Biden bans new oil, gas drilling off most US coasts as Trump vows to 'unban' immediately

WASHINGTON – President Joe Biden on Monday took sweeping action to permanently ban offshore oil and gas drilling off the Atlantic and Pacific coasts, protecting more than 625 million federal acres from future leasing.

But President-elect Donald Trump vowed he will work to reverse the ban, calling Biden's 11th-hour move "ridiculous" and promising to "unban it immediately."

Biden, two weeks before his term ends, issued two presidential memoranda under the 1953 Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act to prohibit offshore drilling off the entire U.S. Atlantic coast, the eastern Gulf of Mexico, the Pacific coast in the continental U.S., and portions of the Northern Bering Sea in Alaska.

"My decision reflects what coastal communities, businesses, and beachgoers have known for a long time: that drilling off these coasts could cause irreversible damage to places we hold dear and is unnecessary to meet our nation’s energy needs," Biden said in a statement. "It is not worth the risks."

Biden pointed to a "climate crisis" threatening communities and the nation's transition to a "clean energy economy," adding that "now is the time to protect these coasts for our children and grandchildren." 2024 was the hottest year on record, which scientists attribute to the burning of fossil fuels.

The ban does not affect areas where oil and gas development is currently underway, nor are there immediate plans for major drilling projects in the affected areas.

Biden is set to discuss the move Tuesday during a visit to California, which has had a moratorium on issuing new oil and natural gas leases in its state waters since 1969 and hasn't had an oil lease approved off its coast since 1984.

Trump threatens Biden's conservation legacy

The White House said Biden will have conserved more lands and water than any other president, 670 million acres, following the latest move. Biden used the same authority in 2021 to restore protections for part of the Northern Bering Sea and again in 2023 to bar offshore drilling on 2.8 million acres in the Arctic Ocean.

Yet Biden's conservation legacy faces uncertainty because of Trump, who campaigned on a slogan of "drill, baby, drill" ? even as domestic energy production in the U.S. is at an all-time high.

"I will unban it. I have the right to unban it immediately," Trump said during an appearance Monday on conservative commentator Hugh Hewitt's radio show. "What's he doing? Why is he doing it? ... We have oil and gas at a level that nobody else has, and we're going to take advantage of it."

Reversing Biden's order, however, might require action from Congress. The law invoked by Biden to execute the ban does not explicitly give presidents the authority to revoke a ban. And the Lands Act, which allows presidents to withdraw areas from mineral leasing and drilling, does not grant them the legal authority to overturn prior bans, according to a 2019 court ruling.

Karoline Leavitt, the Trump's incoming press secretary, called Biden's actions "a disgraceful decision designed to exact political revenge on the American people who gave President Trump a mandate to increase drilling and lower gas prices."

Offshore oil production, which primarily takes place in the Gulf of Mexico, accounts for about 15% of U.S. crude oil production.

Environmentalists praised Biden's action. "This is an epic ocean victory," said Joseph Gordon, campaign director of Oceana, an ocean conservation advocacy organization. "Thank you, President Biden, for listening to the voices from coastal communities and contributing to the bipartisan tradition of protecting our coasts."

Biden's ban drew immediate pushback from the oil and gas industry.

“American voters sent a clear message in support of domestic energy development, and yet the current administration is using its final days in office to cement a record of doing everything possible to restrict it," Mike Sommers, president and CEO of the American Petroleum Institute said in a statement.

"We urge policymakers to use every tool at their disposal to reverse this politically motivated decision and restore a pro-American energy approach to federal leasing," Sommers said.

Contributing: Reuters.

Reach Joey Garrison on X @joeygarrison.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Biden bans new offshore oil, gas drilling along most US coasts