Expand ban on new drilling

The Biden administration has committed to make climate change front and center of the president’s agenda. One way he should do this is to make permanent the ban on new oil and gas drilling on public lands. As we make rapid progress toward a carbon-free future in the power generation and transportation sectors, it just isn’t necessary anymore to continue to pollute and despoil precious wilderness areas.

While we may not be ready to completely transition away from fossil fuels, it is certainly not too early to begin this transition. As a consequence, we will get cleaner air and water, which will lead to better health for our citizens and lower national health care costs.

This is an idea whose time has come, so I urge my neighbors in Nevada to join me in submitting comments on the Department of the Interior’s review of its oil and gas leasing process. At the very least, our wilderness areas should not be increasing their contribution to the planet’s atmospheric carbon dioxide levels. Go to sc.org/leasingban to sign the Sierra Club’s petition, or make your voice heard with the Department of the Interior. It is accepting public comments through Thursday via email at [email protected].