Energy and Natural Resources Committee urges balanced approach to energy exploration and ecological safeguards

During a full committee hearing on the 2017-2022 Outer Continental Shelf (OCS) Oil and Gas Leasing Program, U.S. Sen. Maria Cantwell (D-WA) delivered a statement that emphasized the necessity of balancing the needs of energy production and environmental protection.

Cantwell, ranking member of the Senate Energy and Natural Resource Committee, acknowledged the importance of offshore oil and gas production, while urging the implementation of reforms to oil spill and pollution protections.

“As we have this discussion today, we have to keep in mind that the potential oil and gas resulting from this leasing program will not contribute to the energy market in a meaningful way for a decade or more,” Cantwell said. “But, during this time we will see major changes in our energy landscape. So, we need to plan leasing activities in the context of what the future energy economy will look like.”

The 2017-2022 OCS Oil and Gas Leasing Program outlines a five-year schedule for lease sales that would enable the exploration and development of new energy sources.

“We must incorporate new science about those damages into the decision-making process for oil spill response and into decisions about where we are going to allow oil and gas exploration and production,” Cantwell said. “A spill in an ecologically-sensitive area can have dramatic consequences. I urge the Interior Department to consider the greater risk posed while operating in dynamic and challenging offshore environments.”