WASHINGTON, D.C.—There’s something for everyone to criticize in the Obama Administration’s latest offshore energy plan.
The leave-it-in-the-ground crowd fumes over the Interior Department’s move to consider oil and natural gas exploration in the Atlantic.
Others, like me, are disappointed that the narrowly crafted Atlantic policy represents the bare minimum while leaving promising areas in the Pacific and eastern Gulf of Mexico off limits.
But keeping all sides equally frustrated is not what we mean by “all-of-the-above” energy—a strategy the White House claims to support. The United States needs multiple sources of energy to meet our needs and remain a world energy leader, and that includes expanding offshore oil and natural gas.
A full 87 percent of federally controlled offshore acreage is entirely off limits to production, and the administration’s proposed five-year leasing plan does almost nothing to change that.
In the plan, the Interior Department proposes holding only one Atlantic lease sale and not until 2021. Even that could be “narrowed or taken out entirely in the future,” according to Secretary Jewell.
Failing to open more areas now could set us back decades. Offshore oil and natural gas development is a long-term investment.
A decade or more can elapse between a lease sale and the first barrel of commercial production. The energy resurgence America is enjoying today has been years in the making, and sustaining it in the future depends on decisions we make today.
Restricting so much of our oil and natural gas resources means losing out on a significant number of jobs. The U.S. could gain 840,000 new jobs, generate more than $200 billion in government revenue and produce 3.5 million barrels of oil equivalent per day if oil and natural gas development is permitted in the Atlantic, Pacific and Eastern Gulf of Mexico.
The Beaufort and Chukchi Seas in the Arctic could be even more prolific—potentially producing more energy than the Atlantic and Pacific coasts combined—but even here the president is taking areas off the table.
Ignoring so many promising areas is part of a pattern of missed opportunities that characterizes the Obama Administration’s energy record onshore and offshore.
The decision to further restrict development in Alaska’s Arctic National Wildlife Refuge puts between 5 and 16 billion barrels of oil off limits.
In areas where production is allowed, it’s lagging. Production on federal lands declined 6 percent for crude oil and 28 percent for natural gas between 2009-2013 compared to increases of 61 percent for crude and 33 percent for natural gas on private and state lands.
Between slow permitting and other bureaucratic hurdles, the federal government is more impediment than participant in the nation’s energy renaissance.
Seven in 10 American voters support offshore drilling, and new polling shows majority support in every Atlantic coastal state from Virginia to Florida.
Overwhelming majorities believe we should be producing more oil and natural gas across the board, and combined industry-government efforts ensure we can achieve that goal safely.
After the 2010 Gulf of Mexico accident, industry and government experts examined every aspect of the offshore drilling process from equipment and operating procedures to subsea well control and oil spill response.
Additional safety standards and rapid response technology are now in place for both deep and shallow water drilling. These efforts have earned high praise from the co-chairs of President Obama’s own Oil Spill Commission, who acknowledge that "offshore drilling is safer” today.
Independent experts agree that global demand for oil and natural gas will grow in the decades ahead.
The United States is well-positioned to achieve lasting energy security and claim a valuable position as a leader in world energy markets. But seizing this historic opportunity requires real commitment from our elected leaders. Right now, the Obama administration is falling short.
Erik Milito is the director of Upstream and Industry Operations for the American Petroleum Institute, where he handles matters related to domestic exploration and production. He holds a degree in business administration from the University of Notre Dame and a law degree from Marquette University. Readers may write at API, 1220 L Street NW, Washington, DC 20005-4070
