logo

Dems Worried Governor Wants to Break Oil Drilling Moratorium

image
Author: Indy
Created: 20 May, 2009
Updated: 13 October, 2022
2 min read

Two top state Democratic leaders -- Lt. Gov. JohnGaramendi and state Controller John Chiang -- came down hard on Gov.Arnold Schwarzenegger last week, claiming he was making a low-profile,back-door attempt at doing away with a 40-year-old moratorium on oildrilling in state waters.

Contained in the governor's May revised budget is a plan to launchlegislation that would authorize one oil company to begin drilling offSanta Barbara at an existing oil platform that sits very near theborder between state and federal waters in the oil- andecologically-rich Santa Barbara Channel.

State officials said the proposal -- which was first rejected by theState Lands Commission in January -- would have generated a total of$1.8 billion for the state over the course of the drilling operation'slifetime. The three-member state commission, consisting of thelieutenant governor, the controller and the state director of finance,regulate all oil drilling and minerals mining that occurs in thestate's jurisdiction. The U.S. Minerals Management Service is the stateagency's federal counterpart.

The drilling project, which would expand operations off Platform Irene,does not violate the terms of the state's drilling moratorium becausethe moratorium contains a provision saying drilling operations arepermissible at any oil field that happens to drain or collect onto afederally-controlled oil field, according to Schwarzenegger spokeswomanLisa Page. Platform Irene is such an oil field, she said.

Page added that the governor is not contradicting recent statements hehas made in support of the moratorium on new oil exploration. She saidhe continues to oppose any new oil exploration off the coast.

"The Coastal Protection Act included a provision that the moratoriumdoesn't apply in the very rare instance where there's oil in statewaters leaching out into federal waters. This is the only instance (ofthat happening)," Page said. "The legislation would be drafted in sucha way that this is the only instance that would be allowed and we'll beworking with environmental stakeholders and the legislature in draftingthis proposal."

The new drilling proposal, known as the Tranquillon Ridge project, was promo

Latest articles

votes
Wyoming Purges Nearly 30% of Its Voters from Registration Rolls
It is not uncommon for a state to clean out its voter rolls every couple of years -- especially to r...
27 March, 2024
-
1 min read
ballot box
The Next Big Win in Better Election Reform Could Come Where Voters Least Expect
Idaho isn't a state that gets much attention when people talk about politics in the US. However, this could change in 2024 if Idahoans for Open Primaries and their allies are successful with their proposed initiative....
21 March, 2024
-
3 min read
Courts
Why Do We Accept Partisanship in Judicial Elections?
The AP headline reads, "Ohio primary: Open seat on state supreme court could flip partisan control." This immediately should raise a red flag for voters, and not because of who may benefit but over a question too often ignored....
19 March, 2024
-
9 min read
Nick Troiano
Virtual Discussion: The Primary Solution with Unite America's Nick Troiano
In the latest virtual discussion from Open Primaries, the group's president, John Opdycke, sat down ...
19 March, 2024
-
1 min read
Sinema
Sinema's Exit Could Be Bad News for Democrats -- Here's Why
To many, the 2024 presidential primary has been like the movie Titanic - overly long and ending in a disaster we all saw coming from the start. After months of campaigning and five televised primary debates, Americans are now faced with a rematch between two candidates polling shows a majority of them didn’t want....
19 March, 2024
-
7 min read