For this, we are risking our coasts

Graphic showing offshore drilling vs. total US consumption

This graph, produced by Architecture 2030, is for the new oil offshore – it doesn’t break out the existing production offshore in the central and western gulf, which is where the Deepwater Disaster is. Those wells, mostly close to shore, account for about 28% of current domestic production, and that share will decline dramatically over the next decade, as many of those wells are already in steep decline.  Its worth also noting this recent report from the Energy Information Administration which notes that without offshore drilling gas prices will be a whole 3 cents higher per gallon in 2030.

Are your coasts worth 3 pennies?