03.31.10 | Scott Statement on Obama Administration's Decision to Allow Drilling Off Virginia’s Coast

March 31, 2010

WASHINGTON, DC – Congressman Robert C. "Bobby" Scott (D-VA-03) issued the following statement in response to the Obama Administration's decision to allow oil and natural gas drilling off Virginia's coast:

"I am very concerned with the President's announcement to go forward with the previous Administration's flawed lease sale plan for Virginia. Any lease sale that is to take place off Virginia's coast should consider the same environmental concerns as those that have apparently protected the West Coast from new exploration. The Commonwealth's beaches and the Chesapeake Bay should not be put at risk while the public may only enjoy negligible benefits. This plan should also not jeopardize the critical military training that takes place in the Virginia Capes Operation Area.

"Any plan that allows offshore oil exploration cannot ignore the significant economic benefits the Commonwealth now enjoys from our beaches, recreational boating and fishing, commercial waterman activities, and the presence of the world's largest naval base. Furthermore, this nation should be focusing its future energy strategy on clean, renewable sources of energy, not on fossil fuels."

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