January 22, 2018 — WRIGHTSVILLE BEACH, N.C. — Gov. Roy Cooper on Monday promised legal action if North Carolina is not exempted from the Trump Administration’s offshore drilling plans.
Florida won an exemption shortly after the administration announced plans to explore new drilling operations up and down the Atlantic Coast. The decision drew speculation that Florida was treated differently because it has a Republican governor or because President Donald Trump owns coastal property there.
But Cooper said he’ll stick with what Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke said publicly at the time: That Florida’s heavy reliance on tourism and consideration of the “local and state voice” led to his decision to remove Florida from the plan.
“If that’s the reason to exempt Florida then it’s the reason to exempt North Carolina,” said Cooper, who was backed during a news conference Monday at Wrightsville Beach by locals opposed to offshore drilling.
This rationale has been repeated up and down the Atlantic Coast and in Pacific states that would also see their coasts open to offshore drilling, should the Trump Administration’s plan continue to advance on its current trajectory. Cooper joined governors from six other Atlantic states last week on a letter asking Zinke to reconsider the drilling plan. The governor also spoke to Zinke on the phone, he said, and the secretary agreed to visit North Carolina at some point.