Issue: On January 4th the Trump administration announced a new plan to allow exploration for oil and natural gas in waters off every coastal state, including South Carolina.
Act now before it is too late:
- Contact our elected representatives and tell them you oppose oil drilling off our coast.
Governor Henry McMaster
- email (website): http://governor.sc.gov/Contact/Pages/default.aspx
- call: (803) 734-2100
Congressman Mark Sanford
- email (website): https://sanford.house.gov
- call: (843) 352-7572 (Mt. Pleasant office)
Senator Lindsey Graham
- email (website): https://www.lgraham.senate.gov
- call: (843) 849-3887 (Mt. Pleasant office)
Senator Tim Scott
- email (website): https://www.scott.senate.gov
- call: (843) 727-4525 (North Charleston office)
2) Comment to the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM):
You can comment to BOEM until March 9. Procedures and guidelines for submitting comments online or in writing can be found on the BOEM website: https://www.boem.gov/National-Program-Comment/#submitcomments
Points to consider in your comments:
- When contacting Govern McMaster and Congressman Sanford, thank them for asking the administration to exclude South Carolina from the offshore oil and gas program.
- The environmental risk is too great, especially since the Trump administration recently weakened safety regulations put in place after the 2010 Deepwater Horizon oil rig catastrophe in the Gulf of Mexico. (over)
- Oil industry infrastructure would be out of place along our coast and would seriously damage our regional economy, especially tourism and fishing. • Every coastal community in South Carolina is on record in opposition to including waters off our coast in the oil and gas program. The administration should abide by the unanimous wishes of the state’s local communities that would be directly affected.
- The U.S. exports millions of gallons of crude oil a day and does not need the small amount of oil or gas that may be found off the mid and south Atlantic.
- South Carolina is aggressively pursuing renewable energy sources, including wind and solar. The administration should stop propping up the fossil fuel industry and should support the development of more diverse, sustainable, and environmentally safe energy.
3) Attend the South Carolina BOEM meeting, rally and forums on Tuesday, February 13.
- BOEM meeting: Hilton DoubleTree in Columbia (2100 Bush River Road) from 3 to 7 p.m. Meeting details are on the BOEM website: https://www.boem.gov/National-Program-Participate/.
- Rally and Forum: The Coastal Conservation League and other conservation organizations have organized a rally and forum that day. The rally will begin at 11 a.m. on the north steps of the State House. Local and state leaders opposed to drilling will speak at the rally. After the rally a public forum will be held in the room right next to BOEM’s public meeting at the Hilton DoubleTree hotel. The forum will take place from 3 to 7 p.m. Policy experts and organizers will help you draft and submit public comments and contact your legislators. Mayors and leaders from many coastal communities will speak. For more information about the rally, public meeting, and forum click here: http://www.coastalconservationleague.org/events/resist-offshore-atlantic-drilling-rally-columbia/
Sea Islands Action Network 