More efforts from the GOP (Gas & Oil Party)
Bush’s proposal would result in additional risks to ocean health without viable solution to oil crisis
June 18, 2008
Washington, DC - Today, Warner Chabot, vice president for strategic campaigns with Ocean Conservancy, made the following statement about President Bush’s support to open more of our country’s coastline to oil drilling by lifting a 27 year ban that is currently in place:
“Our ocean drives the planet’s climate and is the first victim of global climate change — more drilling only guarantees its further destruction while doing nothing to solve our energy crisis. The President says America is addicted to oil, but the primary solution offered by the Administration is a larger needle to fuel the country’s addiction.
“Risking our coastal waters and beaches to the threat of oil spills for a few months supply of oil, is neither a short or long term solution. In fact, any oil discovered by drilling off our coastline will take seven to 10 years to get to the pump and it will not relieve the pain we are feeling.
“Advocates for new offshore drilling falsely claim that new leases will ‘immediately’ lower oil costs due to speculative pressure, when in fact eight million acres open by President Bush last year did nothing to lower prices – instead we have seen prices skyrocket. Even the U.S. Energy Information Administration agrees that opening up vast new areas to drilling will likely reduce prices a few pennies per gallon, over a decade from now.
“The United States consumes 25% of the world’s oil but only has 3% of the world’s reserves – it is clear that we cannot drill our way out of this problem. Additionally, the oil industry already has 6,000 undeveloped leases covering 68 million acres, an area the size of Nevada – there is no reason to open up even more ecologically sensitive areas when the industry has not yet tapped into the massive area already dedicated to exploration.
“This proposal to open our coasts to oil drilling will put our country at greater risk by continuing our addiction to oil, increase global warming and threaten the future of our oceans and our environment which our grandchildren will inherit from us,” concluded Mr. Chabot.
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