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Opening Statement - Ranking Member Mike Simpson
Interior Appropriations Subcommittee
Deepwater Horizon oil spill hearing
May 27, 2010
Mr. Secretary, Director Birnbaum, let me begin bythanking you both for your determined efforts in response to the Deepwater Horizon explosion and oil spill. We’re grateful to you for not only your efforts to address the spill and determine its root causes, but also the hard work of the Department on many levels to keep Members and staff apprised of the situation on a daily basis. It’s much appreciated.
At the outset, let me be very clear that I’m not here today to blame BP, the Secretary, the MMS, or anyone else. The Washington blame game makes great headlines but that isn’t my purpose. It’s probably safe to say that we will discover down the road that a number of parties are ultimately responsible for what has occurred.
Frankly, I’d like to learn more about the efforts to stop the oil spill, how best to mitigate any damage it has caused, and how to prevent further damage. I also want to know what went wrong, how we can fix it, and determine what we can all do to minimize the chances that an accident like this will happen again. That’s the responsible thing to do—and it’s the right thing to do.
We all recognize that this is a major tragedy. But we ought not to treat it—as some are attempting to do—as the death knell for offshore drilling. That would be a big mistake and I think most people recognize that.
If you’ve read any newspapers or watched TV over the last week or so you’re aware that some of my colleagues are attempting to use this oil spill as an opportunity to prevent scheduled lease sales in the Gulf to proceed this summer. Others see it as a reason to cease all exploration and production in the Gulf of Mexico. Others are hopeful that this spill will lead Congress or the Administration to reinstate the moratoria on drilling on the entire Outer Continental Shelf. And, still others are urging the President to delay exploration planned for this summer in the Arctic Ocean. While well-intentioned, I believe this thinking to be short-sighted and misguided.
I support efforts to invest in a balanced, all-of-the-above energy portfolio that includes renewable energy, nuclear energy, as well domestic sources of oil and gas. But the fact is that we are now—and will continue to be for the foreseeable future—a carbon-based society. Unless you drive an electric car, live in a solar powered house, or have a windmill in your back yard, chances are that every day you rely on oil or gas to drive your car, mow your lawn, turn on the lights, and generate the energy to heat and cool your home. That is not going to change anytime soon.
Today, oil production in the Gulf of Mexico accounts for nearly one-third of all domestic U.S. crude oil production.Over the last 60 years, offshore oil and natural gas development has resulted in more than 42,000 wells being drilled safely, including more than 2,000 wells at depths of 1,000 feet or more.
We ought not to view this latest setback as a reason to retreat but as a chance to learn how we can more safely explore and produce the energy our country will need in the coming century. As tragic as this spill has been, it hasn’t changed our country’s growing demand for oil and natural gas. Exploration and production in the Gulf of Mexico and the OCS—and especially in deepwater where resources are most prevalent—will play an even more critical role in the future.
During a joint session to Congress on May 25, 1961, President Kennedy presented our country with a bold challenge. He said: "I believe that this nation should commit itself to achieving the goal, before this decade is out, of landing a man on the moon and returning him safely to the Earth." Congress and the American public accepted the President’s challenge. In spite of setbacks along the way and the skeptics who questioned whether it could be done—Kennedy's dream unfolded on television screens around the world on July 20, 1969, when Apollo 11 commander Neil Armstrong took “one small step for man; one giant leap for mankind.”
Today, our country is presented with a similar opportunity. Today, five countries—Canada, Mexico, Venezuela, Nigeria, and Saudi Arabia—account for nearly two-thirds of the crude oil imported to the United States. Venezuela, a country ruled by the dictator, Hugo Chavez, and a regime which most people consider as less-than-friendly to our interests, exportsover 900,000 barrels of oil a day to our country. In spite of this spill, a majority of Americans still believe our country needs to do more to develop domestic sources of energy—both onshore and offshore—and lessen our dependence on foreign sources of oil and natural gas.
Energy production is an inherently risky business. History reminds us that while we can make every possible effort to mitigate risk, we can never fully eliminate it. The tragic death of 29 coal miners in West Virginia in April is not going to shut down our country’s coal mining industry. It is, however, resulting in a period of study and introspection to determine how to improve safety and avert future tragedies. This is a proper and reasonable response.
By contrast, the accident at Three Mile Island in 1979 set our country back in the development of nuclear energy for a generation or more. The oil spill in the Gulf has the potential of having the same impact if we collectively wave the white flag, signaling retreat on offshore exploration and production.
There are many lessons to be learned from this experience. How do we adequately develop and test the technology needed to shut down a well a mile beneath the ocean’s surface in an emergency situation? What authority do federal agencies have to make decisions about treating an oil spill in the midst of a crisis? What reforms are needed to ensure proper management controls are in place and safety inspections are completed properly? These and other questions need to be asked.
I’ll close with this thought: Our decision-making on oil and gas exploration and production going forward should be guided by what we know and not by what we want to believe. Facts, not emotions, should be our guide.
Mr. Secretary, thank you again for being here today.
Thank you, Mr. Chairman.