U.S. District Court Judge Sharon Gleason has affirmed President Joe Biden’s decision to halt activities aimed at permitting oil and gas drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge’s Coastal Plain. This petroleum-rich area was initially designated for oil and gas exploration during the establishment of ANWR.
Judge Gleason rendered the judgment against the state of Alaska and its associated entity, the Alaska Industrial Development and Export Authority (AIDEA), on Monday.
AIDEA stands as the final party with active oil and gas leases within the refuge. These leases were acquired in a 2021 auction, which had been mandated by the Congress. Others have been chased away by the federal bureaucratic deep state and the investment required to fight the federal government every step of the way.
The Coastal Plain, lies adjacent to the Beaufort Sea on Alaska’s North Slope.
Under the 2017 Tax Act (Public Law 115-97), the Bureau of Land Management was directed to organize two sales within the Coastal Plain by 2024. These sales were to offer a minimum of 400,000 acres of prime hydrocarbon lands for bidding.
The management of these leases are to resemble the administration of lease sales outlined in the Naval Petroleum Reserves Production Act of 1976. According to the Act, the royalty rate for these leases is established at 16.67 percent.
The inaugural lease sale within the Coastal Plain of ANWR occurred on Jan. 6, 2021, reflecting the Coastal Plain Oil and Gas Leasing Program’s August 2020 Record of Decision.
But on Jan. 20, 2021, President Joe Biden issued Executive Order 13990. It was one of his first acts as president, having been sworn in the same day.
Biden’s directive called upon the Department of the Interior to halt all activities linked to the Coastal Plain Oil and Gas Leasing Program and undertake yet another review of the existing Environmental Impact Statement and potentially conduct a fresh evaluation of the environmental consequences.
The State of Alaska and AIDEA sued, but Judge Gleason this week said no preliminary work may proceed until a comprehensive analysis under the National Environmental Policy Act is successfully concluded. That is likely to take years.
Rep. Mary Peltola endorsed President Biden in April.
