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- By Brian Edwards
President Biden blocked future oil and gas development across more than 625 million acres of U.S. waters today, including the Northern Bering Sea and areas along the Atlantic and Pacific coasts. The action represents the largest-ever presidential offshore protection measure, according to a White House memorandum.
Biden implemented the withdrawal using Section 12(a) of the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act, which gives presidents authority to protect offshore areas from mineral leasing. The withdrawal has no expiration date and prevents consideration of these waters for future oil or gas exploration, development, or production, though it does not affect existing leases, according to the White House release.
Several Alaska Native organizations welcomed the decision, particularly the protections for the Northern Bering Sea Climate Resilience Area, which their tribes have sought to shield from drilling since the 1980s.
"We thank President Biden for issuing these withdrawals and honoring over 40 years of Tribal advocacy to protect our food security and marine environment from oil and gas leasing," said Mary David, executive vice president of Kawerak, Inc., which represents 20 federally recognized tribes in the Bering Strait region.
The protected Bering Sea area extends from the seaward boundary of the Bering Straits Native Corporation south to several habitat conservation areas, falling within the U.S. Exclusive Economic Zone.
Vivian Korthuis, chief executive officer of the Association of Village Council Presidents, emphasized that her organization has opposed offshore drilling in the Northern Bering Sea since the early 1980s. "President Biden's decision reflects a strong dedication to safeguarding natural resources that are vital to both our economy and ecosystems," she said in a statement.
The action comes as climate change and increasing industrial activities pose growing threats to traditional practices in the region. The Bering Sea Elders Group, representing 38 tribes, stressed the connection between environmental protection and cultural survival.
"Our traditional waters of the Bering Sea are interconnected, and protecting these waters helps ensure our food sovereignty, our cultural, economic, physical and traditional existence, and our very survival," Jaylene Wheeler, the group's executive director, said in a statement.
The three Alaska Native organizations said in a joint statement they look forward to working with tribes, state and federal agencies to advance sustainable management of the region now that the threat of oil and gas development has been removed.
“In Alaska, dozens of tribes have fought to protect the Northern Bering Sea, a vital ocean ecosystem that supports their traditional ways of life. Vice President Harris and I have listened,” Biden said in a statement.
The withdrawal drew immediate criticism from Republican leaders.
President-elect Donald Trump blasted the decision, saying in an interview with conservative radio host Hugh Hewitt that he would "unban it immediately" when he takes office. "When I see somebody saying he's going to ban 625 million acres, he doesn't know what that is. He doesn't even know what 625 million acres would look like, and we can't let that happen to our country," Trump said.
Legal experts say Trump might face significant hurdles in trying to reverse the withdrawal. When Trump attempted to undo similar protections put in place by President Obama during his first term, the U.S. District Court for Alaska ruled he did not have the authority.
Kevin Book, director of research at ClearView Energy Partners, told Newsweek that Biden's withdrawal likely "can't be reversed by executive action." Instead, it could take an act of Congress to undo Biden's decision to withdraw these federal waters from future drilling permits.
Alaska's new congressman, U.S. Rep. Nick Begich (R-AK), responded to the ban on social media, using a vulgarity to describe Biden and claiming the decision would harm Alaskans who rely on natural gas. He accused Democrats of "sacrificing" Alaskans' needs "in the name of their sanctimonious, socialist-driven, climate science™ religion."
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