The Washington Post June 24, 2019 By Darryl Fears The federal government’s first study of the nearly 15-year-long oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico estimates that up to 108 barrels per day — more than 4,500 gallons — is flowing from a site where an oil company’s platform and…
ACTION ALERT Update: SUCCESS!!! House budget would stop seismic testing, new IHAs and offshore drilling!
June 21, 2019 Late yesterday afternoon, the U.S. House approved FY20 budgets for the Department of Interior and the Department of Commerce. Two of the amendments were extremely important and were offered by SC Representative Joe Cunningham (D). The first was approved by a voice vote and would block the…
House committee forwards bills to bar offshore drilling across US
The Hill June 19, 2019 By REBECCA BEITSCH Lawmakers gave initial approval to bipartisan measures to bar offshore drilling across the U.S. in a Wednesday meeting of the House Natural Resources Committee. The committee advanced bills that would bar drilling along the Atlantic and Pacific coasts as well as the…
ACTION ALERT!!! Congressional vote for a 1-year ban on offshore drilling and seismic testing could be this Friday
June 18, 2019 Call S.C. Representatives NOW! Either this Friday (6/21) or Monday (6/24) the full U.S. House of Representatives will vote on the Department of Interior-Environment funding bill. Four amendments are being offered. Three would ban offshore oil drilling in the Atlantic, along the Florida coastline and in the…
Commentary: Presidential candidates must pass SC’s offshore-drilling litmus test
Charleston Post and Courier June 14, 2019 By Frank Knapp Jr. South Carolina Democrats convene their state convention in Columbia on June 22. At least 14 candidates vying to win the party’s presidential nomination will join them. While numerous issues will be discussed, one should rise to the top due…
Action Alert!! Tell state agency not to approve seismic permit
June 8, 2019 A seismic testing company has submitted a late request to be found compliant with South Carolina’s Coastal Management Program. Why this request is only coming in now given that all the other seismic companies did so years ago is not known. What is known is that the…
Small Business Chamber asks state to find seismic petition inconsistent with state coastal plan
June 8, 2019 Mr. Dan Burger Office of Ocean and Coastal Resource Management DHEC 1362 McMillan Avenue Suite 400 Charleston, S.C., 29405 Re: Comments on WesternGeco federal permit application Dear Mr. Burger, Since January of 2015 the South Carolina Small Business Chamber of Commerce has been on the record opposing…
Biden Commits to Day One Action on Offshore Drilling
PRESS STATEMENT Date: June 4, 2019 From: South Carolina Small Business Chamber of Commerce Subject: Biden Commits to Day One Action on Offshore Drilling Contact: Frank Knapp, President/CEO, 803-252-5733 (w), 803-600-6874 (c), fknapp@scsbc.org Today presidential candidate Joe Biden released his detailed plan for addressing climate change. Included in the plan…
S.C. Governor signs budget saying ‘no’ to oil and gas
E&E News May 30, 2019 OFFSHORE DRILLING Heather Richards, E&E News reporter South Carolina dollars won’t be going into offshore drilling actions — at least not for the next year. Gov. Henry McMaster (R) signed the state’s budget bill yesterday, including a proviso from the largely conservative South Carolina Legislature…
Editorial: A strong vote of support for coast
Charleston Post and Courier May 26, 2019 Three years ago South Carolina was led by a popular governor who was urging the federal government to allow drilling off our coast, our congressional delegation was cheerleading the effort and, while no votes were taken, it was generally assumed that the Legislature…