President Obama deserves credit for letting Virginia become the first state on the eastern seaboard to allow oil and natural gas exploration and production in the outer continental shelf areas off its coast. As Gov. Bob McDonnell said, the decision “will mean thousands of new jobs, hundreds of millions in new state revenue and tens of billions of dollars in economic impact for the commonwealth. It will also help our nation take a further step towards energy independence. Environmentally safe offshore energy exploration and production is good for Virginia workers, the Virginia economy and national security.”
But there is more — and less — to the latest Obama energy decision than simply opening up a significant portion of the OCS to tap the abundant new oil and natural gas resources that experts have said for decades can be safely located and produced. For one thing, Obama’s decision delays for another year — until 2012 — the day when development off of Virginia’s coast can begin, four years after federal bans on such activities were lifted. Even so, at least Obama has set a date certain for taking a significant step toward liberating America from dependence on the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries and Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez for two-thirds of our energy needs.
