Ian Brickey, ian.brickey@sierraclub.org
WASHINGTON, D.C. -- Today, the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) announced new plans related to oil and gas leasing tied to the implementation of the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA).
The plans initiate a 30-day scoping period on 52 parcels in Montana and North Dakota totaling 20,951 acres of public lands that would be opened to harmful oil and gas drilling.
In response, Athan Manuel, Director of the Sierra Club's Lands Protection Program, issued the following statement:
“The IRA was a milestone achievement that will help get the U.S. closer to achieving its climate goals, including holding the oil and gas industry accountable with crucial fiscal reforms. But the long-term success of the law is threatened by damaging provisions that promote oil and gas leasing.
“Public lands are essential to taking on climate change and creating a thriving world where all have access to the benefits of nature. Fossil fuel extraction on public lands is incompatible with these goals, and drilling only gets us in a deeper hole.
“The disastrous effects of the climate crisis are here, they are getting more serious, and the communities who contributed to it the least are going to feel it the worst. We have an opportunity to tackle this crisis head-on. Instead of more drilling, we must end our reliance on dirty fuels and secure a sustainable environment for generations to come.”
About the Sierra Club
The Sierra Club is America’s largest and most influential grassroots environmental organization, with millions of 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.