A bit more on Wednesday’s offshore drilling announcement – Alaska’s Bristol Bay to be excluded

As we noted here and here Tuesday, the Obama administration is slated to announce plans to allow expanded offshore oil-and-gas drilling Wednesday.

But amid the expansion, the Interior Department is expected to ensure protections for Alaska’s Bristol Bay, a portion of which was eyed for development under Bush-era leasing plans.

The area is home to big sockeye salmon runs, whales and other wildlife that environmentalists feared would be imperiled if oil-and-gas development occured.