[social_buttons]The federal government took steps on Thursday to begin oil and natural gas exploration off the coast of Virginia. The Minerals Management Service (MMS) estimates that this area under consideration, beginning at least 50 miles offshore, may contain 130 million barrels of oil and 1.14 trillion cubic feet of natural gas.

By opening the public comment period for drafting an environmental impact statement (EIS) on offshore drilling, the Interior Department has now taken the first concrete action in Washington since Bush and Congress lifted certain bans on offshore drilling in the Outer Continental Shelf. The environmental analysis is the first step in opening 2.9 million acres of waters to a lease sale scheduled for 2011.

Comments are sought from all interested parties about particular environmental, biological, archaeological, socioeconomic, and geological (including natural hazard areas) conditions or potential conflicts, or other information that might bear upon the potential leasing, exploration, and development of the program area and vicinity.

Needless to say, not everyone is pleased with the late-term move from the Bush administration and any environmental groups are eager to see this era pass. Mike Daulton, the legislative director for the National Audubon Society, says the Bush administration has done a lot of damage to our nation’s environmental protections over the last eight years, and thinks coastal oil development invites oil spills and tourism-killing industrialization of the coast. “We think it’s a special favor for the oil industry before Bush leaves office,” said Daulton.

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