DON'T LET DEEPWATER DEEP-SIX OFFSHORE DRILLING

Subject: txt engry -
The recent explosion and collapse of the Deepwater Horizon oil platform in the Gulf of Mexico was horrendous. There is no question that steps should be taken to see that any correctable errors made don't happen again.

But, from the point of view of the economy, national security and even environmental quality, halting new oil and gas development because of this one isolated incident would be an even worse disaster.

We need the oil and natural gas off of the U.S. coasts, and U.S. offshore drilling is historically the safest in the world:

• Since 1990, less than one-one thousandth of 1 percent of the oil produced in U.S. state or federal waters has spilled.
• Furthermore, when tankers leak, run aground or founder and sink, they tend to do so in port or near shore, resulting in more severe environmental damage.

Unfortunately, the United States remains dependent on foreign nations for a majority of our oil needs. Many of these countries are either politically unstable or have governments that are hostile to U.S. interests.

• The United States has huge deposits of oil offshore; the Minerals Management Service estimates that the U.S. outer continental shelf (OCS) contains more than 46 billion barrels of oil, more than double the current U.S. reserve, and more than 419 trillion cubic feet of natural gas.

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