The Biden administration is moving to appeal a federal judge’s Sept. 21 decision approving an injunction to block environmental restrictions on a pending oil and gas lease sale in the Gulf of Mexico.
Judge James Cain Jr. of the Western District of Louisiana sided with the state of Louisiana, Attorney General Jeff Landry and major oil companies including Shell and Chevron, concluding that the withdrawal of 6 million acres from the original lease terms and limitations on vessel activities in a whale-protection zone would cause severe economic burdens.
Last month, the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management announced scaled-down terms for Lease Sale 261 in western and central portions of the Gulf of Mexico, saying that the shrinking lease-sale boundaries and vessel-travel restrictions were needed to protect Rice’s whale, whose habitat includes the northeastern Gulf of Mexico.
Cain concluded that the new lease terms would cause the plaintiffs to sustain irreparable injury, with Louisiana sustaining a $2.2 million hit and oil companies seeing their business-development plans upended.
“We appreciate Judge Cain’s decision ordering the federal government to proceed with Lease Sale 261,” Mike Moncla, president of the Louisiana Oil and Gas Association, told the Louisiana Record, “but it took less than 24 hours for the Biden administration to issue an appeal and possibly delay the sale from happening later this week. This is one step forward, two steps back.”
The administration has been engaged in similar delay tactics since the president took office in 2021, according to Moncla.
“While the oil and gas industry focuses on creating jobs and fostering economic investment in Louisiana, President Biden and the Democrats continue to promote harmful regulations that hurt American families,” he said.
Landry said the administration’s actions violated the will of Congress and were part of an effort with environmental groups to shut down Gulf energy exploration.
“Congress is clear: Lease sales must take place; so we are grateful the judge cut through the noise and upheld the law,” Landry said in a prepared statement. “While our fight is far from over, I am pleased the court granted preliminary relief against the president’s latest attack on reliable and affordable American energy.”
Cain concluded that the plaintiffs’ arguments had merit and that the implementation of the lease-sale terms was procedurally invalid and that the federal decision equated to an “arbitrary and capricious” agency action.