WASHINGTON -- Why would the most powerful economy in the world leave so much of its own energy sources untapped?
Alone among countries, the United States has placed a substantial amount of its oil and natural gas potential off limits. Other countries drill just off our shores. But U.S. firms face restrictions on drilling in most offshore areas, even as American drivers face sharply higher prices at the gas pump.
Congress seems poised to do something about this policy by taking up the Deep Ocean Energy Resources (DOER) Act of 2006. And it's about time.
Domestic oil and gas production has failed to keep pace with growing demand, but it's not because we're lacking for domestic energy. Since the 1990s, the federal government has placed severe restrictions on new energy development, particularly in some of our most promising areas.
But back then, oil and natural gas were cheap, and the need for additional energy wasn't considered significant. Also, the 1989 Exxon Valdez oil tanker spill led to heightened environmental concerns about offshore energy production.
Environmental concerns took precedence over future economic considerations. Soon, access to 85 percent of federally controlled offshore areas had been restricted, including the Pacific and Atlantic coasts, and portions of the areas off the shores of Alaska and the eastern Gulf of Mexico. No one knows how much energy lies in these areas. But many agree there's enough to bring stability to energy markets and make a real difference in oil and natural gas prices for years to come.
According to a recent Interior Department study, restricted offshore areas contain an estimated 19 billion barrels of oil and 84 trillion cubic feet of gas - several years' worth of total U.S. consumption. It may be even higher given that most of the off-limits areas haven't been thoroughly explored.
Moreover, the central and western Gulf of Mexico - the only offshore areas where drilling is permitted - were dealt severe blows last year by Hurricanes Katrina and Rita. At the peak of damage, one-fourth of America's domestic oil and gas production was off-line. No offshore wells suffered significant spills resulting from the storms.
Politics, not geology, is the reason America has put so many energy eggs in this one hurricane-prone basket. Those storms should teach us that allowing drilling elsewhere (and related refining and pipeline infrastructure) would give us greater supplies, lower prices and less vulnerability should disaster strike any one area.
