We speak with DC’s Ocean Foundation Sr. Fellow Richard Charter about the scope, impact, and strength of President Biden’s recent ban. On 1/6/25 Biden took protected the entire U.S. East coast, eastern Gulf of Mexico, & the Pacific off the coasts of WA, OR, & CA, + additional portions of the Northern Bering Sea in Alaska from future oil & natural gas leasing. In protecting more than 625 million acres of the U.S. ocean from offshore drilling, Biden protected coastal communities, marine ecosystems, & local economies (like fishing, recreation, &tourism) from oil spills & other impacts of offshore drilling. Under Section 12(a) of the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act, the (US) President may, from time to time, withdraw from disposition any of the unleased lands of the Outer Continental Shelf. Following this action, President Biden conserved more lands & waters than any other U.S. president in history.

Republican President Nixon first used this same legal mechanism in CA to protect the waters off of Santa Barbara after the disastrous oil spill of 1969. That blow out released 4M gallons of crude oil along 100 miles of CA coastline. It killed 1000s of Seabirds, and countless more Marine mammals and fish and other ocean life. The '89 Exxon Valdez oil spill released 11M gallons of crude oil in Alaska’s Prince William Sound. To this date, it still has not fully recovered. In 2010, the Deepwater Horizon exploded in the Gulf of Mexico and spewed oil for 3 months. 134M gallons in all before the damaged well was capped. Decades of ocean research in our national MPAs shows why protecting our oceans is critical to our abilit

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Leigh Anne Lindsey, Producer Sea Storm Studios, The Sea Ranch, North Sonoma Coast

Scott & Tree Mercer, Co-hosts/Producers, Mendonoma Whale & Seal Study, Mendocino and Sonoma Coasts.

Planet Centric Media is Media for a Healthier Planet. Resilient Earth is a project of this 501 (c) (3) non-profit that is developing & producing media to elevate awareness of the interconnectedness of all living things.

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