generating facilities that utilize coal and/or natural gas and require carbon capture and sequestration to meet potential new emission standards or wish to generate potential credits. West Virginia will now be able to issue these permits without having to follow the lengthy procedures required under the National Environmental Policy Act that apply to USEPA, putting the state in a more advantageous position to attract investment for these energy projects that require a component of carbon capture and sequestration.
About the Author:
Armando Benincasa
Armando Benincasa combines state agency experience, a real- world business perspective, and a deep understanding of complex environmental issues in a practice focused on energy and environmental
law, environmental litigation, administrative law, government affairs, and lobbying. armando.benincasa@ steptoe-johnson.com (304) 353-8147
Offshore? Not So Fast: Biden’s New Drilling Block By Baylee Pearce, Oliva Gibbs LLP
On January 6, President Biden announced an executive action affecting offshore drilling prior to the end of his term. [i] Biden has issued a decree that will “permanently ban” new offshore oil and gas development in large portions of United States coastal waters. [ii] In a White House Press Briefing on Friday, January 3, White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre had stated that a ban would be consistent with the Administration’s goal of protecting the environment. [iii] The Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act The Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act (“OCSLA”) is a U.S. Federal Law that gives the Federal government jurisdiction, control, and power of disposition over the subsoil and seabed of the Outer Continental Shelf of the United States. [iv] Under OCSLA, the Secretary of the Interior has the responsibility for administering exploration and development in the Outer Continental Shelf of both energy and non-energy materials. [v] This is done through regular lease sales, wherein the Secretary is to grant the highest responsible bidder any oil and gas lease on the submerged lands of the outer Continental Shelf. [vi] Prior to bidding, the Secretary will propose a lease schedule indicating the size, timing, and location of the lease activity, based on the energy needs over a five- year period, contingent on yearly reapproval. [vii] Under OCSLA, the President has the power to withdraw any unleased land from the outer Continental Shelf. [viii]
[i] Jennifer A. Dlouhy, Biden to Ban More Offshore Oil Drill- ing Before Trump Arrives , Bloomberg News (Jan. 2, 2025), https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2025-01-02/biden- to-block-more-offshore-oil-drilling-before-trump-arrives?utm_ source=website&utm_medium=share&utm_campaign=copy. [ii] Id. [iii] Press Briefing by Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre , The White House (Jan. 3, 2025), https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing- room/press-briefings/2025/01/03/press-briefing-by-press-secretary- karine-jean-pierre-77/. [ix] Reuters, Biden to ban offshore oil, gas drilling in vast areas ahead of Trump term , Reuters (Jan. 6, 2025, 8:26 a.m.), https:// www.reuters.com/business/energy/biden-ban-offshore-oil-gas- drilling-vast-areas-ahead-trump-term-2025-01-06/ [x] BOEM’s Gulf of Mexico OCS Region , Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (n.d.), https://www.boem.gov/regions/gulf-mexico- ocs-region\. [xi] Gulf of Mexico Fact Sheet , U.S. Energy Information Adminis- tration (Sept. 4, 2024), https://www.eia.gov/special/gulf_of_mexi- co/. [iv] 43 U.S.C.A. § 1332 (1) (West). [v] 43 U.S.C.A. § 1334 (a) (West). [vi] 43 U.S.C.A. § 1337 (a) (1) (West). [vii] 43 U.S.C.A. § 1344 (a) (1) (West). [viii] 43 U.S.C.A. § 1341 (a) (West). ocean will be protected through OCSLA, including areas off the East and West Coast, the eastern Gulf of Mexico, and portions of the northern Bering Sea in Alaska. [ix] Most important to oil and gas producers, the Gulf of Mexico generates about 97% of all U.S. Outer Continental Shelf oil and gas production, [x] as well as 14% of total U.S. crude oil production and 5% of total
The Protected Areas The White House has stated that 625 million acres of
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G rowth T hrough E ducat i on - J anuary / F ebruary / M arch 2025
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