…but the only Atlantic area included in the present 5-year oil and gas leasing program is the cross-hatched wedge in the map below. This area was to have been considered for leasing in Sale 220, but the sale was cancelled following the blowout. The House Natural Resources Committee has passed legislation that would require that sale to be held.
No matter what happens, Sale 220 isn’t much to get excited about, especially if the Department of Defense has its way. In light of world events and the fuel demands of our military, one would assume that DOD would be a leading advocate for offshore energy exploration and development. However, rightly or wrongly, preventing disruptions to military training and operations has always been a higher DOD priority than domestic energy production.
With regard to Sale 220, DOD wants 72% of this already small area (magenta) removed from consideration. So even if this lease sale is held, the maximum offering would likely be the cross-hatched blue micro-sliver. That would be the extent of Atlantic leasing for the foreseeable future.
Oil is where you find it, not where you wish it was, where it is most convenient, or where you legislate it to be. Ditto for natural gas. We need an offshore oil and gas program that identifies the most prospective targets, provides for exploratory drilling to evaluate these targets, facilitates production, and effectively manages the safety and environmental risks. We can’t just explore the small slivers that remain after political and administrative reviews have eliminated the rest.
Like it or not, our Outer Continental Shelf lands belong to the entire nation. We need to manage these lands and the associated resources in a manner that is in the best interest of all Americans.
Bud's Offshore Energy (BOE) 