June 16, 2022
4:38 PM EDT
Last Updated 4 days ago
Greens say vacate 3,500 drilling permits in new climate change lawsuit
By Barbara Grzincic
‘Every new well’ pushes Alaskan polar bears, Hawaiian songbirds toward extinction, plaintiffs say
Complaint accuses Bureau of Land Management of violating federal law by ignoring ‘cumulative, nationwide’ effects
The Biden administration must vacate thousands of permits it has issued to drill for oil and gas on federal lands and stop issuing any more until it considers the cumulative, nationwide effect of increased greenhouse gas emissions from new wells, two environmental groups said in a new lawsuit.
The Center for Biological Diversity and WildEarth Guardians, represented by the Western Environmental Law Center, accuse the Interior Department’s Bureau of Land Management of violating three federal laws and two executive orders by approving more than 3,500 permits in New Mexico and Wyoming after a “cursory” review of local impacts.
https://www.reuters.com/legal/litigation/greens-say-vacate-3500-drilling-permits-new-climate-change-lawsuit-2022-06-16/
