Biden will sacrifice two Red states on the altar of Gaia.

The Biden administration on Thursday proposed an end to new coal leasing from federal reserves in the most productive coal mining region in the U.S. as officials seek to limit climate-changing greenhouse gas emissions from burning the fuel.

The Bureau of Land Management proposal would affect millions of acres (millions of hectares) of federal lands and underground mineral reserves in the Powder River Basin area of Wyoming and Montana.

The immediate impact is likely to be limited because coal leases take many years to develop and demand has flagged in recent years. But the proposal drew a harsh pushback from Republicans in Congress, coming just weeks after President Joe Biden’s Democratic administration unveiled an air quality rule that could force many coal-fired power plants to reduce their pollution or shut down.

Not surprisingly, environmentalists are gleeful about this decision.

Despite warnings from grid operators last year about potential rolling blackouts resulting from his energy policies, Biden bragged about disincentivizing the construction of new coal-fired power plants while phasing out existing facilities.

Unfortunately, Wyoming’s coal industry has been suffering since many west coast cities have banned coal’s use for energy generation. The regional coal industry might not close since companies can still mine coal based on existing leases. None the less, a number of new jobs that could have been created have been lost as a result.

However, this move won’t bode well for Democrat Montana U.S. Senator John Tester who faces a difficult re-election this year. Since the prohibition will also affect Montana and Tester will be forced to try to defend or somehow distance himself from Biden in order to survive. But it may not matter since Montana voters may kick Tesler out as a way to rebuke Biden.

PHOTO CREDIT: Pixabay