Trump to Expand Offshore Drilling, Review Post-Spill Rules
- Directive designed to open more waters to offshore oil rigs
- Pacific, Arctic and Atlantic coasts to be reviewed for leases
Trump Order Reverses Obama Artic Drilling Ban
President Donald Trump moved to expand offshore oil drilling and to reconsider rules that safeguard the activity -- including mandates designed to prevent a repeat of the Deepwater Horizon disaster.
Trump on Friday ordered Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke to revise a five-year schedule for auctioning offshore drilling rights with the aim of potentially including territory left out by former President Barack Obama. Trump’s executive order also seeks to reverse a potentially more enduring decision by Obama to indefinitely withdraw most U.S. Arctic waters and some Atlantic Ocean areas from leasing.
“Our country is blessed with great natural resources" but too many have been closed to exploration, Trump said, during a signing ceremony in the White House Roosevelt Room. He was joined by Republican lawmakers from oil-producing states, including Senator Lisa Murkowski of Alaska and Representative Steve Scalise of Louisiana.