The Obama administration opened the door for oil and gas drilling off the Georgia coast under a new proposal Tuesday.
The Department of the Interior would allow one lease to drill in the Atlantic Ocean somewhere off the coastline between Virginia to Georgia, under its draft five-year plan.
“At this early stage in considering a lease sale in the Atlantic, we are looking to build up our understanding of resource potential, as well as risks to the environment and other uses,” Department of the Interior Secretary Sally Jewell said in a news release.
The proposal for 2017-2022 would invite public comment on one drilling lease sale for late in the five-year window. The drilling would have to occur at least 50 miles offshore.
Jewell said in a conference call with reporters that support from Atlantic state governors and legislatures was a factor in allowing drilling there, as opposed to the Pacific, where it remains banned.
The draft plan must go through rounds of public input before it is finalized.
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