Exploration on Georges Bank OK'dCritics say oil, gas survey could disrupt fishing groundsBy Rick Klein, Globe Staff | August 5, 2005
WASHINGTON -- A provision tucked into the energy bill approved by
Congress last week calls on the government to conduct a survey of
potential oil and gas drilling at sites along the entire US coastline,
including Georges Bank off the coast of Nantucket.
The measure directs the Department of Interior to conduct an
"inventory and analysis of oil and gas resources" beneath the outer
continental shelf, the relatively shallow areas beginning about 3
miles off the nation's coastline. That includes Georges Bank, a vast
underwater plateau that stretches from Cape Cod to Nova Scotia and
has been among the world's most fertile fishing grounds.
Energy companies have sought to drill for oil and gas on the bank for
more than 30 years, prompting protracted legal and congressional
battles. A ban on drilling has been in place since 1982, and the
current moratorium runs through 2012. The energy bill, which President
Bush is expected to sign next week, does not alter the drilling ban
but lifts the prohibition on exploration, which was added during the
1990s.
Some fishing and environmental groups say that even looking for the
buried resources could disrupt the fragile ecological environment at
Georges Bank at a time that authorities are trying to restock
declining fish populations. The measure specifically authorizes "3-D
seismic technology," where the ocean floor is mapped through the use
of air guns that emit high-intensity sound waves, potentially harming
fish.
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