Column: Drilling Our Way Out Of Today's Oil Crisis

This story was written by Holly Foxen Wells, The Daily Aztec

When Vice President Dick Cheney announced that China was drilling for oil off the coast of Florida in cooperation with the Cuban government early this July, there was an uproar. Gas prices are soaring and no one is happy with the thought of China conducting oil explorations right in America's backyard, especially when the United States isn't conducting offshore drilling of its own.

It turns out that Cheney was mistaken, but the underlying issue still lingers. Because of a lease with Cuba, China can drill off American shores, but because of our own bureaucracy, the United States is tying its own hands. It's completely ridiculous that we are forgoing any sources of oil with gas prices as high as they are, especially when these sources would simultaneously decrease our own dependence on foreign oil.

As the price of oil continues to climb, other countries are increasing their off shore oil explorations. Canada, Cuba, Brazil, Australia and Russia have all jumped on the offshore exploration bandwagon, but the UnitedStateshas not followed suit.

The United Statesis suffering a major energy crisis right now, and we should be drilling in as many places as we can manage. Offshore drilling may be a short-term solution to a long-term energy problem, but if countries like China can already drill and drain our nearby coastal regions of oil and gas deposits, there's no reason why we shouldn't save ourselves a few bucks at the gas pump until alternative energy sources are further developed.

Which leads to the following question: Why aren't we taking advantage of this abundant oil supply?

The answer is painfully simple: politics.

Two federal bans stand in the way of offshore energy exploration for the United States.The Executive Moratorium, which was instituted in 1990 and is set to expire in 2012, can be eliminated by the president at any time. The Congressional Moratorium comes in the form of a budget rider in Congress, which would expire if not annually renewed. Democrats continually renew the bill while Republican's efforts to kill it continually fail. Two weeks ago on Capitol Hill, Republican-led efforts to rescind the offshore drilling ban were rejected yet again by a House Subcommittee.

Former Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich, who chairs the non-partisan group American Solutions for Winning the Future, wants action. He recently gathered more than 1 million signatures for a petition called "Drill Here. Drill Now. Pay Less." The petition is pleading with the U.S. Congress to "act immediately to lower gasoline prices (and diesel and other fuel prices) by authorizing the exploration of proven energy reserves to reduce our dependence on foreign energy sources from unstable countries."

Gingrich is not alone in his grassroots efforts. Republicans have long been pushing for an energy plan that encourages domestic oil exploration and production. Such plans also focus on alternative energy sources such as wind, nuclear and captured carbon dioxide, which could ultimately yield long-term solutions to the current energy crisis. If passed into law, the "Drill Here. Drill Now. Pay Less." plan could help America wean itself off its foreign oil dependence and strengthen our energy security.

Sadly, the energy plan is having a hard time taking flight. In addition to the moratoriums, Democrats in Washington are blocking the United States from pursuing any type of domestic oil and gas exploration, citing that such drilling would be "environmentally hostile."

This excuse is just plain ridiculous.

Technology has made off shore drilling environmentally safe and unobtrusive. Oil spills are virtually unheard of. In fact, it's very possible that the offshore drillingban increases the environmental threat, because less local drilling means more incoming oil tankers, which pose a greater risk of spillage than if we were to drill here.Far more importantly, Democrats are not representative of the voice of the American people on this topic. According to Gingrich and a number of other sources, the majority of Americans support drilling in presently restricted areas if it is done in an environmentally friendly way.

Congress' annual budget rider is an outdated ban on domestic energy production.

Because of such bans, our nation's vast outer continental shelf remains untapped by drilling. According to the U.S. Mineral Management Service of the Department of the Interior, this shelf contains "at least 86 billion barrels of oil and 420 trillion cubic feet of natural gas."

That equates to 10 times the oil and 20 times the natural gas Americans use in a typical year.

This potential abundance of oil could lessen our dependence on foreign oil, create jobs and initiate new investments in our economy.

We can't "drill our way out" of our reliance on oil, but we can make the transition to alternative energy sources much easier while lessening our dependence on foreign oil.

There is no reason to keep the United States from drilling off its own coast, especially when other countries can drill right under our noses. It is not the long-term solution, but it will give some much-needed relief to Americans at the gas pump.