Bill Text: NJ SCR173 | 2016-2017 | Regular Session | Introduced


Bill Title: Urges President Trump to rescind executive order authorizing offshore oil and natural gas drilling.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 2-0)

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2017-12-07 - Introduced in the Senate, Referred to Senate Environment and Energy Committee [SCR173 Detail]

Download: New_Jersey-2016-SCR173-Introduced.html

SENATE CONCURRENT RESOLUTION No. 173

STATE OF NEW JERSEY

217th LEGISLATURE

 

INTRODUCED DECEMBER 7, 2017

 


 

Sponsored by:

Senator  LINDA R. GREENSTEIN

District 14 (Mercer and Middlesex)

 

 

 

 

SYNOPSIS

     Urges President Trump to rescind executive order authorizing offshore oil and natural gas drilling.

 

CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT

     As introduced.

  


A Concurrent Resolution urging the President to rescind his executive order encouraging offshore oil and natural gas drilling.

 

Whereas,  The Jersey Shore is the State of New Jersey's most iconic natural resource, attracting millions of visitors from across the country to enjoy outdoor recreation on its beaches every year; and

Whereas,  New Jersey's 127-mile coast supports a tourism industry worth over $38 billion, or almost seven percent of the State's entire economy; and

Whereas,  New Jersey's tourism industry sustains over half a million jobs, or one in 10 jobs in the State, and generates $4.9 billion in government revenues; and

Whereas,  The beaches of New Jersey are home to a diverse array of unique wildlife, such as the horseshoe crab, the harbor seal, and many rare migratory birds; and

Whereas,  On April 28, 2017, President Trump signed Executive Order No. 13795 entitled "Implementing an America-First Offshore Energy Strategy"; and

Whereas,  The executive order seeks to encourage oil and natural gas production 50 miles offshore from Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, the Gulf of Mexico, and areas of Alaska; and

Whereas,  Presently there are no active oil and gas leases off the Atlantic Coast, and the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management had not planned to make any available under its current leasing program through 2022; and

Whereas,  The executive order requires the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management to consider revising the leasing schedule so that it includes annual lease sales to the maximum extent permitted by law in the Mid-Atlantic and South Atlantic Regions, among others; and

Whereas,  Under the executive order, the Secretary of the Interior is required to reconsider rules which require potential operators to have the financial capacity to comply with leasing requirements; and

Whereas,  The executive order also calls for the review and reconsideration of safety regulations passed in the aftermath of the BP Deepwater Horizon Oil spill of 2010 which are designed to  prevent similar environmental disasters; and

Whereas,  The executive order also seeks to expedite and ease regulatory requirements on seismic testing used in oil and natural gas exploration, despite the damaging effects these processes have on marine wildlife, particularly on a marine mammal's hearing abilities; and

Whereas,  Opening portions of the Atlantic Ocean for offshore drilling would put at risk beaches, fisheries, and marine life all along the coast, as New Jersey's Cape May is only 100 nautical miles from the proposed drilling area; and

Whereas,  An oil spill would harm the fragile marine ecosystem, kill off endangered and threatened species of fish and wildlife, and poison the many types of fish and shellfish that New Jersey is known for and that are enjoyed and sold not just in the State but around the country and the world; and

Whereas,  This executive order represents a particularly serious threat because it not only calls for an expanded drilling area, but also a rollback of safety regulations designed to prevent spills from occurring and protections for marine wildlife; and

Whereas,  A major oil spill on the East Coast, like the BP Deepwater Horizon oil spill in 2010, could easily reach New Jersey, and destroy the State's coastal resources, cause catastrophic and lasting economic and environmental harm, and significantly reduce the quality of life for New Jersey's residents; and

Whereas,  Under the proposed plan, Virginia, the Carolinas, and Georgia would reap all of the economic benefits of the proposed offshore oil and natural gas drilling, while New Jersey and other coastal states would only bear the risks; and

Whereas,  Given the overwhelming scientific consensus that fossil fuel use is causing potentially irreversible global climate change, the United States has a moral imperative to invest in energy infrastructure that does not produce greenhouse gases; and

Whereas,  As a coastal state, New Jersey is particularly sensitive to many of the effects of global climate change, such as rising sea levels and more extreme storms, and the United States government has an obligation to protect the citizens of this State; and

Whereas,  The administration should focus its energy policy on expanding renewable energy production, including offshore wind energy, rather than jeopardizing coastal economies and the environment with the extraction of more fossil fuels; and

Whereas,  The administration should be particularly committed to renewable energy because major economies, like China's, are investing billions of dollars into renewable energy, which is one of the fastest-growing industries in the world; and

Whereas,  Most importantly, the administration should take into account lessons from disasters such as the BP Deepwater Horizon oil spill, and take the necessary steps to protect people and the environment from the hazards associated with offshore oil and natural gas drilling; now, therefore,

 

     Be It Resolved by the Senate of the State of New Jersey (the General Assembly concurring):

 

     1.  The President of the United States is strongly urged to rescind Executive Order No. 13795 of April 28, 2017, "Implementing an America-First Offshore Energy Strategy," as the order puts coastal economies and the environment of the entire Atlantic Coast at needless risk of grave harm.

     2.  Copies of this resolution, as filed with the Secretary of State, shall be transmitted by the Clerk of the General Assembly or the Secretary of the Senate to the President of the United States, the Secretary of the United States Department of the Interior, the Director of the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management in the United States Department of the Interior, every member of Congress from the State of New Jersey, the Governor of New Jersey, and the Commissioner of the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection.

 

 

STATEMENT

 

     This concurrent resolution would urge the President to rescind his April 28, 2017 executive order which would, among other things, encourage oil and natural gas drilling on portions of the Atlantic Coast.

     This executive order threatens the economy and environment of New Jersey, and every state along the Atlantic Coast, and should be rescinded in light of the serious potential for grave harms.  New Jersey's 127-mile coast supports a tourism industry worth over $38 billion, or almost seven percent of the State's entire economy.  A major oil spill on the Atlantic Coast, like the BP Deepwater Horizon oil spill in 2010, could easily reach New Jersey and destroy the State's coastal resources, cause catastrophic and lasting economic harm, and significantly reduce the quality of life for New Jersey residents. A spill could also threaten the many endangered and threatened species that call the Jersey Shore home.

     New Jersey, as a coastal state, is particularly vulnerable to the effects of global climate change, and the United States government has an obligation to protect the citizens of this State.  The Trump Administration should focus its energy policy on expanding renewable energy production, rather than jeopardizing coastal economies and the environment with the extraction of more fossil fuels, particularly when many other major economies are making the shift to this fast-growing field.  The administration should take into account lessons from disasters such as the BP Deepwater Horizon oil spill, and implement the necessary steps to protect people and the environment from the hazards associated with offshore oil and natural gas drilling.     

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