Trump says he will halt offshore drilling along SC coast
President Donald Trump said Tuesday he will halt efforts to drill for oil off the South Carolina, Georgia and Florida coasts in a decision that was applauded by Republican leaders, including Trump ally and drilling opponent Gov. Henry McMaster of South Carolina.
The president’s decision is good for 10 years beginning in July 2022, according to the Southern Environmental Law Center, which is tracking the drilling issue.
The issue is significant because Trump had been moving to allow oil and natural gas drilling. Unlike in the Gulf of Mexico, oil companies had for years been barred from drilling off the south Atlantic coast.
Trump’s announcement, made during a speech in Florida, left environmentalists who have fought drilling leery as the November election approaches. Despite what would appear to be good news for South Carolina, the law center condemned the decision.
Because Virginia and North Carolina were left out, it could still imperil the waters off the South Carolina coast if drilling occurs, the center’s Sierra Weaver said. Oil spills drifting from North Carolina, for instance, could spoil the beaches of South Carolina, she said.
““This is not a reason to celebrate because oil spills don’t stop at state lines,” according to a statement from Weaver, a senior attorney with the law center, one of the most influential environmental groups in the Southeast. “As long as any part of the Atlantic coast is open to drilling, all Atlantic states are at risk. Keep the champagne corked until the entire Atlantic coast is protected.”
Peg Howell, who heads the grassroots group Stop Offshore Drilling in the Atlantic, questioned whether companies would hurry to conduct work before the drilling ban starts in July 2022. Howell, who said she was shocked by the announcement, also wants to know more about Trump’s reasoning.
“We are certainly pleased that the administration is taking action, but we are suspicious regarding the motivations of the president eight weeks away from the election,’’ Howell said, referring to the presidential race between Trump and Democrat Joe Biden.
The S.C. Coastal Conservation League’s Alan Hancock said his organization needs to learn more about the plan’s details. But the league questioned whether the ban will halt seismic testing, the search for oil that involves the use of loud blasts that can be harmful to marine life.
“Our coast deserves better than a scattershot memorandum,’’ league director Laura Cantral said. “It leaves out most of the East Coast, it doesn’t start until 2022, and it doesn’t address seismic testing.’’
The Trump administration, following President Barack Obama’s decision to abandon drilling off the southeast coast, revived the push to search for and drill for natural gas and oil, enraging coastal communities along the entire Atlantic Seaboard.
Communities that had rallied against drilling while Obama was president again energized efforts against it. Many said coastal economies, like those in South Carolina, would suffer not only from oil spills but the industrialization of places like Myrtle Beach and Hilton Head Island that depend heavily on tourism. Pipes and refineries would hurt tourism, opponents said. McMaster also came out against drilling, despite his strong allegiance to Trump.
The Trump administration in 2019 then cooled the push because of a court decision. But it had not abandoned the plan to drill for oil in the South Atlantic.
Republican leaders said they were ecstatic about Trump’s decision. Key GOP leaders, including McMaster, Sen. Lindsey Graham and Attorney General Alan Wilson, sent out news releases applauding the move by Trump to put a 10-year moratorium on drilling.
““South Carolina is blessed with the most beautiful and pristine beaches, sea islands, and marshes in the nation,’’ McMaster said in a statement Tuesday. “Seismic testing and offshore drilling threatens their health and jeopardizes the future of our state’s $24 billion tourism industry. Today’s announcement is good news, but we must remain vigilant in the conservation and preservation of our coastline.”
Graham, who faces a tough re-election battle against Democrat Jaime Harrison, attended Tuesday’s announcement in south Florida. He flew to Florida on Air Force One with Trump, Graham’s office said. Trump said “Lindsey liked the idea’’ of banning drilling off the South Carolina coast.
“The decision by President Trump to include South Carolina meets the desires of our coastal communities and state’s leadership,’’ Graham’s statement said. “I very much appreciate President Trump for listening to our state and delivering for our people.’’
Graham has made comments in the past that appeared to back the idea of offshore drilling. In 2012, The State reported on a plan Graham had that would allow for drilling off of South Carolina, if state officials supported it.
“There are ways to drill offshore that would not hurt tourism,” the Associated Press quoted Graham as saying.
Trump, who faces a furious challenge for President from Biden, said he was able to make the decision on the 10 year moratorium because the nation has plenty of energy supplies. Biden, who served under President Barack Obama, opposes drilling in the South Atlantic.
But the decision angered leaders in North Carolina and Virginia. Both Virginia and North Carolina have Democratic governors, while Florida, Georgia and South Carolina are governed by Republicans.
“I’ve been fighting for years to have Virginia included in a federal ban on offshore drilling—as lieutenant governor, governor-elect, and now as governor,’’ Democratic Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam said in a tweet. “Preserving our coastline isn’t a partisan issue, and it shouldn’t be treated as such.’’
The National Ocean Industries Association, which supports drilling, was disappointed for other reasons.
“Our preference should always be to produce homegrown American energy, instead of deferring future production to countries like Russia and Iran, which do not share American values,’’ the group said Tuesday. “Limiting access to our offshore energy resources only shortchanges America and dulls our national outlook.’’
This story was originally published September 8, 2020 at 6:25 PM.
