Quick Take
The Trump administration confirmed Thursday that it plans to open the California coast to oil drilling, with two possible leases along the Central Coast. Local officials tell Lookout they’re organizing to fight offshore oil extraction with lawsuits.
The Trump administration confirmed Thursday that it will move to open up waters off California to oil drilling, but provided few details about the location of the two offshore drilling leases planned for the Central Coast. Local elected officials say they’re ready to fight tooth and nail against offshore oil drilling.
The U.S. Department of the Interior is proposing to sell as many as 34 gas and oil drilling leases in federal waters over the next five years. The plan includes six areas along the Pacific coast with two leases along the Central Coast, according to a news release from Rep. Jimmy Panetta.
Thursday’s announcement did not say where those two leases would be located, so their direct impact on Santa Cruz County is unclear.
The plans to open up the California coast for oil drilling are “ridiculous,” said Santa Cruz County Supervisor Justin Cummings, who previously chaired the California Coastal Commission. “However, we can’t underestimate the Trump administration and what they’ll try to do, whether it’s logical or not,” he said.
He said the Trump administration is targeting California in particular, as plans to open up waters along the Atlantic coast were scrapped after backlash from Republican leaders and coastal communities that depend on tourism.
“Beyond an administration that’s eliminating laws, beyond an administration that’s eroding the protections of our democracy, you have an administration that wants to erase the protections that we’ve put in place on our environment,” Panetta said during a news conference Thursday alongside other members of Congress from coastal districts.
Rep. Jimmy Panetta speaks against offshore drilling along the California coast during an Oct. 29 news conference at the Santa Cruz Wharf. Credit: Kevin Painchaud / Lookout Santa Cruz
Leases for oil or gas drilling along the California coast have not been granted since 1984. In 2018, the Trump administration attempted to open most of the nation’s coastline for gas and oil leases, but was met with strong opposition and lawsuits from coastal states and environmentalists.
While Panetta and other coastal members of Congress work to protect the five national marine sanctuaries off the California coast, Cummings and other local elected officials are reviving a local government coalition to stop the sale of new offshore drilling leases. Santa Cruz County has already reached out to representatives from every coastal town in the state to help activate the group, said Cummings.
The coalition was first established in 1980 by former county supervisor Gary Patton to fight offshore oil development and continued until 1994. The Local Government Outer Continental Shelf Coordination program was successful in halting offshore drilling and helped establish the Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary. It also provided local governments across California with cost-effective legal, technical and political support to oppose offshore drilling efforts, including lobbying lawmakers in Washington, D.C., and launching public awareness campaigns about the issue.
Cummings told Lookout on Thursday afternoon that the City of Santa Cruz formally joined on Tuesday, and Humboldt, Sonoma, Marin and Mendocino counties have also joined the coalition. He added that Monterey and San Mateo counties are scheduled to discuss joining in the near future.
The offshore drilling lease sales plan will open for public comment on Monday, Nov. 24, and remain open through Jan. 23. Cummings said he wants to get as many community members as possible to submit input.
Katie Thompson, executive director for environmental advocacy organization Save Our Shores, echoed Cummings, calling the Trump administration’s plan “reckless, unnecessary, and completely out of step with what California wants” in a news release Thursday. She added that local governments have helped stop previous drilling efforts, and can do it again.
“We have to fight back at all costs on this,” said Cummings. “Many people think that the protections that were in place … allow us to feel like there’s some sense of security. But what this administration has taught us is that nothing’s safe right now.”
In California, federal officials plan to open waters to leases in three stages: An area from San Diego to Big Sur would open in 2027 and 2029; from Big Sur to the Sonoma-Mendocino county border (including the San Francisco Bay Area) in 2027 and 2029; and from Mendocino north to the Oregon border would open in 2029.
A man holds an “Oil Spills Kill” sign at an Oct. 29 news conference at the Santa Cruz Wharf. Credit: Kevin Painchaud / Lookout Santa Cruz
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