Reaction to the administration’s decision to put the brakes on future oil and gas leasing development in certain areas of the Outer Continental Shelf through 2017 has been divided. Industry groups blasted the decision, saying it would stifle growth. But environmental groups praised the administration for learning from the lessons of the Deepwater Horizon oil spill.
On Dec. 1, Interior Secretary Ken Salazar said his agency would modify a proposal, released in March, for the OCS leasing program by choosing to focus resources on planning areas that already have leases for potential future development.