2014 NDI 6WS – Fitzmier, Lundberg, Abelkop
DO IT ELSEWHERE COUNTERPLANS
LAND-BASED DRILLING
Neg
1NC CP – Shorter
Text: The United States federal government should increase access and streamline permitting on federal lands for oil and natural gas development.
CP solves aff – offshore development can’t meet energy needs – only onshore solves
Platts 4/16(McGraw Hill Financial sub-company - Platts is a leading global provider of energy, petrochemicals, metals and agriculture information, and a premier source of benchmark price assessments for those commodity markets. “US federal gas output lags that of private property: report”, 4/16/14,
Although overall US natural gas production has dramatically increased each year since 2009, production on federal lands has declined each year over the same period, with much of the decline attributed to a 50% drop in offshore gas production, according to a Congressional Research Service report released Wednesday. "Federal natural gas production has fluctuated from around 30% of total US production for much of the 1980s through the early 2000s (34% of U.S. total in 2003), after which there began a steady decline through 2013," the report states. Although the US Energy Information predicts that the years-long decline in offshore gas output will reverse itself in 2015, "any increase in production of natural gas on federal lands is likely to be easily outpaced by increases on non-federal lands, particularly because shale plays are primarily situated on non-federal lands," the study finds. Industry advocates, however, point to more stringent regulations for leasing and drilling on federal lands as the chief reason why hydrocarbon production on those lands is trailing behind that of private and state-owned lands. The CRS report found that as a result of the shale gas boom, annual US natural gas production rose by about 10.96 Bcf/d, or 19%, between fiscal year 2009 and FY2013, while gas production on federal lands (onshore and offshore) fell by about 28%, from 14.72 Bcf/d to 10.62 Bcf/d. This compares with a 33% increase in gas production on non-federal lands over the same time period. "The big shale gas plays are primarily on non-federal lands and are attracting a significant portion of investment for natural gas development," the report states. EIA estimates US dry gas proved reserves are about 334 Tcf, about a quarter of which lies beneath federal lands, and of that 69 Tcf is onshore and 16 Tcf offshore. "Nearly all of the offshore proved reserves are located in the Central and Western Gulf of Mexico," according to the report. "Offshore natural gas production is projected to reverse a years-long decline in 2015, with annual production rising as high as 2.9 Tcf in 2040." Even with these projected increases, offshore gas output would only account for about a 7.7% share of total US production in 2040, the report states. Currently, there are 113 million acres of onshore federal lands that are open and accessible for oil and gas development while about 166 million federal acres are considered off-limits or inaccessible. The study also finds that in contrast with the gas output picture, oil production on federal lands has fluctuated over the past five fiscal years. However, as with gas production, oil output has increased dramatically on non-federal lands. Non-federal crude oil production increased by 2.1 million barrels per day between FY2009 and FY2013, causing the federal share of total US crude oil production to fall by nearly 11%, the CRS says. The report shows that "federal land policies are artificially suppressing production, putting Western communities that rely on oil and natural gas development at a disadvantage compared to other areas of the country," Western Energy Alliance said in a statement. WEA President Tim Wigley placed the blame for the lackluster energy production from federal lands on the land-use policies of the Obama administration. "The huge success of the oil and natural gas industry increasing energy security and bringing the country out of recession is despite, not because of, the policies of this administration," he said. "The CRS report clearly shows that where the federal government has the most control, on federal lands, it is suppressing development of the energy that all Americans own while preventing job creation and economic prosperity," Wigley said. Julia Bell, a spokeswoman for the Independent Petroleum Association of America, said the CRS report "should be a wake-up call for those concerned with energy development on federal lands." She added that independent oil and gas producers "are struggling to overcome immense bureaucratic confusion with a myriad of overlapping jurisdictions and regulations," and called on Congress "to increase access and streamline permitting on federal lands."
1NC CP – Longer
Text: The United States federal government should increase access and streamline permitting on federal lands for oil and natural gas development.
CP solves aff – offshore development can’t meet energy needs – only onshore solves
Platts 4/16(McGraw Hill Financial sub-company - Platts is a leading global provider of energy, petrochemicals, metals and agriculture information, and a premier source of benchmark price assessments for those commodity markets. “US federal gas output lags that of private property: report”, 4/16/14,
Although overall US natural gas production has dramatically increased each year since 2009, production on federal lands has declined each year over the same period, with much of the decline attributed to a 50% drop in offshore gas production, according to a Congressional Research Service report released Wednesday. "Federal natural gas production has fluctuated from around 30% of total US production for much of the 1980s through the early 2000s (34% of U.S. total in 2003), after which there began a steady decline through 2013," the report states. Although the US Energy Information predicts that the years-long decline in offshore gas output will reverse itself in 2015, "any increase in production of natural gas on federal lands is likely to be easily outpaced by increases on non-federal lands, particularly because shale plays are primarily situated on non-federal lands," the study finds. Industry advocates, however, point to more stringent regulations for leasing and drilling on federal lands as the chief reason why hydrocarbon production on those lands is trailing behind that of private and state-owned lands. The CRS report found that as a result of the shale gas boom, annual US natural gas production rose by about 10.96 Bcf/d, or 19%, between fiscal year 2009 and FY2013, while gas production on federal lands (onshore and offshore) fell by about 28%, from 14.72 Bcf/d to 10.62 Bcf/d. This compares with a 33% increase in gas production on non-federal lands over the same time period. "The big shale gas plays are primarily on non-federal lands and are attracting a significant portion of investment for natural gas development," the report states. EIA estimates US dry gas proved reserves are about 334 Tcf, about a quarter of which lies beneath federal lands, and of that 69 Tcf is onshore and 16 Tcf offshore. "Nearly all of the offshore proved reserves are located in the Central and Western Gulf of Mexico," according to the report. "Offshore natural gas production is projected to reverse a years-long decline in 2015, with annual production rising as high as 2.9 Tcf in 2040." Even with these projected increases, offshore gas output would only account for about a 7.7% share of total US production in 2040, the report states. Currently, there are 113 million acres of onshore federal lands that are open and accessible for oil and gas development while about 166 million federal acres are considered off-limits or inaccessible. The study also finds that in contrast with the gas output picture, oil production on federal lands has fluctuated over the past five fiscal years. However, as with gas production, oil output has increased dramatically on non-federal lands. Non-federal crude oil production increased by 2.1 million barrels per day between FY2009 and FY2013, causing the federal share of total US crude oil production to fall by nearly 11%, the CRS says. The report shows that "federal land policies are artificially suppressing production, putting Western communities that rely on oil and natural gas development at a disadvantage compared to other areas of the country," Western Energy Alliance said in a statement. WEA President Tim Wigley placed the blame for the lackluster energy production from federal lands on the land-use policies of the Obama administration. "The huge success of the oil and natural gas industry increasing energy security and bringing the country out of recession is despite, not because of, the policies of this administration," he said. "The CRS report clearly shows that where the federal government has the most control, on federal lands, it is suppressing development of the energy that all Americans own while preventing job creation and economic prosperity," Wigley said. Julia Bell, a spokeswoman for the Independent Petroleum Association of America, said the CRS report "should be a wake-up call for those concerned with energy development on federal lands." She added that independent oil and gas producers "are struggling to overcome immense bureaucratic confusion with a myriad of overlapping jurisdictions and regulations," and called on Congress "to increase access and streamline permitting on federal lands."
CP solves energy needs without triggering link to environment DA
Bailey 8(Alan, Petroleum News Reporter, “BLM says 60 percent of land off limits”, 6/8/08,
The U.S. Bureau of Land Management has published an updated version of its inventory of oil and gas resources in federal onshore land. BLM says that the latest study has estimated that the federal lands hold 31 billion barrels of oil and 231 trillion cubic feet of natural gas. But the inventory has also found that 60 percent of the onshore federal land that has potential for oil and natural gas production is closed to oil and gas leasing, thus rendering 62 percent of the oil and 41 percent of the gas inaccessible for development. The inventory report represents the third of a series of studies mandated by Congress to document federal oil and gas resources and limitations on the development of those resources. “America has abundant energy resources,” said C. Stephen Allred, assistant secretary of the Interior for land and minerals management. “However, for a variety of reasons, many of these resources are not available for development. At a time when energy prices have reached record levels and Americans are feeling the impact, we must find ways to develop those key energy resources that are available to us right here at home on our public lands.” “Current technology allows us to develop energy resources without adversely impacting the environment or permanently diminishing other non-energy resources found on public lands,” said BLM Director Jim Caswell.
2NC Solves – Onshore Reserves
Opening onshore reserves to drilling solves the aff
RDC 8(Resource Development Council, “Report offers road map for energy relief”, 2008,
With soaring energy prices threatening the national economy and the standard of living for many Americans, the Bureau of Land Management last month released a study that shows vast untapped oil and natural gas resources beneath public lands. “America has abundant energy resources,” said Assistant Secretary of the Interior for Land and Minerals Management Stephen Allred. “However, for a variety of reasons, many of these resources are not available for development. At a time when energy prices have reached record levels and Americans are feeling the impact, we must find ways to develop those key energy resources that are available to us right here at home, on our publiclands.” The report is the third in a series of congressionally mandated scientific studies of U.S. onshore federal oil and natural gas resources and limitations on their development. All onshore federal lands throughout the U.S. believed to have energy potential are included in this latest study. These public lands are estimated to contain 31 billion barrels of oil and 221 trillion cubic feet of natural gas. Alaska’s North Slope accounts for well over half of the onshore oil potential, but most is inaccessible for development, either as a result of land withdrawals or land use planning decisions. The inventory found that 60 percent of the onshore lands that have potential as domestic sources for natural gas and oil are presently closed to leasing, making 62 percent of the oil and 41 percent of the gas inaccessible for development. An additional 30 percent of onshore oil and 49 percent of onshore gas may only be developed subject to restrictions and above standard environmental lease terms. The study found that in the inventory areas, just 8 percent of onshore federal oil and 10 percent of the gas are accessible under standard lease terms. In addition, oil shale deposits in the U.S. represent potential reserves that may be twice as large as those in Saudi Arabia. Yet Congress has prohibited BLM from taking the steps necessary to make this vast resource available for development.
2NC Solves – Arctic Presence
CP solves Arctic Presence – current onshore Alaskan Reserves are closed to drilling
Bailey 8(Alan, Petroleum News Reporter, “BLM says 60 percent of land off limits”, 6/8/08,
Alaska resources In Alaska, the inventory considered federal oil and gas resources in northern Alaska, the Yukon Flats and southern Alaska. The northern Alaska region consists predominantly of the National Petroleum Reserve-Alaska and the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. The southern region consists of federal land on the Alaska Peninsula, the Kenai Peninsula and the Gulf of Alaska coastal region. The inventory represents estimates of technically recoverable undiscovered resources and the ultimate reserves growth in existing oil and gas fields.In northern Alaska, the inventory estimated 17 billion barrels of oil and condensate, and 79 trillion cubic feet of gas in federal lands. The gas estimate includes a 2007 U.S. Geological Survey assessment of coalbed methane. The inventory also says that almost none of the federal land in northern Alaska is accessible under standard BLM lease terms, in part because of restrictions on when during the year exploration activities can occur. Approximately 70 percent of the land is completely inaccessible for leasing at present, either as a result of land withdrawals or as a result of land use planning decisions. The inventory estimated 149 million barrels of recoverable oil and condensate and 2.7 tcf of natural gas in federal lands in the Yukon Flats, but 99 percent of that land is inaccessible for oil and gas leasing. In southern Alaska, 98 percent of the federal land is currently inaccessible for leasing. BLM estimates 270 million barrels of recoverable oil and condensate and 394 billion cubic feet of recoverable gas in this region. The preponderance of the oil is thought to exist on the Kenai Peninsula and in Southeast Alaska. The gas resources appear more widely distributed, although the Kenai Peninsula seems to be the most prospective area.
2NC AT: Links to Environment DA
Onshore oil and gas development is substantially safer than offshore drilling - comparativeevidence
Anderson 10(Terry, president of PERC and the John and Jean De Nault Senior Fellow at the Hoover Institution, Stanford University, “Why It's Safer to Drill in the 'Backyard'”, 6/25/10,
As oil continues to gush from BP's Macondo well and politicians posture, it is time for us to ask why we are drilling in such risky places when there is oil available elsewhere. The answer lies in the mantra NIMBY—"not in my back yard." BP was drilling for oil in 5,000 feet of water in the Mississippi Trench, more than 40 miles off the Louisiana coast. The site was leased in March 2008 from the Interior Department's Minerals Management Service. The area is one of an increasingly limited number of places available for oil and gas development in the United States. Because most private lands have been explored, public lands offer the most potential for oil and gas development. However, the NIMBY principle has significantly restricted development on those lands. According to 2008 Energy Department figures, nearly 80% of potentially oil-rich offshorelands are off limits to oil and gas development, and 60% of onshore lands are. In my backyard, Sens. Max Baucus and Jon Tester have introduced a bill aimed at halting oil and gas exploration in the Flathead River drainage area near Glacier National Park. They have already pressured Chevron and ConocoPhillips to relinquish their exploration leases on the land, placing 75% of the leases off limits to development. And of course, there is the perennially contentious issue of drilling in ANWR, the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. The government estimates that the area could produce 750,000 barrels of oil per day. Whether more exploration on federal lands would make the U.S. energy independent is debatable, but more onshore development would certainly be safer. In early June there was a blowout in western Pennsylvania. Did you see it on the nightly news? No, because it was capped in 16 hours. The Texas Railroad Commission, the state agency that regulates oil and gas production there, recorded 102 blowouts of oil and gas wells since the start of 2006, resulting in 10 fires, 12 injuries, and two deaths. None of those made the nightly news either. The largest oil spill on Alaska's North Slope in 2006 was from a pipeline leak. It dumped only 6,357 barrels and had no disastrous impacts. Drilling can be done with greater environmental sensitivity onshore. For many years the Audubon Society actually allowed oil companies to pump oil for its privately owned sanctuaries in Louisiana and Michigan, but did so with strict requirements on the oil companies so that they would not disturb the bird habitat. Explaining the process years ago, one sanctuary manager said, "when the cranes punched in, the hard hats have to punch out." Until the Gulf blowout, Audubon was even considering leasing more land for development on the Louisiana coast under such strict terms. When kids play baseball, there is a risk that windows will get broken. Playing on baseball fields rather than in sand lots, however, lowers the risk considerably. Putting so much onshore land off limits to oil and gas development is like closing baseball parks. More windows will be broken and more blowouts result where they are difficult to prevent and stop. The blowout at BP's well has increased pressure from environmentalists and the Obama administration for greater emphasis on alternative energy sources. Even if they are successful, this will have a trivial impact on our unquenchable thirst for fossil fuel. Enforcement of stricter safety regulation on deepwater drilling may reduce disasters like the current one in the Gulf. But the only real way to reduce the risk of catastrophic spills is to say yes to drilling in our backyard.