Maine House passes ban on offshore oil and gas drilling
Photo / Maureen Milliken
Willard Beach in South Portland. On Monday, Maine House of Representatives on Monday passed a bill to ban offshore oil and gas drilling and exploration in Maine’s ocean waters, with proponents citing the threat offshore drilling would pose to Maine's fishing and tourism industries.
The Maine House of Representatives on Monday passed a bill to ban offshore oil and gas drilling and exploration in Maine’s ocean waters.
LD 955 is sponsored by state Rep. Michael Devin, D-Newcastle, and will now head to the Maine Senate for a vote. New York and New Hampshire have passed similar bills and Massachusetts is considering one.
In January 2018, the U.S. Department of Interior proposed to vastly expand offshore drilling and exploration, including off the coast of Maine, prompting more than 250 coastal Maine business owners and four chambers of commerce to oppose the plan. Thousands of residents submitted comments in opposition to the proposal and Maine’s entire congressional delegation joined with other New England senators and representatives to introduce bills to block offshore oil and gas drilling off the coast of New England.
“We cannot be Vacationland if our beaches and all our shellfish are awash in oil slick,” Devin stated in his written testimony at the bill’s March 29 public hearing. “We won’t be able to tell people that this is the way life should be when we have dead seabirds and seals washing ashore. And there’s no way we can say ‘welcome home’ to our wayward young Mainers or to new families if our entire coastal economy is crippled.”
Devin, a marine biologist by training, said more than 46,000 Maine jobs and more than $2.3 billion of the state’s gross domestic product depend on the health and cleanliness of Maine’s coastal waters.
“We’re talking about our commercial fishermen, aquaculturists, boat builders, restaurants, wholesale retailers, marketers, tour guides, recreation-based businesses and the entire hospitality industry,” he stated. “Offshore drilling puts all of those workers at risk. It puts all their families at risk. And it puts every last store where those families shop at risk.
The Natural Resources Council of Maine issued the following statement from Kristin Jackson, its federal outreach coordinator, in response to the House of Representatives’ 96-45 vote on LD 955: “We are pleased to see the Maine House of Representatives vote to prohibit offshore oil and natural gas drilling and exploration,” she said. “This position is consistent with the overwhelming opposition of Maine people and coastal businesses who know that oil drilling in the Gulf of Maine could be disastrous to Maine’s tourism and fishing economies.
“The state of Maine has nothing to gain and everything to lose from offshore drilling. It would expose our economy, health, and wildlife to significant new threats of oil pollution and seismic testing. We’re glad to see the Maine Legislature take this step in protecting our coastal economy and environment.”
Most Recent
Most Recent
0 Comments