Biden to Ban New Oil Drilling Over Vast Stretch of US Waters (1)

President Joe Biden is set to order a ban on new offshore oil and gas development across some 625 million acres of US coastal territory, ruling out the sale of drilling rights in Atlantic and Pacific waters as well as the eastern Gulf of Mexico.

The move is a sweeping effort to permanently protect coastal waters — and communities that depend on them — from fossil fuel development and the risk of oil spills. At the same time, Biden is keeping the door open for new oil and natural gas leasing in the central and western portions of the Gulf ...