Alaskan Congressman Don Young released the following statement today in response to the Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement (BSEE) approving Shell’s Oil Response Plan (OSRP) for the Beaufort Sea:
“Today’s approval of Shell’s Response Plan puts the state of Alaska one step closer towards development in the Beaufort Sea. As gas prices continue to rise and unemployment continues to hover around 8%, the Beaufort Sea as well as the Chukchi Sea, will provide much needed oil to help fill a pipeline that badly needs it and will create many high-paying jobs in the process. Although drilling this summer is closer than ever, now is not the time to let up the pressure on the federal government, it is time to work harder than ever and that is exactly what I intend on doing.”