Oceana’s new offshore drilling report marks the 13th anniversary of the worst oil spill in U.S. history, the BP Deepwater Horizon disaster. The report finds that despite the Inflation Reduction Act’s provisions linking offshore oil and gas drilling lease sales to offshore wind energy lease sales, more of our ocean does not have to be leased to oil and gas companies.
President Biden can still prevent new oil and gas leases in 2024 and beyond through the five-year planning process, and he can also exceed his goal of 30 gigawatts of offshore wind development by 2030. The report also finds that offshore drilling remains dirty and dangerous, with significant safety shortcomings that will not prevent another disaster like the BP Deepwater Horizon oil spill.
