Energy Council Hears Moratoria Study Report

See Our Original Moratoria Story With Many National Media Links

Here is audio of the Alaska Legislators' report on the Energy Council Meeting

Washington, D.C., by NGP Staff.  On Saturday, March 6, public officials from throughout the U.S. heard a report from the NARUC-administered Study Group on findings of its almost 2-year-long, $300 thousand study to determine the social, economic and environmental costs of continuing a national policy that restricts access to energy resources on Federal lands.

The Energy Council was convened at its 2010 Federal Energy & Environmental Matters Conference at the Madison Hotel in Washington D.C. on March 4-6, in a joint gathering with the Interstate Oil and Gas Compact Commission (IOGCC) and the Pacific NorthWest Economic Region (PNWER).

Senator Lesil McGuire, PNWER Vice President, introduced the Moratoria Study Group panel presentation.  NARUC Commissioner Emeritus Dave Harbour moderated the Moratoria Study Group presentation via teleconference.  He opened with an introduction (video below) for about 120 Energy Council attendees, then turned to a panel that included Rick Irby (NGP Photo-r) of SAIC, Alaska Oil and Gas Conservation Commissioner Dan Seamount (NGP Photo-l), Texas Railroad Commissioner Victor Carrillo (NGP Photo-below) and Consumer Energy Alliance - Southeast Executive Director Michael Whatley. Commissioner Carrillo participated with a statement delivered by Commissioner Seamount. 

Panelists noted that Congress and the previous Administration removed or did not reinstate expiring oil and gas moratoria on public lands in the fall of 2008, following a big run-up in oil prices.  They said that their study was as useful as ever now since energy supply and prices are such a large component of current economic challenges the country faces.  They also noted that as yet, no oil and gas development is occuring on the previously restricted lands.  

Irby emphasized the independence of his company's work and described several of the study's findings, that maintaining moratoria and keeping domestic energy resources inaccessible between now and 2030 produced a number of effects using a version of the government's national energy modeling system together with an updated estimate of resources.  The effects of maintaining moratoria against domestic energy production include: decreased oil (15%) and natural gas (9%) production; natural gas (17%) and electricity (5%) price increases; $4,500 per capita loss of disposable income; a .52% annual decrease in GDP; and INCREASED payments to OPEC of $607 billion.

Seamount said he participated to represent the States' rights viewpoint held by his national organization, the Interstate Oil and Gas Compact Commission, several of whose members helped oversee the study.  "Similar studies should be done every time any public land is considered for moratoria", he said.  "The American people need to know what enormous cost they are paying to keep so much of America's rich resources off limits to proven low risk operations.

Seamount said that he is "officially neutral" on the study results, adding that, "the decision makers need to see the whole picture--social, economic, as well as environmental--in order to make informed decisions. And if they decide that the potential environmental risks outweigh the social and economic cost, then we have to respect our elected and appointed officials’ decisions."
 
Carrillo's statement noted that, "As chairman of the Texas agency that oversees the Texas energy sector, increasing access to offshore areas currently off limits to oil and gas exploration and production can help the U.S. enhance domestic energy security while ensuring environmental protection and creating jobs.  This will absolutely decrease reliance on foreign sources of oil and natural gas.” 
 
Whatley emphasized the value such data will have for elected officials charged with making the difficult policy decisions that have such a large impact on the nation's consumers.