Ali Chase's Blog: Moving Beyond Oil

What Will the Economic Impact of the Deepwater Horizon Spill Be?

2010-05-11T18:25:32Z

As the country watches the oil slick licking the Gulf’s shores in horror, residents are looking at something else – their shrinking budgets. The economic impacts of the Deepwater Horizon spill are begin to emerge, and the worst may be on the way.

Fishermen cut off from their fishing grounds for who knows how long can seek jobs cleaning up the very spill that prevents them from fishing, but it’s unclear how many will get work.

Some hotels are filled up with oil cleanup crews and reporters, but for others cancelations are rolling in from vacationers who don’t want to relax by a oil spill. Fishing tournaments are being postponed and fishing trips canceled. The Times-Picayune quotes Theophile Bourgeois, who operates 10 charter boats and two fishing lodges: “In reality, this time of year I should be booking 10 trips a day … That’s decreased about 20 percent.”

The economic value of the Gulf of Mexico’s ocean resources are being hit hard, and it will take time to truly understand the impacts.

Consider these facts:

TOURISM:

In 2003, tourism and recreation comprised 71 percent of the employment in the Gulf region’s ocean economy.

RECREATIONAL FISHING:

A 2006 National Marine Fisheries Service report noted that 6.2 million recreational anglers in the Gulf region spent $2.2 billion on more than 23 million fishing trips in 2006.
A similar report in 2008 noted that 3.2 million resident recreational anglers took a Gulf of Mexico fishing trip in 2008.
In 2008, eastern Florida and the Gulf region’s commercial fishing industry generated more than $10.5 billion in sales, more than $5.6 billion in income, and supported more than 200,000 jobs in 2008.

COMMERCIAL FISHING:

More than 75 percent of the nation’s commercial fish and 80 to 90 percent of its recreational fish spend part of their lives in estuary habitats – oiled wetlands will impact the breeding areas and nurseries for a variety of fish and shellfish, and the fishing.
Many of the Gulf region’s key species are likely to be the first casualties of spill: oysters cannot flee the low dissolved oxygen areas caused by oil on the water’s surface and the newly spawned larvae of shrimps and crabs – the catch of the future – are likely to be closer to the water’s surface and any floating oil.

BIRDING:

In 2006, more than 7 million people participated in bird watching in eastern Florida and the Gulf region; wildlife watchers in this region in general spent nearly $7 billion on expenditures (e.g., equipment purchases like binoculars and cameras).
Currently, it is peak spring migration for colorful songbirds that winter in South and Central America and nesting season begins soon for terns, plovers, and egrets. All of these species depend on the Gulf marshes to refuel after long flights and could be impacted by oiled resources.

The most difficult assessment to make is what the long-term impacts of oil on the Gulf region’s resources will be. Much depends on the winds, weather, and how much shoreline and open ocean life are contaminated by the oil and the materials used to disperse the oil. We do know that oil spills have decadal consequences:

Scientists investigating the long-term impacts of the Exxon Valdez spill estimate that nearly 20,000 gallons of oil from that spill remain in Prince William Sound, continuing to harm threatened and endangered species and undermine their recovery.
Marine mammals, sea birds, fish, shellfish, and other sea life are extremely vulnerable to oil pollution and the long-term toxic effects can impair reproductive success for generations. Studies have shown that tiny amounts of oil – as little as one part per billion – can harm pink salmon and cause their eggs to fail.
Researchers discovered long-term effects on shellfish, crabs, seabirds, whales and sea otters in years following oil spills in Alaska, Massachusetts and Spain – issues ranged from altered blood chemistry and higher levels of stress hormones to erratic behavior, contaminated eggs, and long-term population declines.

All we know is that that the short and long-term economic impacts will be severe for a Gulf population already recovering from several hurricanes and our national recession. More analysis will be generated in the days to come and I’m certain that plans will be put into place to help some of the struggling communities. That said, we need to make sure that these economic impacts are not overlooked as we make decisions for our energy future. We must learn from this spill and protect our fragile and valuable ocean resources for the future.

Join me on Monday to help set the course of America's offshore energy future

2009-04-03T19:42:17Z

This Monday in Atlantic City, U.S. Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar kicks off a series of four regional public hearings to discuss the future of energy development off our coasts. This is the only hearing that will be held on the East Coast (other meetings will take place in New Orleans, San Francisco and Alaska).

"The purpose of these meetings is to have an open, honest conversation with the American people to solicit the best information possible about an offshore energy plan," Secretary Salazar recently stated.

And so, bright and early on Monday morning, I will be in Atlantic City to make sure the Administration hears NRDC's message that offshore drilling poses serious environmental and economic risks to our nation's coastline, and will only prolong our unhealthy and needless addiction to fossil fuel development.

Secretary Salazar will start the meetings by providing a brief overview of the survey of OCS energy resources that the agency released yesterday. Among other things, the survey revealed enormous potential for wind power off the Atlantic Coast. The remainder of the day, Interior Department staff will be listening to what America wants included in our nation's new comprehensive energy plan. Please join me in attending!

These hearings give everyone a chance to weigh in as the new Administration determines America's energy future and that of our country's beaches, shores, and Arctic resources.

President Obama has called on Congress to double our renewable energy supply in the next three years. And Secretary Salazar has indicated he is committed to developing the clean energy we need to repower America. Unfortunately, he has also indicated the U.S. is not done with offshore oil and gas drilling. We have to break this bad habit that will do nothing to significantly lower energy costs, but instead risks devastating our beaches, waves and the industries that rely on them (like our more than $12 billion commercial fishing and more than $116 billion ocean and coastal tourism and recreation industries). It's time to focus on new energy sources that can't spill, run out or harm public health.

I agree with President Obama that science should be the basis for our coastal policies. We must build on the Interior Department's recent survey by collecting more environmental baseline information and further documenting the impacts of leasing and development on ocean and coastal ecosystems before we move forward on important and long-lasting decisions about America's energy portfolio and the future of our ocean life.

I will be asking that the Administration:

Not open up new offshore lands to oil and gas leasing, exploration, production, or development until the findings of two important assessments are made available: 1) An assessment by the National Academy of Sciences of current environmental baseline information and the impacts of leasing and development on ocean and coastal ecosystems. The independent NAS should review all relevant information, including from academic scientists, coastal states, and natural resource agencies such as the National Ocean and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), and build on the Interior Department's recently released report. 2) An assessment by the Government Accounting Office (GAO) of the impacts of OCS leasing and development on the price and supply of oil and gas.
Suspend new leasing and any drilling activities and seismic activities on existing leases in the Beaufort and Chukchi Seas on Alaska's Arctic coast until we have the necessary information to make sensible energy policy decisions. In the Beaufort and Chukchi Seas, there should be a "time out" on all oil and gas activities until an Arctic conservation and development plan is prepared by a presidentially appointed interagency task force. (Even routine exploration and drilling activities bring harm to many marine species. For example, seismic surveys designed to estimate the size of an oil and gas reserve use ships to tow multiple airgun arrays that emit high-decibel explosive impulses to map an area - the loudest human-generated noise in the oceans besides explosions. Fish and marine mammals that rely on their sense of sound to find mates, locate prey, avoid predators, and communicate suffer damage to their sensitive organs as a result. Seismic surveys have been implicated in numerous whale beaching and stranding incidents.)
Ensure that offshore renewables are developed without jeopardizing the health of our already-stressed, valuable ocean systems. By using a marine spatial planning (MSP) process, the Department of the Interior can identify areas suitable for offshore renewable energy development and associated transmission lines. (MSP is the process of analyzing and allocating ocean space for specific uses in order to achieve specified ecological, economic, and social objectives.) Properly developed, a marine spatial plan could steer development towards those areas best suited to alternative energy projects, while protecting areas more vulnerable to serious environmental impacts. These plans should be developed in partnership with NOAA, and in coordination with willing states.

If you're interested in attending any of these historic hearings, more information can be found at: http://www.doi.gov/ocs/.