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Despite horrifying pictures from the disaster in the Gulf Coast, Chris Dudley once again offered his support for drilling along the Oregon Coast.
On KGW’s Straight Talk, Dudley said that he wouldn’t support a ban on offshore drilling and confirmed that he is open to the idea of drilling along Oregon’s coastline. Dudley stated “I don’t know why you would say necessarily that it’s – it’s banned forever and it’s because that’s to me is – the – gets changed later you can always change it later and I think that right now you just say look, it’s not something we’re doing now and it’s I – I don’t know how – why you have to go that much further than that.”
When shown a clip from a previous interview where Dudley said he would consider off shore drilling, he confirmed again that he would be open to drilling off Oregon’s coast.
“Protecting Oregon and ensuring that we don’t have a catastrophe like the Gulf Coast should be a top priority, instead Dudley scoffs at a ban on drilling off the Oregon coast,” said Trent Lutz, DPO Executive Director. “Chris Dudley is proving that he won’t defend Oregon’s best interests and would gamble with our pristine coastline. Oregonians deserve better.”
Full Transcript:
[Porter]: The last time you were on this program it was about ten days after the disaster happened and we knew it was bad, but I don’t think we go the full scope of how bad it was at that time and I asked you then um, what you thought about offshore oil drilling for Oregon, I want to play your comment.
[Dudley]: Ok
(video clip – Straight Talk May 1, 2010)
[Porter]: Would you favor offshore oil drilling off the coast of Oregon?
[Dudley]: Well I – I favor let’s be open to all alternatives I don’t – I don’t – right now it’s not on the table and it’s not something that we’re readily looking at but should we look at it at some point down the road? Possibly.
[Porter]: So you’d be open to the idea?
[Dudley]: I’m open to it, yeah.
(end video)
[Porter]: So it – it’s six weeks down the road and one third of all federal fishing lands are closed now because of the gulf disaster and it looks like it won’t be completely stopped until late August
[Dudley]: Mmm Hmm
[Porter]: at the earliest. They haven’t been able to figure out how stop it. Are you still open to offshore oil drilling off the coast of Oregon?
[Dudley]: Well, open in that – and I don’t – the pol – there’s not a public appetite for it, it’s something that is not going to happen any time soon. I’m not something I’m certainly not pushing, and I think it’s something that, uh, uh, that what has been shown in the Gulf is that if you do, uh, offshore drilling you really have to have the necessary precautions in place and it’s uh, something that can be uh, rewarding, but incredibly risky as well and so it’s certainly not something I’m – I’m pushing.
[Porter]: The government thought that BP knew how to fix it and had some redundancies, but apparently it does not so how are you – can you be sure ever that there are the safety precautions in place?
[Dudley]: Well, I think, uh, in other countries, other places, uh, have put those necessary precautions in place and I obviously – I think there are ways to do so. Um, but I think – I said last time I was on here as well that the Northwest is an extremely difficult place, um, to drill offshore and I don’t necessarily think it’s gonna be – it’s not something that’s gonna happen here any time soon.
[Porter]: Our Senators and Senators from California and Washington were trying to get a ban on offshore oil drilling. They weren’t able to because of the uh, Senator from Alaska, would you support a ban on offshore oil drilling?
[Dudley]: Well, and that’s kinda – I – I think – that we – I don’t know why you would say necessarily that it’s – it’s banned forever and it’s because that’s to me is – the – gets changed later you can always change it later and I think that right now you just say look, it’s not something we’re doing now and it’s I – I don’t know how – why you have to go that much further than that, but just say – it’s something that frankly that’s not – is – nothing is being proposed and there’s nothing – I don’t see anything being proposed in the near term and it’s not going to happen.
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