Invoking an old law established in 1953, President Barack Obama has issued a wide-sweeping decree which will permanently block drilling across more than 115 million acres in the Arctic and Atlantic ocean, a major win for the environment.
Though many may fear incoming President-elect Trump, thanks to the established rules, President-elect Trump will not be able to repeal this decision without significant difficulty.
The law from 1953 contains a provision which would allow a president to withdraw any currently unleased lands in the Outer Continental Shelf for future sales or leases. Using this provision, the POTUS has removed specific lands from being able to be leased to anyone – in this case, oil companies who wish to drill the area for oil.
According to President Obama:
“[T]he bulk of our Arctic water and certain areas in the Atlantic Ocean [have been designated] as indefinitely off limits to future oil and gas leasing.”
This is especially significant as we face an incoming president who has stacked his cabinet with oil barons and corporate sell-outs. Trump himself has made it clear that he wants to vastly expand the U.S.’s fossil fuel drilling and even reinvigorate the polluting coal industry.
While President Obama has failed to do so many other things to Trump-proof the White House, this major step forward is an environmental Godsend.
You can read more about this significant environmental triumph at CBNC.
