Give his handlers credit: they promised to destroy the civilized world, and they’re sticking to their word

The Biden administration said that it would reduce the amount of land it would sell oil and gas leases on by 80% and increase royalty rates for drillers in a late Good Friday announcement.

The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) will proceed with conducting oil and gas drilling lease sales on about 144,000 acres of federal lands, a whopping 80% reduction from the amount previously nominated, the Department of Interior (DOI) announced on Friday. The administration has already delayed the program on numerous occasions and hasn’t held a single onshore lease sale since taking power in January 2021.

“How we manage our public lands and waters says everything about what we value as a nation,” Interior Secretary Deb Haaland said in a statement. “For too long, the federal oil and gas leasing programs have prioritized the wants of extractive industries above local communities, the natural environment, the impact on our air and water, the needs of Tribal Nations, and, moreover, other uses of our shared public lands.”

“Today, we begin to reset how and what we consider to be the highest and best use of Americans’ resources for the benefit of all current and future generations,” Haaland added.

The DOI will also hike royalty rates that drillers must pay from 12.50% to 18.75%, increasing costs for energy producers, under the reformed program. In addition, the agency will increase Tribal consultation and conduct greenhouse gas emissions analysis using the “best available science” before approving projects.

This would all be much more fun if we didn’t know that the people in control of this scheme have no intention of joining us in New Paradise.