Our oceans and climate are in peril -- President-elect Donald Trump thinks climate change is a hoax and has promised oil companies unfettered drilling under his administration.
Waters that have largely been off limits to offshore drilling, including the Pacific, Atlantic, Arctic and eastern Gulf of Mexico, are at risk of being opened for drilling under the Trump administration. The impacts on our climate and marine wildlife would be devastating.
Fortunately President Obama has the power to keep this from happening. By using his executive authority to permanently protect unleased areas from offshore drilling, President Obama can keep 61.5 gigatons of carbon dioxide out of the atmosphere and safeguard his climate legacy. It is the single greatest thing he can do for our oceans and climate before leaving office.
Take action today -- urge President Obama to use his authority under the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act to protect our oceans and climate by permanently withdrawing all unleased waters from the federal oil-leasing program.
Dear President Obama:
With a simple stroke of your presidential pen, you can protect our planet and your legacy as the first U.S. president to seriously address climate change. Use your executive power to prevent the Trump administration from expanding oil leases in our oceans.
[Your comment will be added here]
Having proclaimed that climate change is a hoax, the president-elect is poised to "drill, baby, drill," unravel your climate gains and pollute our seas. So the world needs you to permanently protect our oceans and climate -- something you have the full authority to do, unilaterally, today.
Climate scientists say we need to keep untapped oil in the ground to avoid dangerous climate change and meet our international obligations. The best place to do that is offshore. Unleased federal waters contain nearly 75 billion barrels of crude -- more than twice that of unleased onshore federal lands. Simply by curbing offshore oil and gas leasing, you would keep up to 61.5 gigatons of carbon dioxide out of our atmosphere and oceans. That's enough to make a difference. The world is waiting for the United States, the world's second-biggest carbon emitter, to reduce its impact on the global climate -- and they're likely to keep waiting under President Trump. But you don't need to wait; you can use your existing withdrawal authority under the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act to honor the commitment you made at the Paris climate talks.
Please permanently withdraw all unleased waters from the federal oil-leasing program.
Thank you,
Sincerely,
[Your name]
