Thursday, October 15, 2009
Editorial: Offshore oil revenue anything but certain
Federal scientists throw yet another barrier in the way of any offshore payday for Virginia.
From the RoundTable blog
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There are many reasons to discount Republican gubernatorial nominee Bob McDonnell's suggestion to help finance Virginia's transportation needs through revenue raised by offshore drilling.
There's the fact that little exploration has been done recently to determine whether enough recoverable reserves exist off the commonwealth's coast to justify drilling.
There's the fact that, even if reserves are plentiful, it would probably take at least a decade before offshore rigs would start pumping oil and generating revenue.
And then there's this: Federal scientists are recommending that the nation drastically scale back plans for drilling off America's shores because of the threat to marine life and the environment.
Scientists with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration made the recommendation last month in a letter to the Interior Department.
They suggest that it would be wise to exclude large portions of the Atlantic seabord, as well as the Alaskan and Gulf coasts, from Interior's draft offshore drilling plan for 2010 to 2015.
The scientists say that plan, developed by the Bush administration, downplays the environmental risks.
Interior's assessment of those risks was "understated and generally not supported or referenced," NOAA scientists say.
This recommendation essentially marks the unshackling of scientists stifled by the Bush administration and the ability of science-based agencies like NOAA to move beyond spouting industry rhetoric.
The oil industry, for instance, likes to claim that its offshore operations are now perfectly safe and environmentally friendly. Nevermind events like the spill off Australia that poured 400 barrels of oil a day into the ocean. Think what that would do to Virginia's beaches as you contemplate McDonnell's enthusiasm for offshore drilling.
Even if the Interior Department ignores NOAA's recommendation, offshore drilling opponents promise to use it to tie up the draft plan in litigation for years.
Whichever litigant wins, Virginia best not start spending that money just yet.
