Blowing in the Wind - by Oceana/Jon Frank

Just prior to the six month anniversary of the Deepwater Horizon oil spill last week, the Obama administration acquiesced to the oil industry by lifting its temporary moratorium on offshore drilling ahead of schedule. While we would like to believe that  a spill like the Deepwater Horizon will never happen again, we know that oil spills happen – it’s not a matter of whether there will be another spill, but when.

In light of this anniversary, Oceana has a new report – Untapped Wealth – that poses a critical question about the U.S.’s energy portfolio: do we continue to expand offshore drilling, in spite of its now-undeniable risks, or are there better options? Our analysis focuses on the Atlantic Coast and shows clearly that focusing investments on offshore wind energy would be more cost effective, create more jobs and be better for the environment.

Here are some key points I’d like to share with you:

• The Atlantic Coast’s offshore wind potential is so great, that it could supply enough electricity to heat every home in the country, and then some.
• Developing 127 gigawatts of offshore wind energy capacity over 20 years would provide energy at a cost of about $36 billion less that the production of economically recoverable new offshore oil and natural gas.
• Offshore wind development off the Atlantic Coast could create between 133,000 and 212,000 jobs annually in the United States – more than three times as many jobs than new offshore oil and natural gas development is expected to create.
• Replacing carbon-dioxide generating sources of energy – oil and gas – with offshore wind will help combat climate change and ocean acidification.

All this energy is just waiting to be captured, but before we can get to it, the U.S. has to take clear steps to begin the transition away from fossil fuels. Click here to learn more about these steps and how you can get involved.