LTE: Offshore development can be done safely

South Strand News | Bonnie Loomis | August 30, 2017

South Carolinians all agree that fishing and tourism industries are crucial to our economy and way of life. Many of us also recognize that we can develop our offshore oil and natural gas resources safely.

With gas prices around $2 per gallon, some think adding production capacity is not urgent now. But taking production opportunities off the table is shortsighted. Offshore development could bring us thousands of jobs and millions in revenue, according to estimates.

Energy development can be done safely and responsibly. The co-chairs of the National Oil Spill Commission stated in 2014 that "offshore drilling is safer than it was" when the Gulf of Mexico accident occurred in 2010, thanks to joint efforts from industry and the government to develop improved practices. Offshore operations safely co-exist with tourism, commercial and recreational fishing industries and the military along hundreds of miles of coast lines and millions of acres offshore.

Read the full Letter to the Editor here.

Bonnie Loomis is the executive director of the South Carolina Petroleum Council. 

National Ocean Industries Association
1120 G Street, NW • Suite 900
Washington, DC 20005

Phone: 202.347.6900 | Email: media@nullnoia.org