Solipsism anyone?

Echoes and reverberations of the "drill, baby, drill" chorus won't go away. It hit NC, too, in 2008, and now we have a July 28, 2009 byline.

The Southeast Energy Alliance, a consortium of oil and gas interests, recently revealed what's waiting just off the coast - jobs and money, allegedly.

If only I could give the estimate a closer look... You see, as of 10:14 a.m. Google won't let me visit the site of the Southeast Energy Alliance. The Warning: "This site may harm your computer." Bing: ditto. That rules out me actually reading the report, but I can probably intuit its contents: drilling is an economic panacea and if only those dastardly environmental hippies weren't preventing people from having jobs.

Well, no. Let's recap. The main reason many environmental groups oppose offshore drilling is that it doesn't really solve any of the problems it's purported to.

1. It takes years and millions in subsidies to get the oil.
2. The oil conglomerates aren't required to sell the oil here in the US.
3. Fossil fuels aren't efficient, the price fluctuates at the whim of vaguely understood interest groups like OPEC and speculators, and the emissions aren't all that great (purposefully understated).

How about some NC based reasons:

• Do we really want massive tankers in "the Graveyard of the Atlantic?"
• Hurricanes
• No oil refineries in our state
• See reason 2 above and replace "US" with "NC"

To my mind, the worst frame on offshore drilling is the constant appeal that this is about state's rights. Well, actually, the waters of the state of North Carolina extend to about three miles offshore, and the sounds, and maybe a few other small outliers. Further than that and you've got federal waters and federal leases.

So, let's look at the Gulf states, who are apparently just rolling in the oil dough. From the same article linked above:

Gulf states currently share royalties from federal leases, but the figures are modest: about $25 million shared among four states last year.

By those numbers, each state got a whopping $6.25 million dollars. Last I checked, the North Carolina budget deficit stood over a billion dollars. Plain and simple, the typical (remember, I can't get access to the report so I have to generalize) pro-drilling argument is comprised of oversimplifications, wishful thinking and endless speculation.

What we know: the NC coast has thriving fisheries and an economically important coastal tourism industry, both of which would be impacted by drilling. It's a cost/benefit situation, not a win/win.

Exxon Valdez: 20 years on

Tuesday, March 24 marks the 20th anniversary of one of the worst environmental disasters in history, the Exxon Valdez oil spill. Two decades later, oil spills are still a regular occurrence. Earlier this month, a tanker crashed off the coast of Australia, pouring 52,000 gallons of oil into the ocean and shutting down local fisheries.

Legislative leaders here in NC should be commended for taking a hard look at the pros and cons of offshore drilling, which undoubtedly would have an effect on the economically important fisheries off our coast.

When it comes to our state, it's crucial to remember that it's not just tanker accidents that pour oil into our oceans.

Offshore drilling platforms are particularly vulnerable to tropical storms and hurricanes; the Coast Guard estimates that during Hurricanes Katrina and Rita, roughly 9 million gallons of oil were spilled (that's on par with the Exxon Valdez). And, according to data from the Minerals Management Service, U.S. offshore drilling has sent an average of 47,800 barrels of oil a year into the oceans since 1993.

Why else is drilling off our coast not such a good idea?

• On the Outer Continental Shelf, North Carolina's coast sustains the largest deep sea reef in the world, estimated to be the size of South Carolina.


• North Carolina is the sixth-most tourism dependent state in the country; some coastal counties are almost entirely tourism-dependent.


• The Gulf Stream current off the North Carolina coast is among the most economically important marine resources of the entire Southeast. Known for its biodiversity, the Gulf Stream is a prime fishing area renowned for its marlin, mahi mahi, grouper, rockfish, snapper and other fish that frequent the warm waters.

Obama and Offshore Drilling

Today, the Obama Administration abandoned the Bush Administration's offshore drilling plan, a decision that is good for North Carolina.

Last month, Speaker Pro Tem Marc Basnight and House Speaker Joe Hackney convened a legislative study commission that will take a hard look at the pros and cons of offshore drilling off our coast. The Obama administration's decision will allow North Carolina more time to examine the effects of proposed projects in neighboring states.

Secretary Salazar, from the afore-linked MSNBC article:

"To establish an orderly process that allows us to make wise decisions based on sound information, we need to set aside" the plan "and create our own timeline."

Alleging that the Bush administration "had torpedoed" offshore renewable energy in favor of oil and natural gas, Salazar said he was extending the public comment period by 6 months.

Last year, as the chorus of "Drill, Baby, Drill" drowned out sane discussion on US energy policy, Congress allowed the moratorium on offshore drilling to expire. Not only did the drilling harangue ignore the large droves of scientic research urging a curb in carbon emissions (Hansen et al, 2008; supporting material), it coincided with a political season (known for rational debate, sound decision-making, and evidence-based pragmatism [note: sarcasm]). What we need is a more nuanced and informed energy policy; this decision is a step in the right direction.

Offshore Drilling Considered Off Virginia

In a last gasp effort to bring about offshore drilling on the East Coast, the Bush Administration is pushing Virginia as a possible location for rigs. From Reuters:

The MMS plans to issue a notice Thursday requesting public comments and evaluating the possible environmental impacts of drilling offshore Virginia.

Although it has started gathering information, the agency said no official decision has been made to actually hold a lease sale. If the agency decides to allow drilling, the first lease sale for the area is proposed for 2011.

Somehow, this issue just keeps rearing its hydra-like head. For North Carolina, drilling off Virginia is a concern. Jim Stephenson of the Coastal Federation had this to say:

"One of our concerns is if there is a spill or a catastrophe of any sort, it's very likely that the prevailing Labrador Current will place the oil slicks on North Carolina beaches, particularly the Outer Banks," said Jim Stephenson, policy director of the N.C. Coastal Federation.

The idea is that, with a majority unfavorable to offshore drilling in Congress and a more environmentally oriented Executive Branch, the congressional ban will either be reinstated or the country will see much stricter environmental standards for rigs.

Mismanaging the Minerals Management Service

In case you missed the story, read about it here and here (Washington Post), here (NYTimes), or listen to it at NPR (audio).

From the Times story:

As Congress prepares to debate expansion of drilling in taxpayer-owned coastal waters, the Interior Department agency that collects oil and gas royalties has been caught up in a wide-ranging ethics scandal — including allegations of financial self-dealing, accepting gifts from energy companies, cocaine use and sexual misconduct.

In three reports delivered to Congress on Wednesday, the department’s inspector general, Earl E. Devaney, found wrongdoing by a dozen current and former employees of the Minerals Management Service, which collects about $10 billion in royalties annually and is one of the government’s largest sources of revenue other than taxes.

“A culture of ethical failure” pervades the agency, Mr. Devaney wrote in a cover memo.

What's surprising about this is that we've heard nothing from the current administration - not an apology, not a vow to clean up departmental wrongdoings.

Offshore Drilling - some primers

Across the nation, and here in NC, offshore drilling is repeatedly cited (by some) as the be-all-end-all to our economic and energy woes. What is clear, though, is that drilling in NC could potentially devastate our coastal economy.

But no harangues today. Just some reading materials.

This is the 2007 governmental report that details how offshore drilling won’t really do anything.

Drilling advocates claim the report is flawed. Here’s a (flawed) critique of the report published on the Heritage Foundation website:

Here is a link to a NYTimes article explaining the global lack of drilling ships needed for offshore drilling:

Here is a report about the Alaskan Wildlife Refuge’s potential oil production. The report concludes that prices would drop only $1.44/barrel if the refuge hit peak production.

Here’s an unusual fact used by the pro-drilling commentators that I stumbled across (though the health of these fish will be affected by the ‘produced formation water’ and ‘Drilling mud’ of offshore platforms)

Can't drill out of an energy crisis

I'm pretty sure the following is an okay cross-section of the offshore drilling debate:

Here and here (News and Observer), here and here (Washington Post)

Much of the current discussion tying offshore drilling to the cost of gas is erroneous. Media outlets regularly cite polls that claim large numbers of Americans support offshore drilling. Those same polls, however, see a plummet in support whenever they include the (correct) disclaimer that offshore drilling will not affect prices at the pump, now or in the immediate future.

Should the federal moratorium be lifted, fuel prices won't drop for several years, and when that day finally comes, at best (and this is tenuous) there will be a per gallon savings of roughly a few cents (3.99/gallon vs 3.96/gallon).

What's more, the international market determines oil prices (for a primer on how and why, read this). With booming economies in China and India, the price of oil will not lessen as industrial and personal demand skyrockets across the world. Only a serious commitment to renewable energy will bring energy costs under control. A clean energy initiative will create new jobs and make us more energy independent and flexible in times of economic duress.