A federal judge in Alaska has dismissed a lawsuit seeking to block President Donald Trump’s effort to reopen large stretches of previously protected U.S. coastline to offshore oil and gas drilling.
U.S. District Judge Sharon L. Gleason ruled that the environmental groups behind the case had filed their challenge too early. She found that drilling was not close enough to occurring in the federal waters at issue to justify the lawsuit at this stage.
The ruling did not settle the larger legal question of whether a president can reverse an offshore drilling withdrawal imposed by a previous administration. Gleason’s decision instead leaves that issue unresolved and allows the environmental groups to bring the case back if drilling activity moves closer to becoming a reality.
Earthjustice, which represented the groups, said it remained convinced that Trump’s decision to reopen the protected areas was unlawful. The organization indicated that it would pursue the challenge again if federal officials move ahead with offshore leasing or drilling in the affected waters.
The dispute stems from a move by former President Joe Biden, who restricted new offshore oil and gas development across much of the U.S. coastline before leaving office. The measure largely affected areas without significant existing drilling activity and was viewed as having limited immediate impact on production.
Trump moved quickly after returning to office to reverse several of Biden’s energy and climate policies. His administration has sought to expand domestic oil and gas development as part of a broader effort to increase U.S. energy production.
The environmental groups filed their lawsuit in 2025, arguing that Trump did not have the legal power to undo the earlier coastal protections. They also warned that renewed drilling could threaten endangered wildlife, fragile marine ecosystems and Native American communities located along affected coastal regions.
For now, the court has left those arguments untouched. The legal battle could return if the administration takes concrete steps toward opening the protected waters to offshore development.
