President Joe Biden steps from Air Force One as he arrives at Andrews Air Force Base in Maryland after a trip to commemorate the 100th anniversary of a racist massacre in TulsaThe Biden administration is freezing oil and gas leases in a vast Alaskan wildlife refuge, walking back a Trump-era policy that had environmental groups up in arms. The widely anticipated move by the Interior Department follows a temporary moratorium on drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge imposed on President Biden’s first day in office and helps shield the president against criticism over his recent support for fossil fuel projects. SponsoredThe US government will now carry out an environmental review to address possible legal issues in Trump’s drilling programme, which was approved under the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act. The remote 7.9 million hectare refuge is home to polar bears, caribou, snowy owls and migrating birds. The opening of its coastal plain to drilling,

Source: The Times June 02, 2021 03:56 UTC