Thursday, 28 Mar 2024

Public lands to reopen for oil and gas drilling in a first under Biden

Public lands to reopen for oil and gas drilling in a first under Biden


Public lands to reopen for oil and gas drilling in a first under Biden

As federal officials weigh efforts to fight the climate crisis against pressure to bring down high gasoline prices, the interior department is moving forward with the first onshore sales of public oil and natural gas drilling leases under Joe Biden.

The move also calls for a sharp increase in royalty rates for companies, ostensibly to limit global emissions driving the climate crisis, though economists say the effect will be relatively small.

The government held an offshore lease auction in the Gulf of Mexico in November, although a court later blocked that sale before the leases were issued.

Yet Biden also faces calls from within his own party to do more to curb emissions from fossil fuels that are driving the climate crisis.

Leases for 225 sq miles (580 sq kilometers) of federal lands primarily in the western US will be offered for sale in a notice to be posted on Monday, officials said. The parcels represent about 30% less land than officials had proposed for sale in November and 80% less than what was originally nominated by the industry.

The sales notices will cover leasing decisions in nine states: Wyoming, Colorado, Utah, New Mexico, Montana, Alabama, Nevada, North Dakota and Oklahoma.

Hundreds of parcels of public land that companies nominated for leasing had been previously dropped from the upcoming lease sale because of concerns about wildlife being harmed by drilling rigs.

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