In a surprise announcement, the US Department of the Interior withdrew plans to allow drilling for oil and gas off the southeastern US coast. For Outer Banks residents opposed to drilling, the announcement was welcome news–the most likely east coast location for oil and gas is 30 miles east of Salvo. This article from the Washington Post gives a rundown of how and why the ban remains in effect.
“The Obama administration announced Tuesday that it is dropping its year-old plan to allow companies to search and drill for oil and natural gas in the Atlantic Ocean off of four southeastern states.
Department of Interior Sally Jewell said in a statement that objections from the Pentagon and strong opposition from nearly a hundred coastal communities in Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina and Georgia factored into the decision to not offer leases to companies starting in 2017.
“We heard from many corners that now is not the time to offer oil and gas leasing off the Atlantic coast,” Jewell said. “When you factor in conflicts with national defense, economic activities such as fishing and tourism, and opposition from many local communities, it simply doesn’t make sense to move forward with any lease sales in the coming five years.”
[box type=”bio”] Great news for coastal communities as BOEM takes offshore drilling on the Atlantic Coast off the table.[/box]