A Lack of Progress

Jane Van Ryan
Posted October 15, 2009

Virginia Delegate Chris Saxman--a featured speaker at the Richmond Energy Citizens rally--authored an op-ed in today's Richmond Times-Dispatch highlighting the one-year anniversary of lifting the Congressional OCS moratorium and the continued lack of progress on offshore energy development.

Even though the Minerals Management Service (MMS) has received more than 450,000 comments about the expired moratoria, in his article, Saxman says:

"...thanks to governmental slow-pedaling, America now greets the anniversary of this major policy change with nothing but outturned pockets and continued delay."

With Virginia's estimated share of OCS production totaling half a billion barrels of oil and 2.5 trillion cubic feet of natural gas, the state has "an unprecedented opportunity to be the first state along the Atlantic to benefit from the development of offshore oil and natural gas resources"--gaining more than 1,888 new Virginia jobs and generating $19.5 billion in federal, state and local revenues.

Saxman adds:

"That energy, straight from Virginia's shores, would provide part of America's energy solution, as our nation attempts to stay competitive in the face of rapid globalization and increased competition for resources."