Washington, D.C. — Today, the U.S. Department of Interior issued its proposed five-year plan for offshore oil and gas drilling. In response, Christy Goldfuss, senior vice president for Energy and Environment Policy at the Center for American Progress, released the following statement:
The fossil fuel industry is using today’s high energy prices as cover to seek more offshore leasing that won’t do anything to ease the pain at the pump. The oil and gas industry already has 12 million acres offshore under lease, with two-thirds unused, which makes this the right time to turn away from new drilling and toward clean energy.
New offshore oil and gas lease sales would simply further line the pockets of the fossil fuel industry and lock the United States into decades more of dirty drilling, air pollution, and oil spills. The Biden administration’s draft plan has presented a no-drilling option on equal footing with drilling options—a first for the five-year plan—and we look forward to continuing to engage in this process to make the case that this is the right choice. This five-year plan must not further doom humanity’s ability to live on this planet.
For more information or to speak with an expert, please contact Sam Hananel at [email protected] or 240-899-9436.