March 1, 2018 — Massachusetts Gov. Charlie Baker and all 11 members of the state’s congressional delegation urged the Trump administration this week to back away from its plan to open new areas off the United States’ East Coast to oil and gas drilling.
Baker, a Republican, joined Massachusetts congressional Democrats in calling on Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke to not include Massachusetts waters in the administration’s five-year drilling plan, which seeks to open areas from Florida to Maine for oil and gas exploration purposes, in a Tuesday letter.
Noting that the North Atlantic has largely not been eligible for oil and gas drilling for more than 30 years, Baker and Massachusetts congressional lawmakers said they “unequivocally” oppose efforts to open the area up for such exploration, as proposed in the administration’s National Outer Continental Shelf Oil and Gas Leasing program for 2019 to 2024.
The lawmakers stressed that the Outer Continental Shelf’s resources and uses “are critically important to the health and well-being of Massachusetts;” support local, state and national economies; and “are intrinsic to the social fabric and heritage of our coastal communities.”
Baker and the Massachusetts congressional delegation offered, for example, that the state’s marine economy generated a total economic impact of more than $17.3 billion in output in 2015. That included revenue from tourism, marine trades and the fishing and seafood sectors, the lawmakers said.
The Port of New Bedford, they added, “continues to be the number one port in the U.S. for landings value, while Massachusetts ranks third in the nation for fisheries landings values and fifth for volume.”
Beyond the economic impact, Baker and Massachusetts lawmakers argued that the waters of the state’s coast are a vital habitat for endangered marine species and have significant potential for sustainable renewable energy, like wind power.
Read the full story at MassLive