On Monday a federal judge with the U.S. District Court in Ohio put a temporary hold on issuing any more oil and gas drilling permits to drill on previously issued leases in the (mostly privately-owned) Wayne National Forest (WNF) in Ohio. The judge cited the Biden administration’s hold on all federal leasing/drilling permits until it completes its political analysis first. The only good news is that the judge refused to toss WNF leases entirely, as was requested by rabid anti-fossil fuel nutters. The antis are still thrilled with the ruling. The judge’s action in blocking new permits directly affects Eclipse Resources (now Southwestern Energy) which owns leases they can now not drill on.
