The BLM has revived its effort to open more of California’s public lands to oil extraction. But its strategy has changed little since the agency’s earlier attempt in 2019 and drillers may not be interested.

Will Trump’s Push to Drill on California Public Lands be More Successful This Time Around?
Blanca Begert / Inside Climate News/

This article originally appeared on Inside Climate News , a nonprofit, non-partisan news organization that covers climate, energy and the environment. 

(January 16, 2026) — While President Donald Trump pursues Venezuelan oil reserves abroad, his administration continues to double down on efforts to expand drilling in the United States, most recently in California.

The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) on Monday proposed plans to open nearly 2 million acres of land from Santa Barbara to the Bay Area for oil drilling and fracking, including land adjacent to national and state parks, along coastlines and waterways, and areas near schools and homes.

The last time Trump was in office, his efforts to open these areas to fossil fuel development were thwarted by lawsuits from environmental groups and the state alleging that environmental reviews for the plans did not adequately account for the impacts of fracking. While some experts and observers are waiving off the renewed push as a symbolic act that is again unlikely to amount to much, others are concerned about the new effort.