The Biden administration said it would resume oil and gas lease sales on federal lands and waters in order to comply with a court ruling. However, the U.S. Department of the Interior (DOI) said late Monday it is simultaneously appealing the Louisiana-based court’s decision, and if it wins on appeal, it could again suspend leasing as it studies the environmental impacts of drilling.

Shortly after taking office in January, President Biden ordered the DOI’s Bureau of Land Management to review the entire oil and gas leasing program to determine if it benefits energy production at the expense of the environment. Biden has promised to combat climate change and to put the United States on a path to a carbon-free power sector by 2035 and a carbon-neutral economy by 2050.

DOI...