The Biden administration is considering blocking oil and gas activity near a site in the US state of New Mexico that is considered sacred by Native Americans, the White House said Monday
WASHINGTON (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 15th November, 2021) The Biden administration is considering blocking oil and gas activity near a site in the US state of New Mexico that is considered sacred by Native Americans, the White House said Monday.
"In the coming weeks, the Department of the Interior will initiate consideration of a 20-year withdrawal of Federal lands within a ten-mile radius around Chaco Culture National Historical Park, protecting the area from new federal oil and gas leasing and development," the White House said in a fact sheet.
The announcement came on the sidelines of a Tribal Nations Summit scheduled at the White House on Monday to coincide with the Native American Heritage Month and despite increases in energy prices from existing curbs on drilling.
The proposed withdrawal would not affect existing leases or rights, nor would it apply to minerals in the area owned by private, state or tribal entities, the White House said.
It also would not prevent the development of roads or buildings in the area, the White House added.
The move, however, follows through with various initiatives taken by President Joe Biden since he assumed office in January to discourage oil and gas drilling in line with his agenda of phasing out fuels for renewable energy sources. These actions, along with supply chain bottlenecks in an economy emerging from the 2020 coronavirus pandemic, have pushed energy prices to multi-year highs.
