General
News
Trump Officials Rush To Auction Off Rights To Arctic National Wildlife Refuge Before Biden
Can Block It. According to the Washington Post, “The Trump administration is asking
oil and gas firms to pick spots where they want to drill in Alaska’s Arctic National Wildlife Refuge as it races to open the pristine wilderness to development and lock in drilling rights before President-elect Joe Biden takes office. The ‘call for nominations’
to be published Tuesday in the Federal Register allows companies to identify tracts on which to bid during an upcoming lease sale on the refuge’s nearly 1.6 million-acre coastal plain, a sale that the Interior Department aims to hold before Biden takes the
oath of office in January. The move would be a capstone of President Trump’s efforts to open up public lands to logging, mining and grazing, which Biden strongly opposes. A GOP-controlled Congress in 2017 authorized drilling in the refuge, a vast wilderness
that is home to tens of thousands of migrating caribou and waterfowl, along with polar bears and Arctic foxes. ‘Receiving input from industry on which tracts to make available for leasing is vital in conducting a successful lease sale,’ Chad Padgett, the Bureau
of Land Management’s Alaska state director, said in a statement. ‘This call for nominations brings us one step closer to holding a historic first Coastal Plain lease sale, satisfying the directive of Congress in the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act and advancing
this administration’s policy of energy independence.’ The administration is pressing ahead with other moves to expand energy development and scale back federal environmental rules over the next few weeks. It aims to finalize a plan to open up the vast majority
of the National Petroleum Reserve-Alaska to drilling, as well as adopt a narrower definition of what constitutes critical habitat for endangered species and when companies are liable for killing migratory birds. At the Energy Department, officials may weaken
energy-efficiency requirements for shower heads, as well as washers and dryers before Inauguration Day.” [Washington Post,
11/16/20
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Trump Administration, In Late Push, Moves To Sell Oil Rights In Arctic Refuge.
According to the New York Times, “The Trump administration on Monday announced that it
would begin the formal process of selling leases to oil companies in a last-minute push to achieve its long-sought goal of allowing oil and gas drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge in Alaska. That sets up a potential sale of leases just before Jan.
20, Inauguration Day, leaving the new administration of Joseph R. Biden Jr., who has opposed drilling in the refuge, to try to reverse them after the fact. ‘This lease sale is one more box the Trump administration is trying to check off for its oil industry
allies,’ said Adam Kolton, executive director of the Alaska Wilderness League, in a statement. ‘But it is disappointing that this administration until the very end has maintained such low regard for America’s public lands, or the wildlife and Indigenous communities
that depend on them.’ The Arctic refuge is one of the last vast expanses of wilderness in the United States, 19 million acres that for the most part are untouched by people, home instead to wandering herds of caribou, polar bears and migrating waterfowl. It
has long been prized, and protected, by environmentalists, but President Trump has boasted that opening part of it to oil development was among the most significant of his efforts to expand domestic fossil fuel production. The Federal Register on Monday posted
a ‘call for nominations’ from the Bureau of Land Management, to be officially published Tuesday, relating to lease sales in about 1.5 million acres of the refuge along the coast of the Arctic Ocean. A call for nominations is essentially a request to oil companies
to specify which tracts of land they would be interested in exploring and potentially drilling for oil and gas.” [New York Times,
11/16/20
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Trump's Last-Minute ANWR Sale: What To Watch.
According to E&E News, “Opponents of oil and gas development in the Arctic National Wildlife
Refuge were hoping to run out the clock on the Trump administration. But the president’s Interior Department leadership is making one last run to beat it, pitching an ANWR sale in the final days of the presidency. The administration published a call for nominations
today, a 30-day invitation for the oil and gas industry and its prospectors to make bids on ANWR’s coastal plain. The majority of the 1.6 million acres, in 32 parcels, that lie adjacent to the Arctic Ocean on Alaska’s North Slope may be offered at auction
at an unspecified date. Experts assume, however, this would be before noon on Jan. 20, 2021, when President-elect Joe Biden takes office and the pro-oil Trump administration exits. Interior, though, has significantly more time by law. It is obligated to hold
a sale by the end of next year, one of two lease sales the Republican-led Congress mandated for ANWR via a rider in the 2017 tax overhaul, penned by pro-industry Alaska Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R). But the incoming president has vowed to restore protections for
ANWR, and both the Gwich’in people and environmental groups have sued over the leasing program, citing food security and climate change (Energywire, Aug. 25). The pressure is on to carry out a sale before political winds change and it becomes harder to offer
leases in ANWR, said Robert Dillon, a public policy expert at Wheelhouse Partners. ‘It’s pretty easy, if it is not done before the change in administration, to just kibosh it,’ said Dillon, a one-time adviser to Murkowski.” [E&E News,
11/17/20
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Greens Urge Biden Not To Pick Moniz.
According to Politico, “Meanwhile, a slew of environmental groups — including the Center for Biological Diversity Action Fund, Friends of the Earth U.S. and Climate Hawks Vote — want to make sure Ernest Moniz ‘holds no public or private role, whether formal
or informal’ in Biden’s transition team, Cabinet or administration. They write that Moniz, who is being floated for Energy secretary, is an ‘unrepentant founding father of the fracking industry’ and call his approach ‘incompatible with a stable climate.’”
[Politico, 11/17/20
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Judge Derides BLM Climate Review.
According to Politico, “A federal district court judge again blocked new oil and gas drilling permits on Wyoming public lands on Friday, calling an environmental analysis from the Bureau of Land Management ‘sloppy and rushed.’ U.S. District Judge Rudolph Contreras
ruled a supplemental assessment from BLM did not comply with federal law and ‘does not adequately consider the climate change impacts of the oil and gas leasing decisions in accordance with this Court’s prior opinion.’ Contreras last year froze oil and natural
gas drilling on some federal land leases in Wyoming, finding BLM did not adequately account for the climate effects.” [Politico,
11/17/20
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Court Again Blocks BLM Oil & Gas Leases Over Insufficient Climate Review.
According to Inside EPA, “A federal district court for the second time is rejecting the Bureau of Land Management’s (BLM) climate change
analysis for hundreds of oil and gas leases in Wyoming, blocking the leases and ordering BLM to redo its National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) review, possibly allowing a Biden administration to entirely cancel the leases. The Nov. 13 opinion in WildEarth
Guardians, et al., v. Bernhardt, et al. by Judge Rudolph Contreras of the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia says the number of errors in BLM’s supplemental environmental assessment (EA) ‘suggests a sloppy and rushed process,’ citing the agency’s
calculation of regional direct emissions which ‘used the wrong numbers and failed to check the math’ as just one of many mistakes. The effect of the many errors and the lack of a robust cumulative analysis ‘undermines the Court’s confidence in the other calculations
in the Supplemental EA,’ which Contreras again remanded to BLM while also enjoining the bureau from authorizing any drilling activity while it conducts a third NEPA analysis of the leases. The ruling addresses 283 leases on over 300,000 acres of public land
for oil and gas development in Wyoming. In their original suit, the environmental groups also challenged leases on another roughly 150,000 acres in Utah and Colorado, although those leases were not addressed in the instant decision. Subsequently, the groups
expanded their litigation by raising similar NEPA claims for leases across nearly 2 million acres in five Western states, and Contreras last month agreed to BLM’s request to voluntarily remand the NEPA reviews for almost all of those leases, which also include
land in Montana and New Mexico.” [Inside EPA, 11/16/20
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Wyo. Lease Sale Sparks Protest.
According to E&E News, “Environmentalists are protesting one of the last oil and gas lease sales of the Trump era, arguing that the
Interior Department failed to properly account for the impacts of greenhouse gas emissions in a high-pollution basin in Wyoming. The scheduled sale of 118,219 mineral acres in the Cowboy State next month is expected to represent some of the last federal leases
auctioned during the energy dominance push that characterized President Trump’s four years in office. The Bureau of Land Management holds quarterly oil and gas lease auctions of federal minerals every year. A fourth-quarter New Mexico sale already occurred,
and sales in Colorado, California, Montana, Nevada, Utah and Wyoming are scheduled before the new year. These could be some of the last federal oil and gas leases sold if President-elect Joe Biden (D) stands by his campaign commitment to end the practice once
he takes office. ‘Each ounce of climate pollution lends urgency to Biden’s plan to end fossil fuel leasing on public land and waters,’ Taylor McKinnon, a senior campaigner at the Center for Biological Diversity, said in a statement today accompanying the protest.
‘This Wyoming plan is a recipe for disaster. Our climate can’t afford one more acre of public land committed to fossil fuel development.’ The protest letter notes a number of concerns regarding water and air quality. It presses for more analysis to comply
with federal laws including the Clean Air Act and the National Environmental Policy Act. The letter, which was sent to Kim Liebhauser, the BLM Wyoming acting director, argues BLM should acknowledge the ‘intensity factor’ of leasing significant numbers of adjacent
parcels for development on emissions and in response perform a more expansive environmental impact statement on the proposed sale.” [E&E News,
11/16/20
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Trump Takes Major Step Toward Alaska Wildlife Refuge Drilling Opposed By Biden.
According to The Hill, “The Trump administration is advancing oil exploration Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR) in a move critics
see as an attempt to lock in drilling before President-elect Joe Biden takes office in January. The Bureau of Land Management’s Alaska state office on Tuesday will publish a ‘call for nominations’ seeking input on which pieces of land should be leased for
drilling. The call describes an ‘upcoming Coastal Plain (CP) Oil and Gas Lease Sale’ although it does not specify when the sale will take place. Environmentalists argue the Trump administration is trying to rush through lease sales that are opposed by Biden,
making it harder for him to reverse drilling plans there after he takes office. The federal government is slated to hold a lease sale in ANWR by Dec. 22, 2021, and another by Dec. 22, 2024, under a provision in Trump’s 2017 tax law. However, Biden has pledged
to ‘permanently protect’ ANWR and has also said his administration won’t allow new permits for oil and gas drilling on public lands and in public waters in general. Bloomberg first reported on Friday that the call for nominations would occur. Earlier this
year the Trump administration finalized the decision to open up the entire 1.56 million acre coastal plain area to leasing. This was praised by Interior Secretary David Bernhardt as an opportunity that could ‘create thousands of new jobs and generate tens
of billions of dollars.’ However, opponents have raised concerns that drilling could harm animal species that are found there, negatively affect the landscape, exacerbate climate change and negatively impact the Gwich’in people who hunt caribou there.” [The
Hill, 11/16/20
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BLM Plans Massive Lease Sale In Wyo. Sage Grouse Habitat.
According to E&E News, “President Trump’s outgoing administration continues to fire away on its priority policy items in its final weeks
in office. The Bureau of Land Management is proposing to offer 383 parcels across a huge swath of Wyoming in a planned oil and gas lease sale in March that includes 141 parcels covering more than 244,000 acres of greater sage grouse habitat. Environmental
groups plan to oppose the inclusion of the sage grouse parcels in the planned lease sale, which includes another 239,000 acres outside of grouse habitat. It’s possible that BLM under President-elect Joe Biden, who takes office Jan. 20, would defer the sage
grouse parcels at issue pending further analysis well before the March lease sale, sources said. But BLM said in press materials that it ‘meticulously reviewed the proposed parcels and determined leasing each of them conforms to all applicable policies and
land use plans.’ BLM also removed 42 parcels that crossed ‘priority’ sage grouse habitat from the planned lease sale due to ‘the need for further evaluation,’ according to an environmental assessment (EA) analyzing the parcels. The proposed lease parcels crossing
sage grouse habitat would include timing restrictions to reduce impacts during breeding and chick rearing season, as well as ‘no surface occupancy’ requirements where needed, the EA says. The EA is open for a 30-day public comment period running through Dec.
13. BLM also released an unsigned finding of no significant impact document that concludes conducting a more intensive environmental impact statement on the parcels is unnecessary.” [E&E News,
11/16/20
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Trump Rushing Arctic Oil Lease Sale Before Biden Arrival.
According to Politico, “The Trump administration is making an eleventh-hour push to open up a long-protected Alaska wilderness to oil
and gas drilling, a move that few in the industry have sought and one that the Biden administration is all but certain to reverse. According to a notice issued on Monday, the Interior Department will officially call on Tuesday for oil and gas companies to
nominate acreage in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge for the agency to put up for auction in a potential lease sale. Companies can select parcels from the 1.6 million acres in ANWR’s so-called 10-02 section, an area that’s also a breeding ground for caribou
and habitat for polar bears that environmentalists and tribes living in the region say would be harmed by oil and gas drilling. Industry interest in the remote region appears modest as oil producers struggle to shore up their finances amid weak prices that
have pushed dozens of companies into bankruptcy this year and forced the sector to lay off thousands of workers. The high cost of drilling in the region, lack of developed infrastructure and regulatory uncertainty with the arrival of the Biden administration
are expected to keep many companies from participating in any lease sale. In addition, top financial players such as Morgan Stanley and Goldman Sachs have said they would not fund drilling activity in the refuge. The Trump administration has been aggressively
offering up federal land for oil and gas development, but Interior postponed auctions planned for New Mexico, Utah and Nevada earlier this year after oil prices crashed. Still, President Donald Trump has boasted about opening up ANWR to drilling, a move that
has been sought by industry advocates for decades.” [Politico, 11/16/20
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Judge Blocks Oil And Gas Leases For ‘Sloppy’ Climate Analysis.
According to the Washington Examiner, “A federal district court judge again rejected new oil and gas leases on nearly 500 square miles of federal land in Wyoming, saying the Bureau of Land Management’s ‘sloppy and rushed’ environmental analysis didn’t properly
consider the effects the drilling would have on climate change. This is the second time D.C. District Court Judge Rudolph Contreras has blocked the leases. When he first rejected the leases in 2019, he allowed BLM another chance to assess the greenhouse gas
emissions that would result from oil and gas drilling in the region. In a ruling Friday, Contreras said BLM’s supplemental analysis was riddled with deficiencies and errors, and he concluded that BLM ‘failed to take a ‘hard look’ at GHG emissions’ from the
lease sales. The agency will have a third chance to address the errors in its analysis.” [Washington Examiner,
11/16/20
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Interior To Call For ANWR Oil Lease Nominations.
According to Politico, “The Interior Department will open a call for nominations on which parts of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge
it should put up for auction in a potential oil and gas lease sale, according to a notice issued on Monday. Context: The 30-day nomination period will start as soon as the formal notice is published. Congress ordered Interior to hold a lease sale in ANWR in
its 2017 tax bill, but environmentalists and some tribes living in the region have said drilling in the area would damage the pristine habitat and interfere with tribal culture. Left-leaning group Center for American Progress has said that the Trump administration
may not have time to finalize any lease sales before President-elect Joe Biden takes office on Jan. 20. Biden, who has opposed drilling in ANWR, may still be able to quash any leases sold, according to CAP analysis of the normal schedules for lease sales.
What’s next: The lease nomination process will continue for 30 days after the notice is formally published in the federal register.” [Politico,
11/16/20
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Next Step In Arctic Refuge Drilling Fight.
According to Axios, “The Interior Department will imminently take the next step toward selling drilling leases in Alaska’s Arctic National
Wildlife Refuge before President Trump leaves office, Bloomberg reports. Driving the news: They report that as soon as today, Interior will issue a ‘call for nominations’ for parcels to auction at a sale of drilling rights in 1.6 million acres of the refuge’s
coastal plain. Why it matters: The Arctic refuge is thought to hold billions of barrels of recoverable oil. But the sensitive ecosystem is home to polar bears, caribou and other wildlife. Where it stands: President-elect Joe Biden opposes drilling in the refuge,
so look for his administration to try and stymie the effort. But the 2017 law that opened the refuge after a decades-long fight requires leasing there, so he can’t just wish the whole thing away. However, there are several ways Biden could delay development
efforts or try to reimpose restrictions.” [Axios, 11/16/20
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Environmental Groups Ask Court To Pause Oil And Gas Rollback.
According to the Washington Examiner, “Nearly a dozen environmental groups are asking a federal appeals court to pause the EPA’s rulemaking relaxing air pollution leak detection and repair requirements at oil and gas facilities while legal challenges against
the rule are proceeding. Those requirements now apply only to volatile organic compounds, or VOCs, after the EPA eliminated direct regulation of the potent greenhouse gas methane from oil and gas operations. Industry groups have argued VOC controls also capture
methane. In their legal filing, the environmental groups say the softer leak detection and repair requirements will allow an additional 21,000 tons of VOCs, 800 tons of hazardous air pollutants, and 77,000 tons of methane each year. Last month, the D.C. Circuit
Court of Appeals declined to put the Trump administration’s elimination of direct regulation of methane from the oil and gas sector on pause.” [Washington Examiner,
11/16/20
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Trump Looks To Beat The Clock In Alaska. According to the Washington Examiner, “President
Trump’s Interior Department this week will ask companies to pick which areas they’d like to drill for oil and gas in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, a hurried step toward an actual lease sale in January, not coincidentally, before Joe Biden takes office.
A notice in the Federal Register today says Interior’s Bureau of Land Management will formally ‘request for nominations’ tomorrow. BLM will hold a 30-day comment period once the call for nominations is published. Need for speed: The Trump administration is
eager to deliver on a mandate from the 2017 Republican tax cut bill allowing energy exploration in a 1.56 million-acre section of the 19.3 million-acre refuge, known as the ‘1002 area,’ where billions of barrels of oil are believed to lie beneath the coastal
plain. ‘This call for nominations brings us one step closer to holding a historic first Coastal Plain lease sale, satisfying the directive of Congress in the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act and advancing this administration’s policy of energy independence,’ said
BLM Alaska state director Chad Badgett in a statement. But Biden has vowed to permanently ban drilling in ANWR, declaring himself ‘totally opposed’ to disturbing the status quo in a long off-limits area that environmentalists consider to be one of the wildest
places left on Earth. The Trump administration is hoping that selling drilling rights before Biden comes in would make it difficult for him to reverse, since oil and gas leases on federal lands are considered government contracts. No slam dunk: Oil companies,
however, still might not be able to use the permits, with other hoops to jump through before actual drilling in the refuge could begin, likely a years-long process.” [Washington Examiner,
11/16/20 (=)]
Chad Ellwood
Senior Research Associate
Climate Action Campaign
202.448.2877 ext. 119