The Obama administration is approving deepwater drilling permits at a pace of just 1.7 per month — a dramatic drop that is jeopardizing thousands of jobs for struggling families in Louisiana and neighboring states. The latest figures from the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, Regulation and Enforcement also reveal a sharp reversal in permit issuance for shallow-water wells. Greater New Orleans Inc. compiled the data as part of its Gulf Permit Index. Over the past three months, deepwater permits are down 71 percent from their historical monthly average of 5.8 …
Department of Interior Secretary Ken Salazar is once again taking steps towards increasing our energy dependence. Just a few weeks after the Obama Administration unnecessarily slowed the process of leasing offshore areas to energy companies for drilling; Secretary Salazar is now rescinding leasing plans for oil-shale development on federal land in Colorado, Utah and Wyoming. The amount of oil available through oil shale is staggering. Some estimates have 1.2 trillion to 1.8 trillion barrels of oil available in the Green River Formation, an area which expands through most of Colorado …
