Menendez, Pallone request Obama Administration protection for Atlantic Ocean from offshore drilling

U.S. Sen. Bob Menendez (D-NJ) and U.S. Rep. Frank Pallone Jr. (D-NJ) recently sent a letter to President Barack Obama requesting that he remove all Atlantic planning areas from the Outer Continental Shelf Oil and Gas Leasing Program.

“Drilling in the Atlantic is a risk-reward proposition — all of the risk is put on the backs of our shore communities, and all of the reward goes to Big Oil,” said the letter. “While New Jersey’s small businesses and fishing communities continue on the long road to recovery from Hurricane Sandy, the last thing they need is the threat of an oil spill destroying our shore economy and their livelihoods.”

The request comes after Congress lifted the crude oil export ban, a move that is expected to spur development of offshore drilling to increase the American industry’s output.

“Turning our coastal waters into an oilfield would be another in a long line of giveaways for an industry that does not need or deserve it,” said the letter. “…Protecting the Atlantic coastline would be a win for our shore economies and would signal to the world that we’re ready to transition to clean energy technology rather than remaining tied to the dirty energy sources of the past.”