Trump administration proposes to open nearly all U.S. offshore to oil drilling

WASHINGTON, Jan. 4 (Xinhua) -- The U.S. Department of Interior on Thursday announced a proposal which will allow nearly all U.S. offshore areas open to oil drilling, a reversal from Obama-era policy.

The administration proposed that over 90 percent of the total offshore areas will be made available for oil and gas exploration and development, according to the National Outer Continental Shelf Oil and Gas Leasing Program (National OCS Program) for 2019-2024 which was released by the Department of Interior on Thursday.

This move will reverse the Obama administration's order that 94 percent of the Outer Continental Shelf areas are off limits to oil and gas drillers. The new proposal will replace Obama's program when it's finalized.

According to the new proposal, 25 of 26 planning areas on the Outer Continental Shelf will be considered for leasing, covering all U.S. coastlines.

"Responsibly developing our energy resources on the Outer Continental Shelf in a safe and well-regulated way is important to our economy and energy security, and it provides billions of dollars to fund the conservation of our coastlines, public lands and parks," said Ryan Zinke, Secretary of the Interior in a statement on Thursday.

However, Thursday's announcement has drawn criticism from some governors and environmental groups.

Florida Governor Rick Scott said Thursday ahead of Interior's announcement that he opposes opening drilling off of Florida.

"I have already asked to immediately meet with Secretary Zinke to discuss the concerns I have with this plan and the crucial need to remove Florida from consideration," Scott said. Enditem