Obama to allow oil drilling off east coast

[DieHardBrownsFan]

The press is just barely reporting this as if it is no big deal. What happened to "green energy" Mr. President?

 

 

Obama to allow gas and oil drilling off Virginia coast

President Obama is set to announce that he will allow oil and gas drilling 50 miles off Virginia's coast, including a possible sale two years from now of leases off the state's shores.

 

The decision, which Obama will announce with Interior Secretary Ken Salazar at Andrews Air Force Base this morning, ends a long-standing ban on drilling along much of the East Coast, from Delaware to central Florida.

 

Obama's move will represent a victory for Virginia Gov. Bob McDonnell, who campaigned last year on making the state the "Energy Capital of the East Coast" and using proceeds from drilling to pay for transportation. (Congress would still need to pass a bill allowing Virginia to receive royalties.)

 

Most Virginia leaders -- regardless of political party -- have expressed interest in drilling for oil and natural gas, including both U.S. Sens. Jim Webb and Mark. Warner and most members of the state's congressional delegation.

 

But environmental groups and some Democratic members of Congress, including U.S. Reps. James P. Moran Jr. of Northern Virginia and Robert C. Scott of Hampton Roads, say they worry that possible spills and new infrastructure onshore and off could harm plants, animals, tourism and the naval base in Norfolk, the world's largest.

 

In anticipation of today's announcement, the Sierra Club Virginia Chapter already sent out a statement.

 

"We are deeply disappointed that the Obama administration has chosen to open up new areas that have long stood protected from the dirty, risky business of offshore drilling," said Glen Besa, chapter director. "Our beloved clean Virginia beaches are the backbone of our coastal economy, generating billions of dollars in revenues from tourism, recreation and commercial fishing...There are not only the risks of spills both chronic and catastrophic but also the industrialization of our coastal communities that would either debilitate or destroy Virginia's coastal economy,"

 

Virginia has been in line to be the first Atlantic Coast state to drill off its shore. It still will probably be years before it starts, even with the necessary approval from the Obama administration.

 

The 25-year-old federal moratorium on energy exploration and development off the coast of Virginia and other states expired in 2008. Virginia has been the only state on the East Coast included in the Minerals Management Service's five-year plan.

 

By Anita Kumar | March 31, 2010; 8:00 AM ET

 

 

 

 

[Westside Steve]

The press is just barely reporting this as if it is no big deal. What happened to "green energy" Mr. President?

 

 

He ought to do it for the Left Coast too.

But ......

 

WSS

[Mr. T]

On the day we get the new unemployment numbers we get this little quip from team obammy. But since we are talking about it here is what Boehner has to say in response.

 

House Republican Leader John Boehner (R-OH) today criticized the Obama Administration for refusing to listen to the American people and keeping the vast majority of America’s offshore energy resources off limits at a time when Americans want an “all of the above” strategy for promoting American energy production and creating American jobs:

 

“The Obama Administration continues to defy the will of the American people who strongly supported the bipartisan decision of Congress in 2008 to lift the moratorium on offshore drilling not just off the East Coast and in the Gulf of Mexico, but off the Pacific Coast and Alaskan shores as well. Opening up areas off the Virginia coast to offshore production is a positive step, but keeping the Pacific Coast and Alaska, as well as the most promising resources off the Gulf of Mexico, under lock and key makes no sense at a time when gasoline prices are rising and Americans are asking ‘Where are the jobs?’

 

“It’s long past time for this Administration to stop delaying American energy production off all our shores and start listening to the American people who want an “all of the above” strategy to produce more American energy and create more jobs. Republicans are listening to the American people and have proposed a better solution – the American Energy Act – which will lower gas prices, increase American energy production, promote new clean and renewable sources of energy, and encourage greater efficiency and conservation.

 

“At the same time the White House makes today’s announcement, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is plotting a new massive job-killer that the American people can’t afford: a cascade of new EPA regulations that will punish every American who dares to flip on a light switch, drive a car, or buy an American product. Americans simply don’t want this backdoor national energy tax that will drive up energy and manufacturing costs and destroy jobs in our states and local communities.”

 

Source