Surfrider Denounces the Biden Administration's Plans for New Offshore Drilling

The 5-year plan includes 3 new lease sales in the Gulf of Mexico that will further expand offshore drilling and undermine U.S. efforts to address climate change.

On September 29, the Department of Interior released the Proposed Final 5-Year Offshore Drilling Plan for 2023 - 2028 after months of anticipation. In spite of previous commitments to end new offshore drilling, the Biden administration’s plan includes 3 new lease sales in the Gulf of Mexico that will expand oil and gas drilling across hundreds of thousands of acres of previously undeveloped U.S. waters. The plan is now subject to a 60-day congressional review period before it is finalized by the end of year. There is no further opportunity for public comment. 

“The Surfrider Foundation is deeply disappointed that the Biden administration plans to expand offshore oil and gas drilling in U.S. waters”, said Dr. Chad Nelsen, CEO of the Surfrider Foundation. “New leases in the 5-year drilling plan will damage our coastlines and communities, while further exacerbating the climate change crisis. We call on the President and Congress to take decisive action to end new offshore drilling forever. This includes canceling new lease sales in the next 5-year plan and passing legislation to permanently protect U.S. coasts from new oil drilling. It’s high time that our federal leaders stop approving new fossil fuel development that will worsen climate change.” 

Surfrider Foundation and other climate advocates have urged the White House and Congress to end new offshore drilling and other oil and gas development that is fueling the climate change crisis. The extreme weather events of this past summer are just the latest reminder that we face a future of increasing heat, hurricanes, floods, droughts, wildfires, rising seas and ocean acidification unless we take bold action to end the burning of fossil fuels. Yet, despite unprecedented urgency to act on climate change, the Biden administration’s decision will result in hundreds of millions of metric tons of greenhouse gas emissions released into the atmosphere. This makes the U.S.’s achievement of net-zero emissions by 2050 less likely and undermines global efforts to address climate change. Simply put, new offshore drilling is everyone’s problem regardless of where you live.

The federal government’s 5-year plan also doubles down on using the Gulf of Mexico as a sacrifice zone for U.S. oil and gas production. The Gulf is already saturated with 1,862 oil platforms, which cause an endless series of spills, accidents and onshore damage. Most infamously, the 2010 BP oil spill disaster released over 200 million gallons of oil and tarnished 1,100 miles of coastline across four states. Offshore drilling harms both coastal and inland communities, with disproportionate impacts to lower-income communities and communities of color. Oil refineries and petrochemical facilities pollute frontline communities with carbon monoxide, sulfur dioxide and toxic particulates that degrade living conditions and public health.

Today’s announcement reinforces that our coasts, communities and climate will never be safe until new offshore drilling is prohibited. Fortunately, visionary leaders in the House and Senate have introduced bills to do just that. These include: The West Coast Protection Act (S 22/ H.R. 470), to ban drilling off the West Coast; The COAST Anti-Drilling Act (S 617 / H.R. 1320), to ban drilling off the East Coast; and The Florida Coastal Protection Act (H.R.1443) to protect the Eastern Gulf of Mexico and other waters off Florida. Lawmakers have also introduced the Nonrestrictive Offshore Wind (NOW) Act (H.R. 4936) to repeal a harmful provision of the Inflation Reduction Act that ties new offshore wind development with mandated oil and gas leasing. 

Surfrider is determined to end new offshore oil drilling once and for all. Please contact your federal representatives to urge them to oppose new lease sales in the next 5-year plan and support bills to permanently protect our coasts!