Pacific Coast Governors Condemn Federal Decision to Expand Offshore Drilling

(Press Release) SACRAMENTO – California Governor Edmund G. Brown Jr., Oregon Governor Kate Brown and Washington Governor Jay Inslee issued the following statement today in response to the federal proposal to expand oil and gas offshore drilling, including in Pacific waters, for the first time in decades:

“This political decision to open the magnificent and beautiful Pacific Coast waters to oil and gas drilling flies in the face of decades of strong opposition on the part of Oregon, Washington and California – from Republicans and Democrats alike.

“They’ve chosen to forget the utter devastation of past offshore oil spills to wildlife and to the fishing, recreation and tourism industries in our states. They’ve chosen to ignore the science that tells us our climate is changing and we must reduce our dependence on fossil fuels. But we won’t forget history or ignore science.

“For more than 30 years, our shared coastline has been protected from further federal drilling and we’ll do whatever it takes to stop this reckless, short-sighted action.”

Last April, Governor Brown, Governor Kate Brown and Governor Jay Inslee issued a joint statement in response to a planned presidential executive order to revise offshore oil and gas leasing in federal waters. In late 2016, Governor Brown called on the federal government to use its authority under Section 12(a) of the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act to permanently withdraw federal waters off the coast of California from new offshore oil and gas leasing and guarantee that future oil and gas drilling in these waters is prohibited. The Governor has also launched a partnership of jurisdictions around the world committed to protecting coastal communities and economies from the threat of rising ocean acidity.