President Obama announced plans last Wednesday to expand offshore drilling† in an effort to strengthen domestic oil and natural gas production.† Regions outlined in the proposal include an expanse of the East Coast stretching from Delaware to Central Florida, the eastern Gulf of Mexico and the north coast of Alaska.† Obama believes that the plan will bolster America’s energy independence with traditional sources of fuel, while renewable energy sources can continue to be developed.
“This announcement is part of a broader strategy that will move us from an economy that runs on fossil fuels and foreign oil to one that relies more on homegrown fuels and clean energy,” President Obama said during his announcement at Andrews Air Force Base last week.
If put into effect, Obama’s plan would be a reversal from the moratorium issued by President George H.W. Bush in 1990.† The order restricted offshore drilling on the Outer Continental Shelf of the United States, except for the western Gulf of Mexico.† President George W. Bush nullified the moratorium’s renewal in 2008.
Such a dramatic change in energy policy has been met with a number of responses from different parties.† Republicans see domestic oil production as a potential boost to the economy by increasing America’s competition in the international energy market, decreasing taxes on oil sales at home and creating jobs.† However, some GOP members, such as the House Minority Leader John Boehner, R-OH, argue that without the opening of the Pacific Continental Shelf and the Alaskan Wildlife Refuge, Obama’s plan is not strong enough to make a significant economic impact.
“Opening up areas off the Virginia coast to offshore production is a positive step,” said Boehner in a response to President Obama’s announcement. “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 ëWhere are the jobs?’”
According to 2006 estimates made by the federal Mineral Management Service, a total of 86 billion barrels of oil and 420 trillion cubic feet of gas remain undiscovered in the entire Outer Continental Shelf of the United States.† The three offshore areas of Obama’s plan are estimated to have a combined total of 4.5 billion to 22 billion barrels of undiscovered oil and 13 trillion to 95 trillion cubic feet of undiscovered natural gas.
In comparison, current untapped offshore reserves in the United States are estimated to contain approximately 20 billion barrels of oil and 250 trillion cubic feet of natural gas.† The United States currently imports approximately 12 million barrels of oil a day.
“We have an abundance of oil and natural gas right here in the United States,” said Meret Nahas ’10, president of Wooster’s College Republicans.† “We must break the current standard of dependence on foreign oil.”
Democrats have also expressed their criticisms of Obama’s plan, citing that the expansion of petroleum production does not support lasting jobs and energy security.† Party members and environmentalists also argue that support for offshore drilling hinders efforts to abate climate change, while offshore drilling platforms will result in pollution of the surrounding sea and coastline.
Obama’s effort to please Republicans with the expanded development of traditional fossil fuels only appears to have emboldened party lines.† This arises at a particularly turbulent time for both Democrats and Republicans, especially after the passage of health care reform last month.
“I don’t believe that having a more open stance on drilling will help mitigate the hyper-partisanship that is crippling Washington right now,” said Jessica Schumacher ’11, president of Wooster’s College Democrats.† “Many Democrats hate the notion of offshore drilling.† And many Republicans, including John McCain, R-Ariz., lauded the idea, but said Obama was not going far enough.”
Despite critics’ opinions, Obama foresees that his strategy will unite those who continue to argue over future energy policies.
“We need to move beyond the tired debates of the left and the right, between the business leaders and environmentalists, and those who would claim drilling is a cure-all and those would claim energy has no place,” president Obama said.† “Because this issue is just too important to allow our programs to languish while we fight the same old battles over and over again.”