Bill Text: NJ ACR244 | 2016-2017 | Regular Session | Introduced
Bill Title: Opposes seismic airgun surveying and oil and natural gas drilling off Atlantic Coast.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 4-0)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2017-06-12 - Introduced, Referred to Assembly Environment and Solid Waste Committee [ACR244 Detail]
Download: New_Jersey-2016-ACR244-Introduced.html
ASSEMBLY CONCURRENT RESOLUTION No. 244
STATE OF NEW JERSEY
217th LEGISLATURE
INTRODUCED JUNE 12, 2017
Sponsored by:
Assemblyman R. BRUCE LAND
District 1 (Atlantic, Cape May and Cumberland)
Assemblyman BOB ANDRZEJCZAK
District 1 (Atlantic, Cape May and Cumberland)
Assemblyman VINCENT MAZZEO
District 2 (Atlantic)
SYNOPSIS
Opposes seismic airgun surveying and oil and natural gas drilling off Atlantic Coast.
CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT
As introduced.
A Concurrent Resolution opposing oil and natural gas exploration and drilling activities off the Atlantic Coast.
Whereas, The Jersey Shore is an iconic natural and economic resource that attracts millions of visitors from across the country and elsewhere every year; and
Whereas, New Jersey's tourism industry contributes over $44 billion to this State, or almost seven percent of the State's entire economy; and
Whereas, The waters of New Jersey are home to a diverse array of unique wildlife, such as dolphins, several species of seals, and six different species of endangered whales; 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 or natural gas leases off the Atlantic Coast, and the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management in the United States Department of the Interior 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 United States Department of the Interior must 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 order also seeks to expedite and ease regulatory requirements on seismic airgun surveying used in oil and natural gas exploration; and
Whereas, On May 10, 2017, the United States Department of the Interior announced Secretarial Order No. 3350 which further implements the President's executive order; and
Whereas, The secretarial order directs the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management to develop a new five-year leasing plan with full consideration of the President's priorities as stated in the executive order; and
Whereas, The secretarial order also directs the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management to expedite permitting applications related to seismic airgun surveying and to begin the process of rescinding previous executive actions limiting oil and natural gas production and exploration off the Atlantic Coast; and
Whereas, Seismic airgun surveys are conducted by emitting acoustic energy pulses into the seafloor over long durations and over large areas to determine the resource potential of oil and natural gas, site renewable energy sources, and locate mineral deposits; and
Whereas, The Bureau of Ocean Energy Management as recently as 2014 reviewed the impacts of seismic airgun surveying in the same area off the Atlantic Coast and determined that this type of surveying could have an adverse impact on a wide array of marine wildlife; and
Whereas, Thirty-four marine mammal species inhabit the areas considered for seismic airgun surveying, six of which are endangered, and every species could be adversely impacted by the seismic airgun surveying; and
Whereas, The Bureau of Ocean Energy Management estimated that seismic airgun surveying in the proposed area could injure up to 11,748 bottlenose dolphins per year, 6,147 short-beaked dolphins, 5,848 Atlantic spotted dolphins, 4,631 short-finned pilot whales, and 3,993 striped dolphins per year; and
Whereas, These executive actions represent a particularly serious threat because they not only call for an expanded drilling area, but also a rollback of safety regulations designed to prevent spills from occurring in the future; 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 harm, and significantly reduce the quality of life for New Jersey's residents; and
Whereas, The Christie Administration and the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection have previously challenged a similar seismic surveying program off the coast of New Jersey because the Department of Environmental Protection believed that the seismic airgun surveying would likely have a detrimental impact on marine mammals, fisheries, and tourism along the Jersey Shore; and
Whereas, Senator Robert Menendez, Senator Corey Booker, and Representative Frank Pallone, Jr. of New Jersey expressed their opposition to seismic surveying off the New Jersey coast in a 2015 letter to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, stating that seismic airgun surveying poses a serious threat to fish populations, profitable fisheries, and marine life; and
Whereas, There is a broad bipartisan consensus among New Jersey's State and federal representatives that seismic airgun surveying would harm the commercial and natural wildlife of the Atlantic Coast, and it is imperative that the Department of the Interior re-evaluate its plan to expedite the permitting process for airgun surveying; and
Whereas, Most importantly, the Trump Administration should take into account lessons from disasters such as the BP Deepwater Horizon oil spill, and take the necessary steps to protect the economy and the ecology of the Atlantic Coast from the hazards associated with offshore oil and natural gas drilling; now, therefore,
Be It Resolved by the General Assembly of the State of New Jersey (the Senate concurring):
1. The Legislature of the State of New Jersey opposes seismic airgun surveying and oil and natural gas drilling off the Atlantic Coast, and urges Congress and the President of the United States to prohibit such activities in the future.
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 expresses opposition to the proposed seismic airgun surveying and oil and natural gas drilling off the Atlantic Coast.
On April 28, 2017, President Trump signed Executive Order No. 13795 entitled "Implementing an America-First Offshore Energy Strategy." The executive order seeks to encourage oil and natural gas production along portions of the Atlantic Coast and seeks to ease regulatory requirements on seismic airgun surveying. On May 10, 2017, the United States Department of the Interior announced a secretarial order which expedited the permitting process for seismic surveying, and begins re-evaluating oil and natural gas leasing in the Atlantic Ocean.
Seismic airgun surveys are conducted by emitting acoustic energy pulses into the seafloor to determine the potential for oil, natural gas, and other resources. The Bureau of Ocean Energy Management as recently as 2014 reviewed the impacts of seismic airgun surveying off the Atlantic Coast and determined that this type of surveying could have an impact on a wide array of marine wildlife. There is a broad consensus among New Jersey's elected officials that seismic airgun surveying off the Atlantic Coast would be damaging to the economy and the ecology of New Jersey. Senator Menendez, Senator Booker, and Representative Pallone of New Jersey expressed their opposition to previous seismic surveying off the coast of New Jersey, and the Christie Administration brought suit in an attempt to stop similar activities in 2014.
Beyond seismic airgun surveying, this executive order threatens the economy and ecology of New Jersey, and every state along the Atlantic Coast. New Jersey's tourism industry contributes over $44 billion to this State, 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 environmental harm, and significantly reduce the quality of life for New Jersey residents.
