Schwarzenegger drops offshore drilling project
by Marisa Lagos
(05-03) 16:39 PDT Sacramento -- Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger on Monday withdrew his support for a plan he championed to allow new offshore oil drilling off Santa Barbara County, citing the disastrous oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico.
Schwarzenegger, whose administration as recently as Friday defended the proposed Tranquillon Ridge offshore drilling project, said images of the spill in the gulf changed his mind.
"All of you have seen, when you turn on the television, the devastation in the gulf, and I'm sure that they also were assured that it was safe to drill," he said at a news conference Monday. "I see on TV the birds drenched in oil, the fishermen out of work, the massive oil spill and oil slick destroying our precious ecosystem. That will not happen here in California, and this is why I am withdrawing my support for the T-Ridge project."
His new stance all but guarantees the demise of the proposal by a Texas oil company to allow the first new drilling in state waters in 40 years.
The governor had previously argued that the state, which is facing a $20 billion budget shortfall, should approve the plan to raise as much as $100 million a year in new revenue.
The plan would allow Plains Exploration & Production Co. of Houston to use an existing oil platform in federal waters to drill just over the line in state waters. The plan included an agreement by Plains to shut down all operations in the area after 14 years.
"My support for the T-Ridge project in California was based on numerous studies making me feel it was safe to drill ... and a commitment to remove the platforms," Schwarzenegger said at a signing ceremony for executive orders on wildlife prevention.
Easy decision
The Republican governor, who has made environmental issues one of the cornerstones of his administration, said the trade-off between new revenues and the potential for environmental devastation made the decision easy.
"If I have a choice between $100 million and what you are seeing in the Gulf of Mexico, I'd rather just find out a way to make up for that $100 million," he said. When "you turn on television and see the enormous disaster, you say to yourself, 'Why would we want to take that risk?' The risk is just much greater than the money is worth, and so we will figure out how to deal with the extra $100 million problem."
Opponents of the proposal, including Assemblyman Pedro Nava, D-Santa Barbara, cheered the decision.
"I'm just glad that he joined me and most of the rest of California in opposing the oil drilling," said Nava, who is running for state attorney general. "This is good news for all of California."
Proposal rejected
Last year, the three-member State Lands Commission that has governed oil-leasing decisions since 1938 rejected the proposal by Plains Exploration. But as the state grappled with a huge cash shortfall and deficit, the governor attempted to do an end-run around that body and went to the Legislature to approve the project.
The Assembly rejected the plan, which would have raised up to $4 billion for the state during the 14-year period, depending on oil prices.
Since then, however, Abel Maldonado, R-Santa Maria (Santa Barbara County), replaced the Democratic lieutenant governor, who held the swing seat on the State Lands Commission. Environmentalists and other opponents of the project worried that if the oil company resubmitted its plan to the commission, as it was expected to do, Maldonado might allow the plan to move forward.
Maldonado has refused to take a position, saying he needs to review the proposal but that, in general, he wants to see the platforms come down.
A spokesman for Plains Exploration & Production Co. could not be reached for comment.
State Controller John Chiang, who sits on the State Lands Commission and voted against the project last year, praised the governor's new position.
"I am pleased the governor has withdrawn his support for what would have been the first new oil lease off the coast of California in 40 years," he said in a prepared statement. "As a member of the State Lands Commission who voted against the project last year, I am saddened that it took a tragic and massive oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico to remind us how important it is that we continue to protect California's shores and our multi-billion dollar coastal and port economies."
