The California Clean Coast Act, a bill introduced by Rep. Salud Carbajal, aims to permanently ban future offshore oil and gas leasing in areas off the coast of California.
Congressman Carbajal reintroduced the bill to the House of Representatives on Thursday. It is also the 52nd anniversary of the 1969 Santa Barbara oil spill in which 100,000 barrels of crude oil spilled into coastal waters.
President Biden recently signed executive orders focused on the environment and climate. They halt oil and gas drilling on federal public lands and offshore waters. Another aims toward using offshore wind as an energy source by 2030.
“The Central Coast has witnessed the devastation of oil spills first-hand, including the toll they take on our coastal communities, local economies, and fragile ocean ecosystems. 52 years and several oil spills later, we must pass this bill and permanently end new oil and gas development off our shore,” says Rep. Carbajal. “It’s time we relied less on fossil fuels and more on renewable energies, like offshore wind, which will create energy and good-paying jobs without damaging our environment or our planet.”
