Should+the+US+stop+all+offshore+oil+drilling?

Issue 4. Should the United States Stop All New Offshore Drilling for Oil? 54 YES: Michael F. Hirshfield, from “Testimony Before the U.S. House of Representatives Committee on Natural Resources” (May 27, 2010) 56 NO: Michelle Michot Foss, from “Testimony Before the U.S. House of Representatives Committee on Natural Resources” (May 27, 2010) 64 Michael F. Hirshfield, the Oceana vice president and chief scientist, believes that offshore drilling is a “dirty and dangerous business.” He argues that the Deepwater Horizon drilling disaster is not a one-time occurrence: in 2007 alone there were 39 blowouts worldwide. Among other things, he calls on Congress to “suspend all approvals, activities, and processes—other than current production—related to offshore drilling.” Michelle Michot Foss, the University of Texas energy economist, provides estimates of the consequences of stopping oil and gas exploration and production. Among other things, such a ban would increase energy costs to consumers by an annual average rate of 5 percent and lead to a decrease in jobs in energy-intensive industries by 13 million by the year 2030. She believes there are “outstanding and almost immeasurable benefits associated with the discovery and utilization of oil and natural gas resources