Shortly before the end of his term in office this month, US President Joe Biden is pushing through far-reaching protection of US waters from further oil and gas extraction.
The two "presidential memoranda" issued on Monday exempt all areas of the outer continental shelf off the east and west coasts of the country, the eastern Gulf of Mexico and other parts of the northern Bering Sea in Alaska from future oil and gas production. They will be in force indefinitely.
"My decision reflects what coastal communities, businesses, and beachgoers have known for a long time: that drilling off these coasts could cause irreversible damage to places we hold dear and is unnecessary to meet our nation's energy needs. It is not worth the risks," Biden said in the statement released by the White House.
"As the climate crisis continues to threaten communities across the country and we are transitioning to a clean energy economy, now is the time to protect these coasts for our children and grandchildren," he said.
Biden said the call for greater protection of the oceans had come from "Republican and Democratic governors, members of Congress, and coastal communities."
In contrast, a spokeswoman for the transition team of Biden's successor, Donald Trump, described the decision as "disgraceful," according to US media. Karoline Leavitt said it was aimed at taking revenge on the voters who had given Trump the mandate to expand drilling and lower gas prices.
Biden insisted in his statement: "We do not need to choose between protecting the environment and growing our economy, or between keeping our ocean healthy, our coastlines resilient, and the food they produce secure and keeping energy prices low.
"Those are false choices."
In total, Biden has placed more than 270 million hectares of land and water belonging to the US under protection.
The US is the world's largest oil producer and also the largest oil consumer.
