Offshore Oil and Gas Development Concerns

The Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act (OCSLA) directs the Department of Interior (DOI) via its Bureau of Ocean and Energy Management (BOEM) to periodically develop and maintain an offshore oil and gas leasing program, considering national energy needs and potential environmental harm. During a recent National Leasing Program comment period, the National Aquarium and other Choose Clean Water Coalition members expressed significant concerns about potential offshore oil and gas exploration and development along the Mid-Atlantic Coast. A large oil spill in the Atlantic would have catastrophic consequences for people and wildlife throughout the Chesapeake Bay. Such an event would prove disastrous to our region's robust coastal economy by impacting fishing, tourism, transportation and ocean-based recreation. Additionally, we are particularly concerned about the potential of increased seismic activity from underwater acoustic surveys that would precede any new oil and gas development offshore, especially as seismic airgun blasting technology has been shown to negatively impact marine mammals, fish and other species.

Also, given the current 10th National Leasing Program is effective through 2029, it is unnecessary to develop an 11th National Leasing Program at this time. The public process involved in such development would waste limited federal resources that would be better spent if applied to the transition from fossil fuels to renewable energy—a switch that comes with many economic, environmental and public health benefits.

The potential risks to our marine and coastal ecosystems (and the communities and industries that depend on them) are far too great to justify new offshore oil and gas development. Instead, Congress should codify limits on offshore oil and gas development through legislation, such as the Clean Ocean and Safe Tourism (COAST) Anti-Drilling Act and the Defend our Coast Act. These bills, reintroduced in April 2025 as part of a coordinated effort by federal lawmakers around the country, would respectively exclude the East Coast from Maine to Florida and the mid-Atlantic Outer Continental Shelf from future offshore oil and gas drilling. The National Aquarium strongly endorses this legislative effort as it reflects broad public bipartisan support for protecting U.S. waters from new oil and gas development.