When voter unrest over $4/gal gasoline prices made Congress consider expanding US offshore oil and gas development late last summer, one group already was asking specific questions about the US coastal area where a lot of energy development has taken place already.
America's Energy Coast is a coalition of organizations which often don't talk to each other, but which also recognize that Gulf Coast sustainability issues must be constructively addressed.
It includes major oil companies, business and transportation interests, environmental organizations, sporting and recreational groups, and state and local officials from Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama and Texas.
"Everything that happens on the Gulf Coast depends on a sound environment. Coastal communities which provide a workforce for Outer Continental Shelf development are literally disappearing," said Sidney Coffee, a senior advisor to America's Wetland Foundation and a former chairwoman of the Louisiana Coastal Protection and Restoration Authority who has worked on Louisiana coastal issues for more than 10 years.
Common sustainability issues
The foundation established America's Energy Coast to bring every affected stakeholder together to work out solutions, she told me during a mid-October visit to Washington. The group is trying to bring common sustainability issues into the national energy conversation. It issued a sustainability accord on July 24 and will hold a policy forum on Dec. 2 at the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars.
"This is more than simply deciding what's needed. We're trying to identify conflicting policies among the four states. We're also looking at national policies which hinder states' efforts. This may be the best way to solve these serious problems," Coffee said.
There are still disagreements within the group over strategies, she continued. Some representatives want to take immediate mitigation steps, while others back adaptation measures. There also is no climate change consensus, but Coffee said everyone has kept talking "and it has been very interesting."
Oil and gas industry support is not surprising. Roughly 90% of the US Gulf of Mexico's production passes through the area. A huge pipeline network is anchored on barrier islands protected by wetlands there, Coffee noted. Hurricanes Katrina and Rita took out 218 miles of coastline in 2005, she continued. "Communities that weren't considered coastal before are now," she said.
High on 2009 agenda
Congress and the Bush administration were working on a general economic rescue when I spoke with Coffee, but she was optimistic that federal lawmakers and the new president would be looking at these issues early in 2009.
"Hurricane Ike literally was a game-changer. It's no longer just a New Orleans issue. When this region is even partially shut in, it can have far-reaching effects. Ask anyone who had to wait to buy gasoline in Atlanta recently," she explained.
She has been invited to visit some North Carolina coastal communities in November which are considering supporting OCS development, and where community leaders want to learn more about the Gulf Coast's experience. "My message will be that the challenges are big, but they're not insurmountable. You just have to go in with your eyes open," Coffee said.
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