(CNN)The Biden administration plans to sell offshore oil and gas leases on Friday by the federal government. Was announced.In federal waters for the next five years. The plan primarily restricted drilling into the Gulf of Mexico and proposed leasing sales off the coast of Alaska.
The plan also excludes public waters on the Atlantic and Pacific coasts from drilling. This was a widely anticipated move.
Interior Sec in a statement accompanying the proposed plan. Deb Haaland emphasized that the Biden administration is focused on promoting renewable energy.
"From day one, President Biden and I have made clear our commitment to a transition to a clean energy economy," Harland said in a statement. "Today, we offer Americans the opportunity to think about the future of offshore oil and gas leasing and provide their views. It's time for the general public to consider our future."
Plans are finalized after a 90-day public comment period, but the process can take longer.
The White House is involved in the development of offshore drilling plans for interiors, and two controversial sources are how sensitive the White House is to politics on oil and gas decisions today. He told CNN that it was a sign of something. Republican and Democratic Senators Joe Manchin have criticized the handling of interior oil and gas leasing and said domestic production should increase.
However, communication with external groups on interior offshore strategies and even with Congress is limited, and there are concerns that cross the boundaries of the party. Senator Lisa Murkowski spokesman Karina Boger said "expectations are very low" for the Alaskan Republican plan.
Interior announced the proposed plan the day after the current plan expired. This means that there is a gap between the two. It will take several months for the plan to be completed after a public comment period and the accompanying environmental impact statement to be completed.
Interior Ministry officials emphasized on Friday that all options in the proposal (no drilling or 11 sales) will be considered equally during public comments.
"This is a multi-step process that is traditionally a sieving process," officials said.
Officials also said that the size of the lease was not taken into account in this part of the process, instead the authorities are focusing on the location.
Officials discussed how to proceed with leasing "in the context of the need for climate change and the need for a transition to a clean energy economy" at the start of the Biden administration. He said it started "immediately".
Manchin said in a Friday statement, "The ministry is finally their long arrears. I am delighted to have released. " "Suggestions," he said, "I'm disappointed to see that" zero "lease sales are even a table option."
Meanwhile, Arizona Democratic Party member Raúl Grijalva, chair of the House Natural Resources Commission, favors a "zero" lease sale option.
"Holding new offshore oil and gas leasing sales for the next five years is a loss for Americans. It doesn't help lower pump prices and emits. Achieving the goal will be virtually impossible. "
Christy Goldfuss, Senior Vice President of Energy and Environmental Policy Center for American Progress, told CNN that the proposal is a step in the right direction.
"I think everyone is disappointed to see Alaska included in the options, but Goldhus said," There is no preferred alternative here and you can see it for the first time. The option without drilling is equivalent to the other options. " }
Conflicting Biden's climate agenda
Environmental groups have been aggressive and successful with the Biden administration's scheduled last year's large-scale offshore sales in the Gulf of Mexico. I fought behind the scenes.
{67 These groups anticipate the administration Due to current political pressure, tration will hold some rental sales in the Gulf. However, interior plans are not yet in line with Biden's climate goals, said Drew Capto, an environmental lawyer who is vice president of litigation for land, wildlife and oceans of global justice."In reality, 98% of US offshore oil development takes place in the western and central parts of the Gulf," Capto told CNN. "It's not impressive that the administration is trying to capture credit, which is like announcing that it will limit the place to eat dinner to the dining room."
Caputo and Earth justice seniors Attorney Brettny Hardy said these lease sales weren't very useful in the short term, even if the industry and the Republican Party said the Byden administration wasn't encouraging domestic production to support high gas costs- semester. These lease sales will not fully develop for about 10 years.
"The oil industry is putting pressure on it to make it sound like a dire situation for gas prices. Reese will fix this situation when it isn't," Hardy said. Told to.
Supporters are trying to keep the government's leasing program off track as emissions from fossil fuels increase steadily and extreme heat and other climate impacts are noticeable. He said he expects more legal action.
Earth Justice and other environmental groups have a track record of suspending rental sales by suing the Biden administration. They won the proceedings in January, suspending and invalidating large-scale offshore leasing sales in the Gulf.
"If they make bad decisions about the federal fossil fuel program and those decisions are illegal, we will go to court," Caputo said. "We believe that everyone needs to obey the law, and part of it is to obey science."