NOIA Looks Forward to Highlighting Strategic, Environmental Importance of Offshore Energy During Interior Virtual Forum
Washington, D.C. – National Ocean Industries Association (NOIA) President Erik Milito issued the following statement after the U.S. Department of the Interior announced NOIA as a participant during Thursday's federal oil and gas program review virtual forum:
“NOIA thanks the Department of the Interior for the opportunity to participate and reinforce the vast benefits of American offshore oil and natural gas production. The U.S. offshore industry’s demonstrable track record of innovation and technological advancement is solving energy challenges, increasing efficiency, and reducing emissions.
“The Gulf of Mexico is a way to reach emissions objectives without compromising environmental performance or energy security. Gulf of Mexico oil and gas production has a carbon-intensity one-half of other oil producing regions. Deepwater production, which accounts for 92% of production in the Gulf of Mexico, provides the lowest carbon intensity out of any oil producing region.
“The offshore oil and gas industry funds virtually the entirety of the Land & Water Conservation Fund. More than $4 billion in funding has gone towards conservation and environmental programs in every county in every state and territory in the U.S. The LWCF also supports economically distressed American cities. The Outdoor Recreation Legacy Partnership Program, which is a program under the LWCF umbrella, has allocated close to $30 million to more than 50 disadvantaged communities over the past six years. These funds build new parks or improve existing ones in economically distressed urban neighborhoods, providing safe community oases.
“Continued offshore oil and gas leasing and production is critical to maintaining affordable supplies of energy for all walks of life and for advancing our national security. We all recognize that energy prices have a disproportionate impact on those in need and American energy production has been proven to alleviate that burden. Every barrel of oil that the women and men of the Gulf of Mexico produce is a barrel that our nation does not have to import from countries such as Russia or China. The Gulf of Mexico prevents the outsourcing of American jobs and investment to these pollution havens.
“The U.S. is undergoing an energy transition, but one that will need all forms of energy – oil, natural gas, and wind. The offshore oil and gas industry is, in many respects, in the driver’s seat of the energy transition.
“NOIA looks forward to the upcoming virtual forum.”
