US President Joe Biden was planning to announce new bans on oil and gas drilling on federal lands Wednesday as part of a raft of actions that take aim at climate change, according to reports and a White House memo.
Published: Wednesday, January 27, 2021
Joe Biden. Photo credit: Navy Petty Officer 1st Class Carlos M. Vazquez II/Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff/Flickr
President Biden today is expected to revive an Obama-era order that calls on federal agencies to prepare for the national security consequences of climate change. Navy Petty Officer 1st Class Carlos M. Vazquez II/Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff/Flickr
This story was updated at 9 a.m. EST.
U.S. spies, analysts and policymakers will write the country s first National Intelligence Estimate on climate change under an executive order President Biden plans to issue today.
Biden to halt fossil fuel leasing on federal land
Issued on: 4 min
Washington (AFP)
President Joe Biden will announce new bans on drilling on federal lands, as well as a US-hosted climate summit in April, as part of a raft of actions that take aim at rising global temperatures.
The federal government will pause new oil and natural gas leases on public lands or offshore waters to the extent possible, and review existing leases, according to a statement.
The issue was politically explosive during the election campaign, especially in the battleground state of Pennsylvania where fracking led to a natural gas boom.
Joe Biden made climate change a national security priority what’s next?
Oil is less valuable, and water is becoming more scarce
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Photo by Per Breiehagen / Getty Images
President Joe Biden signed a sweeping executive order today that makes climate change a top US national security priority. He commissioned a “National Intelligence Estimate on the security implications of climate change.” He also directed the Department of Defense and other federal agencies to develop plans to adapt to a warming world.
Climate change could be deliberately “weaponized”
The environmental and geopolitical risks from climate change are quickly evolving. We’ve already seen droughts exacerbate water and food scarcity, which can spark conflict. In the future, climate change could be deliberately “weaponized” in clashes over resources, according to Sherri Goodman, who served as deputy undersecretary of defense for environmental security from 1993 to 2001.
President Biden on Wednesday will direct federal agencies to determine how expansive a ban on new oil and gas drilling on federal land should be, part of a suite of executive orders that will effectively launch his agenda to combat climate change, two people with knowledge of the president’s plans said Monday.