most ambitious climate and conservation agenda in our country's history. And over the last four years, I have conserved more than 670 million acres of America's lands and waters, more than any other president in history," Biden said. "Our country's remarkable conservation and restoration progress has been locally led by Tribes, farmers and ranchers, fishermen, small businesses, and outdoor recreation enthusiasts across the country. Together, our 'America the Beautiful' initiative put the United States on track to meet my ambitious goal to conserve at least 30 percent of our Nation's lands and waters by 2030."
Republican presidential nominee former President Donald Trump speaks at a campaign town hall at the Greater Philadelphia Expo Center & Fairgrounds, Oct. 14, 2024, in Oaks, Pa., as moderator South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem listens. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon, File)
BIDEN MOVING TO BAN OIL AND GAS LEASES FOR 20 YEARS IN NEVADA REGION, JUST WEEKS BEFORE TRUMP INAUGURATION
"We do not need to choose between protecting the environment and growing our economy, or between keeping our ocean healthy, our coastlines resilient, and the food they produce secure and keeping energy prices low," the statement added. "Those are false choices. Protecting America's coasts and ocean is the right thing to do, and will help communities and the economy to flourish for generations to come."
Ron Neal, the chairman of the Independent Petroleum Association of America Offshore Committee, also slammed Biden's last-ditch offshore drilling ban as "significant and catastrophic."
"While it may not directly affect the currently active production areas in the Outer Continental Shelf (OCS) and adjoining coastal areas, it represents a major attack on the oil and natural gas industry. This should be seen as the 'elephant's nose under the tent.' The ban severely limits potential for exploration and development in new areas therefore chocking the long-term survivability of the industry," Neal, also the President of Houston Energy LP and CEO of HEQ Deepwater, said in a statement. "This move is a first step towards more extensive restrictions all across our industry in all U.S. basins including the onshore. If the activists come for anything, they are coming for everything. The policy is catastrophic for the development of new areas for oil and natural gas but, the environmentalists will eventually look to also shut down offshore wind farms for most of the same reasons. President Biden and his allies continue to push anti-energy policies that will hurt Americans."
Offshore petroleum drilling rig in the Gulf of Mexico. (Ron Buskirk/UCG/Universal Images Group via Getty Images)
CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP
Trump, during his 2024 campaign, promised to deliver American "energy dominance" on the world stage as he looked toward bolstering U.S. oil and gas drilling, as well as distance from Biden's prioritization of climate change initiatives.
Danielle Wallace is a breaking news and politics reporter at Fox News Digital. Story tips can be sent to danielle.wallace@fox.com and on X: @danimwallace.
Trolling, taunting, spamming, and off-topic comments may be removed at the discretion of group mods. NT members that vote up their own comments, repeat comments, respond to themselves, or continue to disrupt the conversation risk having all their comments deleted. Please remember to quote the person(s) you are replying to preserve the continuity of this seed. Posting debunked lies will be subject to deletion
No Fascism References, Source Dissing.
Tags
Who is online
63 visitors
Thanks Joetard for doing everything you can to fuck the American people and the poor just to stick it to the person who beat your DEI choice. Biden is proving to be a complete piece of shit when it comes to the American people. he only cares about revenge and hate.
[✘] This does little to nothing to slow down drilling. We are the leading producer of fossil fuels and in no way in danger of slowing down.[✘]
It's true that it will have little impact on the current rates of production.
Now is the time to dig and drill to the greatest extent possible and sell our excess oil and natural gas to the highest bidders.
Hahaha... How are you going to do that when the energy companies aren't looking to increasing their drilling? They already have more leases than they have pumps and more pumps than than they are actively working.
Prove this comment with an independent source or it will be deleted.
Oil patch is poised for buyout wave as US drillers seek new land
Oil patch is poised for buyout wave as US drillers seek new land
U.S. shale “ripe” for takeover boom as producers look for new drilling sites
U.S. shale “ripe” for takeover boom as producers look for new drilling sites in Permian basin
What do you mean by "excess"? All oil and gas from the US goes to the open market, you act like most of it is exclusive to US use only.
[ ✘ ] FACT SHEET
Onshore
• As of October 1, 2021 there were 35,871 active onshore leases on federal lands, with 23,803 producing.
• As of December 2021, the industry has approximately 9,200 APDs awaiting production representing a very small percentage of the nearly 100,000 wells on federal lands and down from 9,600 in September 2021.10 Once an APD, is approved it is active for two (2) years and may be extended for another two (2) years at the discretion of the Bureau of Land Management.
• The minimum bid for a 10-year, onshore federal lands lease is around $2 / acre. Once a lease is granted, yearly rental fees of $1.50 /acre if the lease does not begin producing.
• Since 2010, the BLM has issued 14,604 leases, an average of 1,217 / year. Pre – production revenue, which includes lease sales and rents, for onshore oil and natural gas resources averaged $346 million per year between 2010 and 2021.13 o Total government revenue which includes pre-production and royalty payments on production, totaled $34.7 billion or an average of $2.9 billion / year.
Offshore
• As of March 1, there were 2,060 active offshore leases, with 512 producing (25%).
• Since 2000, 97% of the 11,600 approved permits to drill have been drilled.16 • The minimum bid for a 10-year, deepwater offshore lease is $576,000 ($100 / acre). Once a lease is granted, yearly rental fees of $63,000 begin and rises to $92,000 in later years if the lease does not begin producing.
• Since 2010, BOEM has issued 3,296 GOM leases, an average of ~ 300 / year.
• These leases generated $7,307 million in bonus bids (avg - $2.217 million / lease) and $182 million in 1st year rentals (avg - $55,218/lease).
• Total government revenue which includes pre-production and royalty payments on production, totaled $65.2 billion or an average of $5.4 billion / year).
[✘]
economic forecasts have been predicting a glut in oil production this year for months ...