U.S. Backs Away From Offshore Arctic Drilling 
 
 Enlarge this image toggle caption Elaine Thompson/AP Elaine Thompson/AP 
 
 The U.S. government is backing away from Arctic offshore oil and gas drilling on two fronts. 
 
 On Friday, the Department of the Interior announced the cancellation of two potential lease sales off the Alaskan coast in the Beaufort and Chukchi seas. The Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement also denied lease extension requests from two companies, Shell and Statoil, that were exploring the seas for fossil fuels. 
 
 The decisions to nix the lease sales, which the statement attributed to "current market conditions and low industry interest," follows Shell's announcement that it will stop exploration in the Chukchi Sea for "the foreseeable future." 
 
 "In light of Shell's announcement, the amount of acreage already under lease and current market conditions, it does not make sense to prepare for lease sales in the Arctic in the next year and a half," said Secretary of the Interior Sally Jewell. 
 
 Lois Epstein, an engineer for the environmental group The Wilderness Society, characterized the government's decision as reasonable, according to a statement. 
 
 "Because of Shell's failure to find significant oil in the Chukchi Sea, new Arctic Ocean lease sales — which require extensive government preparation and costs — would likely be unsuccessful," Epstein said. 
 
 In explaining why Shell and Statoil were not given permission to retain their leases beyond 10 years, the Interior Department statement said that the companies "did not demonstrate a reasonable schedule of work for exploration and development." 
 
 Epstein praised the move, saying, "We applaud Interior's decision not to continue discussing extensions of their existing leases with Shell and other Arctic Ocean leaseholders." 
 
 The existing leases in the Beaufort and Chukchi seas will expire in 2017 and 2020, respectively. ||||| Image copyright AP Image caption Shell had leased rigs for the Arctic but said it did not find sufficient amounts of oil and gas 
 
 The US government has announced new curbs on oil and gas exploration in Arctic waters off Alaska's northern coast. 
 
 It comes after oil giant Royal Dutch Shell last month stopped its Arctic activity citing "disappointing" tests. 
 
 The US interior department said it was cancelling two potential Arctic offshore lease sales and would not extend current leases. 
 
 The announcement has been welcomed by environmentalists. 
 
 Miyoko Sakashita, of the Center for Biological Diversity, said the decision was "great for the Arctic and its polar bears". 
 
 "We need to keep all the Arctic oil in the ground," she said. 
 
 US government leases are due to expire in the Beaufort Sea in 2017 and in the Chukchi Sea in 2020. 
 
 "In light of Shell's announcement, the amount of acreage already under lease and current market conditions, it does not make sense to prepare for lease sales in the Arctic in the next year and a half," Interior Secretary Sally Jewell said in a statement. 
 
 Image copyright AP Image caption Environmental activists have long campaigned against offshore drilling in the Arctic 
 
 Shell has spent about $7bn (£4.5bn) on Arctic offshore development in the Chukchi and Beaufort seas. 
 
 However, last month it announced it had not found sufficient amounts of oil and gas in the region to warrant further exploration. 
 
 It said it would end exploration off Alaska "for the foreseeable future". 
 
 Correspondents say the Arctic is a risky and expensive place for oil companies to explore, and the current low price of oil makes it even less attractive. 
 
 The US Geological Survey estimates that the Arctic holds about 30% of the world's undiscovered natural gas, as well as 13% of its oil. 
 
 However, environmental groups say offshore drilling will pollute and damage a natural wilderness. 
 
 They also argue that fossil fuels such as oil and gas must be left in the ground if the world is to avoid runaway climate change. ||||| Date: October 16, 2015 
 
 Contact: Jessica Kershaw, Interior_Press@ios.doi.gov 
 
 WASHINGTON – In light of current market conditions and low industry interest, the U.S. Department of the Interior today announced that it will cancel the two potential Arctic offshore lease sales scheduled under the current five-year offshore oil and gas leasing program for 2012-2017. Today, the Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement (BSEE) also denied requests from Shell and Statoil for lease suspensions, which would have extended the expiration date of the leases. 
 
 “In light of Shell’s announcement, the amount of acreage already under lease and current market conditions, it does not make sense to prepare for lease sales in the Arctic in the next year and a half,” said Secretary of the Interior Sally Jewell. “I am proud of the performance of Interior’s Bureau of Ocean Energy Management and Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement, the U.S. Coast Guard and others in ensuring that Shell’s program this past season was conducted in accordance with the highest safety and environmental standards.” 
 
 Under the current Five-Year Program, Chukchi Sea Lease Sale 237 was scheduled potentially for 2016. The Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) issued a Call for Information and Nominations in September 2013, in response to which industry submitted no specific nominations. Shell recently announced that the results of its exploration well at the Burger J site in the Chukchi Sea did not warrant further exploration in the Burger prospect. 
 
 Similarly, Beaufort Sea Lease Sale 242 had been scheduled potentially for the first half of 2017. BOEM published a Call for Information and Nominations in July 2014, but only received one nomination, thereby raising concerns about the competitiveness of any such lease sale at this time. 
 
 Today, the Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement (BSEE) also denied requests from Shell and Statoil for lease suspensions, which would have allowed the companies to retain the leases beyond their primary terms of ten years. The leases will expire in 2017 (Beaufort) and 2020 (Chukchi). Among other things, the companies did not demonstrate a reasonable schedule of work for exploration and development under the leases, a regulatory requirement necessary for BSEE to grant a suspension. To view the letters regarding the suspension requests, click here for Statoil and click here for Shell.
– In bad news for the Alaskan economy but good news for polar bears, the US government blocked new offshore drilling in Alaska's Arctic Ocean and refused to extend two existing leases for Arctic drilling on Friday, the New York Times reports. The Interior Department cancelled auctions for drilling rights in the Chukchi and Beaufort seas while declining to extend the Arctic leases of Shell (expires in 2017) and Statoil (expires in 2020), according to NPR. "In light of Shell's announcement, the amount of acreage already under lease, and current market conditions, it does not make sense to prepare for lease sales in the Arctic in the next year and a half," Interior secretary Sally Jewell says in a statement. The Shell announcement Jewell is talking about is the oil giant's decision last month to halt its Arctic drilling after accidents, delays, and $7 billion with nothing to show for it, the Times reports. The moves by the Obama administration Friday basically block drilling in the Alaskan Arctic for two years. It's a decision one Alaskan senator calls "stunning," "destructive," and "shortsighted." But Miyoko Sakashita of the environmental group Center for Biological Diversity tells the BBC it's great news for the Arctic and its wildlife. "We need to keep all the Arctic oil in the ground," she says. The US Geological Survey believes the Arctic holds about 13% of the world's undiscovered oil, but the Times reports offshore Arctic drilling is declining—due to concerns over safety, cost, and the environment—in the US, Canada, and Greenland.