Sec. Salazar issues one permit to let some political steam out before getting grilled on Capitol Hill
WASHINGTON– In reaction to the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, Regulation and Enforcement issuing the first permit for deepwater drilling since the Deepwater Horizon accident, Thomas J. Pyle, president of the Institute for Energy Research, issued the following statement:
“One day before Secretary Salazar will be forced to answer questions before our elected representatives, the Obama Administration issued a single permit for offshore drilling. This further shows that the de facto moratorium in the Gulf is based on politics—not science, the economy, or putting Americans back to work.”
“Secretary Salazar’s decision to let a bit of political steam out before his testimony this week before Congress is far too little and much too late to help those men and women who were left jobless by the Obama Administration’s de facto moratorium on energy production. Even more, today’s decision will not bring back the rigs that left the Gulf for other countries where they were welcomed as vessels of economic growth.”
“Issuing one permit does not mean any activity will actually occur because environmental groups will certainly sue to stop Americans from getting back to work. In this manner, the moratorium will continue to remain in place as lawsuits hold up the very few permits being issued for the Gulf. Much like we have watched anti-energy organizations around the country delay and disrupt plans for environmentally responsible energy development on land, it is now open season on Gulf producers, workers, and all Americans who use gasoline.”
