A U.S. appeals court struck down a judge’s 2022 order that imposed a moratorium on coal leasing on federal lands.
A federal appeals court has lifted a moratorium on new coal leasing on federal land that dates back to the Obama administration.
A three judge panel in the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals Wednesday tossed the moratorium saying it was now moot. It’s the latest decision in a series of legal back-and-forths that date back to 2016 when then-Interior Secretary Sally Jewell moved to halt all new coal leasing on federal land as part of a strategy to address climate change.
President Trump’s Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke ended the Obama moratorium, a move that was challenged by environmental groups and tribes. A court then reinstated the ban on new leases in 2022.
