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Wildlands & Wildlife:
Outer Continental Shelf Amendment

Our Position: support
Bill Number: S.AMDT.783
Sponsor: Bill Nelson (D-FL)
Legislative Session: 2005

The Outer Continental Shelf (OCS) Amendment proposed by Florida Senators Bill Nelson (D) and Mel Martinez (R) and supported by a bipartisan coalition of senators would have removed a provision from the Energy bill that threatens America's coastlines. This provision orders an inventory of oil and gas reserves off America's beaches, a first step in a concentrated effort by the energy industry and their friends in Congress to open our coasts to oil and gas drilling. Furthermore, the inventory itself is dangerous to marine ecosystems. It requires damaging, high-intensity seismic tests that have been demonstrated to cause harm to many species of marine life. The defeat of the OCS amendment would represent a dangerous move by the Senate towards opening our nation's protected waters for drilling by the oil and gas industry, threatening coastal communities and the environment.

Status

The amendment failed by a vote of 44-52 on June 21, 2005.

Action Needed