The giant oil slick that's spreading over the Gulf of Mexico is clear proof that offshore oil platforms don't belong in the Gulf of Maine and surrounding waters, say Maine's congressional representatives and environmental groups.
"We don't want to see what is happening in the Gulf of Mexico ever happen in the Gulf of Maine," said U.S. Rep. Chellie Pingree, D-Maine, in a written statement Friday. "An oil spill like that one here in Maine would be devastating to the fishing economy and our environment."
The idea of drilling for oil in or around the Gulf of Maine has stirred controversy for decades.
Federal officials have estimated that more than 700 million barrels of oil could lie beneath Georges Bank, a fertile fishing ground about 200 miles southeast of Portland. Test wells drilled more than 30 years ago came up dry, however, and Maine's state geologist testified in Congress last year that oil and gas reserves off the state's coast would be modest and barely worth the effort to recover.
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