BOEM cancels comment period for Cook Inlet lease sale

A public comment period on the draft environmental impact statement for proposed Cook Inlet outer continental shelf oil and gas lease sale has been cancelled.

The announcement Thursday, Feb. 4, came in the wake of President Joe Biden’s executive order of Jan. 27 calling for a pause in new oil and natural gas leases on public lands and offshore waters pending completion of a comprehensive review and reconsideration of federal oil and gas permitting and leasing practices.

The public comment period had just begun and had been scheduled to close March 1. All public meetings related to the lease sale are now canceled.

A spokesperson for the Department of the Interior in Washington, D.C., said that BOEM and the Interior Department are working to address the climate crisis, restore balance on public lands and waters, advance environmental justice and invest in a clean energy future.

“At the president’s direction, Interior is already identifying steps to accelerate responsible development of renewable energy on public lands and waters,” the spokesperson said. “Every step of the way, Interior will engage diverse stakeholders across the country, as well as conduct formal consultation with tribes in recognition of the U.S. government’s trust responsibilities.”

Cook Inletkeeper in Homer meanwhile applauded the decision to delay the lease sale.

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“Local people and businesses have opposed the industrialization of Lower Cook Inlet for decades, and BOEM has taken an important first step to heed those concerns,” said Bob Shavelson, advocacy director for Inletkeeper.

While public hearings regarding Lease sale 258 are cancelled, the sale itself is not cancelled, but simply on pause until the Biden administration concludes its review of oil and gas leasing on federal lands and waters.

While BOEM has a legal mandate to promote renewable energy in federal waters, it has historically favored oil and gas development and has yet to pursue the tidal and wind resources in Lower Cook Inlet, Shavelson said.

“BOEM has an opportunity to create good, lasting jobs and clean energy alternatives in Lower Cook Inlet that won’t upend our strong fishing and tourism economies,” he said.

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