New Moratorium Backed By Bureau Of Ocean Energy Management

by Miles Wolf Tamboli - Talk Radio News Service

One day after Interior Secretary Ken Salazar revealed a revised moratorium on offshore drilling in the Gulf, Director of the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, formerly known as the Minerals Management Service, Michael Bromwich met with President Obama’s special BP-Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill and Offshore Drilling Commission in New Orleans to express his approval of Washington’s policies.

Bromwich contended that the decision to reinstate the ban was based on “extensive” information, and is focused on enhancing drilling safety and blowout containment capability, and developing better disaster response strategies.

Salazar’s appointed Bureau of Ocean Energy Management Director did concede that the moratorium was, “roughly congruent with the original moratorium,” but argued that this most recent ban is concerned with specific rig technologies, and not just the depth of the well.

“So long as the spill is out there, has not been contained, and that the oil spill response capabilities are all being consumed by the current spill, the Secretary concluded that it is simply too risky to allow deep water drilling to continue,” Bromwich said.