ABJ Sep 2 - The Obama administration has been denied their motion to dismiss a lawsuit that stops a government-imposed halt on deep-water drilling in the Gulf of Mexico, by a federal judge this Wednesday 1 September.

The moratorium started because of the April explosion of the drilling rig which killed 11 people and caused the horrific and largest oil spill in U.S. history. Subsequently, a group of companies that provide equipment to offshore drillers filed law suits claiming there was no evidence that there would be any other similar incidents happening.

A second moratorium started in July. The government argued the ban is needed to protect communities and the ecosystem but those against the ban say it will continue to hurt workers who are out of jobs.