A Democratic bill introduced in Congress this week would permanently prohibit offshore drilling on the Pacific Coast’s outer continental shelf. The bill is a redux of legislation from last year that purports to protect $34 billion in coastal economies. Democratic legislators, including Senator Barbara Boxer (D-CA), claim the bill would avert oil spills like BP’s Deepwater Horizon along the Gulf Coast last year. “We should be focusing on the promising clean energy alternatives that are better for consumers and can provide long-term sustainable solutions to America’s energy needs,” Senator Maria Cantwell (D-WA) stated. According to the legislators, the West Coast Ocean Protection Act includes that “the Secretary of the Interior shall not issue a lease for the exploration, development, or production of oil or natural gas in any area of the outer Continental Shelf off the coast of the State of California, Oregon or Washington.”
