The Obama administration announced a permanent ban on oil and gas drilling in most of the country's Arctic waters and parts of the Atlantic Ocean, a move made a few weeks before the pro-drilling Trump administration takes over.

The announcement was made in conjunction with Canada, which also is putting a five-year moratorium on new oil and gas leases in its Arctic waters.

"These actions, and Canada’s parallel actions, protect a sensitive and unique ecosystem that is unlike any other region on earth," President Obama said in a statement. "They reflect the scientific assessment that, even with the high safety standards that both our countries have put in place, the risks of an oil spill in this region are significant and our ability to clean up from a spill in the region’s harsh conditions is limited."

"These actions, and Canada’s parallel actions, protect a sensitive and unique ecosystem that is unlike any other region on earth."

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Obama, who is the first president to visit the Alaskan Arctic during a trip in 2015, also cited the fact that large-scale fossil fuel extraction would take "decades" to develop, "at a time when we need to continue to move decisively away from fossil fuels."

Among the reasons Obama cited for this action, which is not an executive order and therefore cannot be easily overturned by the Trump administration, is the reality that Arctic oil and gas is not a sizable contributor to U.S. energy resources right now, and is unlikely to become one anytime soon.

"In 2015, just 0.1 percent of U.S. federal offshore crude production came from the Arctic and Department of Interior analysis shows that, at current oil prices, significant production in the Arctic will not occur," Obama said.

The actions by the White House, made under the president's authority under the 1953 Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act, is a way for Obama to further cement his environmental legacy and push his climate agenda forward.

The act empowers the President to “from time to time, withdraw from disposition any of the unleased lands of the Outer Continental Shelf” from oil and gas development.

The designation of such a large area — 115 million acres were set aside through this one action — is an unusually sweeping application of this provision, however, and may be challenged in federal courts.

The area withdrawn from oil and gas leasing in the Arctic is huge, encompassing the entire U.S. Chukchi Sea and most of the American portion of the Beaufort Sea, aside from a nearshore area that has significant oil and gas development potential and is closer to land-based infrastructure in case of accidents.

Image: The White House

According to the White House, including today's announcement, nearly 125 million acres in the Arctic have been set aside from oil and gas activity since last year.

A fact sheet accompanying the announcement repeatedly cites climate change as a reason for taking these steps. For example, the documents note that oil prices would have to rise to 200 percent above their current level for oil production in these Arctic areas to be viable, and even then, production would still take one to five decades to get underway.

The White House cites the need to decarbonize the economy during that time frame consistent with the Paris Climate Agreement, rather than exploring for new oil 50 years from now.

Climate scientists have said that the world would need to reach zero carbon emissions by the end of the century in order to meet the Paris Agreement's temperature targets, which is inconsistent with Arctic drilling in the middle of the century.

"This action is consistent with the steps the United States and the international community will take in the coming decades to transition energy systems away from fossil fuels — particularly because any potential significant Arctic offshore production would only occur around the middle of this century, a timeline that is incongruous with our nation’s need and international commitments to reduce carbon emissions," the fact sheet states.

Climate change is profoundly altering the Arctic, with 2016 setting a record for the warmest year in the region. Arctic sea ice has become more sparse in summer and fall, and weather patterns have grown more erratic, battering coastal villages suffering from extreme amounts of beach erosion.

Playing Trump defense

The White House's action may not have been necessary had Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton been elected in November.

President-elect Donald Trump has repeatedly called global warming a hoax. Trump is even nominating ExxonMobil CEO Rex Tillerson to be Secretary of State, a position that would require him to negotiate climate agreements on the behalf of the country.

Tillerson's company is involved in its own bid for oil and gas resources in the Russian Arctic, which is currently stalled due to sanctions placed on Russia following its annexation of Crimea in 2015.

Environmentalists hailed the White House's action. “What an incredible holiday gift to all who want to protect the fragile and iconic Arctic Ocean ecosystem and fight climate change. An oil spill in these pristine waters would be devastating to the wildlife and people who live in the region," said Gene Karpinski, the president of the League of Conservation Voters.