Biden should end pause on new oil and gas leases on federal lands
By Jeffrey Kupfer, Opinion Contributor — 05/14/21 04:30 PM EDT
Like every newly elected president, Joe Biden entered office by issuing a flurry of executive orders. In one of them, a Jan. 27 executive order titled, “Tackling the Climate Crisis at Home and Abroad,” Biden instructed the Interior Department to “pause” all new leases on federal lands and waters pending a comprehensive review of the program.
But now that we are past the 100-day mark of his presidency and the pause has been extended without any firm timetable for resolution, it’s time to take a hard look at Biden’s actions. Is he really going to implement his campaign promise to end all new federal leasing for oil and gas production? It’s one thing to make a comment during the campaign and then evaluate it during the initial days of the administration. But it’s another thing to keep the moratorium in place for an indefinite period of time or, even worse, to carry out this particular policy.
The first question to ask is what problem Biden is trying to solve. Presumably, it’s climate change and curbing U.S. emissions of greenhouse gasses. So does a ban accomplish that goal, and if so, do the benefits outweigh the costs? The answer is a resounding “no."
more
https://thehill.com/opinion/energy-environment/553603-biden-should-end-the-pause-on-new-oil-and-gas-leases-on-federal
