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Courts asked to block oil and gas leases over health and climate
Utah Public Radio ^ | July 19, 2022 | By Eric Galatas, Sydney Lasike

Posted on 07/19/2022 12:34:31 PM PDT by Oldeconomybuyer

Conservation and clean-air groups have filed a lawsuit challenging the Biden administration’s resumption of oil and gas leasing on public lands. Oil and gas industry groups argue opening up more public lands for drilling will increase global supplies.

A new lawsuit hopes to reverse the BLM's recent approval of oil and gas lease sales on public lands across eight western states, including nearly 120-thousand acres in Wyoming, in part to protect public health.

Melissa Hornbein, with the Western Environmental Law Center, said regions surrounding federal oil and gas production face dangerous air quality issues—due to methane leaks, ground-level ozone, and toxic benzene released through flaring—that cause direct harm to human health.

"There are higher incidences of things like cancer, there are also much higher rates of things like childhood asthma, developmental impacts, maternal and fetal health impacts," Hornbein said.

The lawsuit claims the BLM failed to review the full climate impacts of the leases, including the amount of climate pollution left to burn in order to keep temperatures at safe levels. The oil and gas industry, raking in record profits as gas prices skyrocketed in the US and across the world, said the new leases will help bring more supply onto the global market.

Some Wyoming lawmakers welcomed the leases to boost state revenue and add jobs. Hornbein said oil and gas companies already are sitting on thousands of inactive leases.

"And it's really going to take a concerted effort to transition away from fossil fuels. But we're being fed this line that we can't survive without this. And the reality is we can't survive with them, for the long term," Hornbein said.

Some of the world's top scientists recently warned that climate pollution must go down within three years to avoid the most catastrophic impacts of a warming planet.

"When these lands are locked up under federal oil and gas leases which last ten years, and don't allow for other types of development, that is actively precluding the advancement towards use of federal public lands for renewable energy production," Hornbein said.


TOPICS: Business/Economy; Government; News/Current Events; Politics/Elections
KEYWORDS: climatechange; climatechangefraud; energy; globalwarming; inflation; leases; leasing; oil
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1 posted on 07/19/2022 12:34:31 PM PDT by Oldeconomybuyer
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To: Oldeconomybuyer

Somebody confiscate Melissa Hornbein’s car and cut off her electricity. Do it for the good of the planet.


2 posted on 07/19/2022 12:37:27 PM PDT by Tolerance Sucks Rocks (Bus No. 2525)
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To: Oldeconomybuyer

Then we should ban the sale of soda pop, tobacco, pork and beef..........................


3 posted on 07/19/2022 12:37:38 PM PDT by Red Badger (Homeless veterans camp in the streets while illegal aliens are put up in hotels.....................)
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To: Oldeconomybuyer

EnviroIdiots won’t be happy till we all back living in caves....

Trying to do here what they have done in Europe. GG.


4 posted on 07/19/2022 12:39:25 PM PDT by cranked
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To: Tolerance Sucks Rocks

Cut off her heat & her groceries also.


5 posted on 07/19/2022 12:42:11 PM PDT by ridesthemiles
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To: cranked

“back living in caves”

That won’t make them happer either.
Because they are incapable of being happy.


6 posted on 07/19/2022 12:42:23 PM PDT by Leep (Hillary will NEVER be president! 😁)
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To: Oldeconomybuyer
"Some of the world's top scientists recently warned that climate pollution must go down within three years to avoid the most catastrophic impacts of a warming planet."

So now the planet is down to 3 years before catastrophe? I can't keep track between Gore's original prediction and all the other doomer's predictions. Wonder where groomed Greta is now?

7 posted on 07/19/2022 12:46:30 PM PDT by A Navy Vet (USA Birth Certificate - 1787. Death Certificate - 2021. )
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To: Leep

Misery loves company.


8 posted on 07/19/2022 12:46:35 PM PDT by RushIsMyTeddyBear
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To: Oldeconomybuyer

To me activist groups have no legal standing for (a) representing mother nature, or (b) “environmental” issues without a specific legal, legislated, charge as to what “condtions” must, by law be met. If they don’t like policies they are free to not vote for who they don’t want to represent them in the government. The Constitution does not mandate or guarantee them policeis they like and courts have no Constitutional mandate to write policies from the bench.

The courts should declare many “environmental” claimants as not having legal standing for their suits.


9 posted on 07/19/2022 12:46:48 PM PDT by Wuli
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To: Oldeconomybuyer

Fake News


10 posted on 07/19/2022 12:48:25 PM PDT by no-to-illegals (The enemy has US surrounded. May God have mercy on them)
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Is this apart of the Climate Emergency Biden is going to declare?


11 posted on 07/19/2022 12:49:37 PM PDT by moviefan8 (The proper function of man is to live, not to exist. - M in No Time To Die (2021))
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To: Oldeconomybuyer

Smiley faced ...ism.

https://westernlaw.org/about-us/staff/


12 posted on 07/19/2022 12:50:03 PM PDT by BenLurkin (The above is not a statement of fact. It is either opinion, or satire, or both.)
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To: Oldeconomybuyer

Without oil and gas, our health is going to be very severely affected. They want us to go back to living during the time when life expectancy was age 45. All to “save the earth” from humans.

Of course, THEY will have all the current comforts. It’s just us peasants who will be living in the wooden huts and caves using animal dung for our campfires that we build to roast our crickets.


13 posted on 07/19/2022 12:50:59 PM PDT by CFW
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To: Oldeconomybuyer

Melissa Hornbein, with the Western “Environmental Law Center, said regions surrounding federal oil and gas production face dangerous air quality issues—due to methane leaks, ground-level ozone, and toxic benzene released through flaring—that cause direct harm to human health.”

The “toxic” conditions are not met in the conditions in which the chemicals are released and dissipated - disbursed - after their release. The open air is not a closed system in which toxic conditions can be built up. Normal outdoor air flow and air mixing dissipates the chemicals.


14 posted on 07/19/2022 12:51:16 PM PDT by Wuli
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To: Oldeconomybuyer
And it's really going to take a concerted effort to transition away from fossil fuels.

Yes, like freezing in the dark, food shortages, and economic collapse.

But hey, you go ahead.

15 posted on 07/19/2022 12:53:46 PM PDT by unixfox (Abolish Slavery, Repeal the 16th Amendment)
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To: Oldeconomybuyer

The recent SCOTUS ruling against the EPA is going to make such BS lawsuits difficult to win. The court has effectively castrated the EPA saying it cannot legislate rules on anything. All this happened because Congress failed its responsibility to oversee the regulations that bureaucrats put into place all the time.

If I have a bazillion dollars to spend, I’d try to get enough signatures to add an amendment that would say that any law passed by Congress applies to ALL US citizens, including them. No more free healthcare, no more insider trading, no more legal perks not afforded to all.


16 posted on 07/19/2022 12:53:53 PM PDT by econjack (I'm not bossy. I just know what you should be doing.)
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To: Oldeconomybuyer

Leases aint gonna happen. Permits to act on leases? You’ll need the Webb telescope to find those. Lucky the Saudis are gonna help out. Right? Hello? Bueller?


17 posted on 07/19/2022 12:54:10 PM PDT by rktman (Destroy America from within? Check! WTH? Enlisted USN 1967 to end up with this? 😕)
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To: Oldeconomybuyer

A handful of skittles for the author


18 posted on 07/19/2022 12:55:19 PM PDT by no-to-illegals (The enemy has US surrounded. May God have mercy on them)
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To: econjack

Ditto


19 posted on 07/19/2022 12:57:22 PM PDT by no-to-illegals (The enemy has US surrounded. May God have mercy on them)
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To: BenLurkin

I noticed all these legal wankers list their pronouns.


20 posted on 07/19/2022 1:07:14 PM PDT by Oldeconomybuyer (The problem with socialism is that you eventually run out of other people's money)
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