Gabby Brown, gabby.brown@sierraclub.org, 914-261-4626
Fairbanks, AK -- Last night, the United States District Court for the District of Alaska ruled that Donald Trump acted unlawfully in his attempt to undo permanent protections for the Arctic and Atlantic Oceans from offshore drilling. The ruling restores protections to 98% of the Arctic Ocean and millions of acres in the Atlantic. It will also force the administration to reconsider its radical proposed offshore drilling program, which would have expanded drilling into nearly every corner of America’s public waters, including these protected areas.
This ruling follows two other federal court decisions in the last two weeks that have rejected the administration’s plans to auction off hundreds of thousands of acres of public lands in Wyoming and Colorado for oil and gas drilling without considering the climate impact.
In response, Sierra Club Our Wild America Campaign Director Lena Moffitt released the following statement:
“Once again, the courts are reminding Donald Trump that he is not above the law, and he can’t just sell off America’s public lands and waters with no regard for the climate or the public interest. We will continue to fight back against this administration's destructive, pro-polluter agenda at every turn.”
About the Sierra Club
The Sierra Club is America’s largest and most influential grassroots environmental organization, with more than 3.5 million members and supporters. In addition to protecting every person's right to get outdoors and access the healing power of nature, the Sierra Club works to promote clean energy, safeguard the health of our communities, protect wildlife, and preserve our remaining wild places through grassroots activism, public education, lobbying, and legal action. For more information, visit www.sierraclub.org.