Welcome to North Carolina Open Thread For Sunday, August 16th. This is a weekly feature of North Carolina Blue. We hope this regular platform will give readers interested in North Carolina politics a place to share their knowledge, insight, inspiration and connections as we work on taking back our state from the extremists.
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This week we bring you a couple of stories and a great reference on ways to get involved in the fight against off shore drilling.
Oceana is doing amazing work in this area of environmental protection.
Grassroots Opposition to Atlantic Drilling
Over the past couple years we've seen a groundswell of opposition to seismic blasting and offshore drilling in coastal communities! Learn how to pass a resolution in your town or city here. About 10 miles north of Cape Fear is the small community of Kure Beach, North Carolina. For Oceana's Grassroots team and our allies—Kure Beach was ground zero. On January 27, 2014, more than 300 residents showed up to protest the mayor's position on seismic airgun blasting.
Ever since that fateful night in January, opposition to seismic airgun blasting and East Coast drilling has been mounting. Nearly 600 national, state and local elected officials have taken a public stance against offshore oil exploration and/or development, including 70+ coastal towns, cities and counties that passed resolutions opposing or voicing concern with the process. And the number keeps growing!
Email us at act@oceana.org to join our pod of WaveMakers who want to get involved at the local level. The Campaign Organizer in your region will contact you about next steps.
The Oceana site also has dozens of references that citizens can use to start their own cases in their own towns including:
RESOLUTIONS OPPOSING OFFSHORE OIL EXPLORATION OR DEVELOPMENT
RESOLUTIONS AND LETTERS FROM CHAMBERS OF COMMERCE, RESTAURANT ASSOCIATIONS, TOURISM BOARDS, AND FISHING GROUPS
LETTERS OF OPPOSITION FROM ELECTED OFFICIALS AND EXPERTS
EDITORIALS
Our local Newspaper, the Asheville Citizen Times brings us great news about Wilmington North Carolina's decision to oppose offshore drilling.
Wilmington has become the latest city in the Carolinas to oppose offshore drilling for oil.
The Wilmington City Council voted unanimously Tuesday to oppose both seismic testing to find oil and natural gas, and the actual drilling for oil off the North Carolina coast. The resolution says offshore drilling threatens both the coastal and river wetlands areas of Wilmington.
Multiple media outlets reported that the council chambers were packed with those who oppose drilling. Lindsey Deignan, who spoke in support of the resolution at Tuesday’s meeting, said that the potential for an oil spill could affect the state’s vital fishing and tourism industries.
More than two dozen communities in North and South Carolina have voted against offshore drilling. State regulators in both states have approved proposals by survey companies to conduct seismic tests. Nearby beach communities including Wrightsville Beach, Carolina Beach and Topsail Beach have approved resolutions expressing concerns about seismic testing or offshore drilling.
The Coastal Review reports on two County Town Boards decision to oppose offshore drilling.
MOREHEAD CITY – Two Carteret County town boards took official stances this week opposing offshore oil and gas development and related seismic-blasting activities off the N.C. coast, joining a growing list of municipal governments standing opposed.
Beaufort and Morehead City join 18 other cities and counties in the state that have passed resolutions against offshore drilling or seismic testing, according to a list compiled by Oceana. The international environmental group opposes offshore drilling. In addition to the state’s other port city of Wilmington, towns on the list include Sunset Beach, Caswell Beach, Wrightsville Beach, Surf City, Manteo, Kill Devil Hills and Nags Head.
Please join with North Carolinian activists to stop this very bad idea from going forward. Town after town are standing up to fight off shore drilling. Please go to the
Oceana site and see what you can learn and what you can do.
Thanks for reading.