Grassroots Effort Results in Proposal to Open New Offshore Areas

A pro-drilling grassroots effort launched launched Sept. 9 appears to have paid off, according to my friends in the oil and gas industry.  On Friday morning, officials with the Interior Department’s Minerals Management Service announced the agency is proposing to open new offshore areas to oil and natural gas development in its next five-year plan.

The inclusion of such a proposal in MMS’s five-year plan came after the agency received some 152,000 letters from the general public, 53 percent of which included statements of support for increased offshore oil and natural gas production.

American Petroleum Institute President and CEO Jack Gerard reacted to the news by calling upon elected officials in Washington, D.C., to do the right thing.

“America’s oil and natural gas companies have proven they can develop resources in an environmentally safe way,” Gerard said.  “It is imperative Congress and the Obama administration allow this plan to move forward so our industry can do what it does best -– supply the energy America needs.”

While I thank and congratulate everyone who took time to weigh in on this issue, I caution that Americans must continue to stay in touch with their elected officials in order to prevent members of the Democrat-controlled 111th Congress from doing any more harm to our nation’s energy future.

-- Bob McCarty Writes