Environmental Groups Sue Trump Administration Over Offshore Drilling Expansion

Lawsuits challenge Trump's efforts to revoke Biden-era and Obama-era protections for U.S. coastal waters, citing legal and environmental concerns.

Two lawsuits were filed by environmental groups to block President Trump's executive orders expanding offshore oil and gas drilling in U.S. coastal waters.
The first lawsuit opposes the revocation of Biden-era protections for 265 million acres of federal waters, including parts of the Arctic, Atlantic, Pacific, and Gulf of Mexico.
The second lawsuit seeks to reinstate a prior court ruling that invalidated Trump's first-term attempts to reverse Obama-era protections for Arctic and Atlantic waters.
Environmental groups argue that the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act does not grant the president authority to undo permanent protections established by previous administrations.
Trump's executive orders are part of a broader push to boost fossil fuel production, including withdrawing from the Paris climate accord and halting offshore wind projects.