Biden angers all sides with scaled back offshore oil drilling plan
Energy,Environment,Joe Biden,Sustainability,Oil Production,Big Oil,Climate Change
The Biden administration's plan to slash offshore oil and gas leasing drew fire from both the fossil fuel industry and environmentalists on Friday, with energy companies saying it will raise fuel prices and greens saying it undermines efforts to stop global warming.
The criticism from both sides reflects the difficulty Biden's White House has had in dealing with U.S. oil extraction policies, as it seeks to balance national energy security with the need to cut greenhouse gas emissions to fight climate change. Biden had promised on the campaign trail to end new federal leasing, but has been blocked by the courts from doing so, and discouraged by rising pump prices that political analysts say could hurt his chances of reelection.
Biden's Interior Department on Friday unveiled a congressionally mandated five-year plan for offshore oil drilling that included just three sales, all in the Gulf of Mexico -- the lowest number in any five-year plan since the government began publishing them in 1980. The record low number was first reported by Reuters on Thursday.
