Our Ocean Legacy Reports

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Executive Summary

In the long debate about outer continental shelf (OCS) drilling, policy makers and the public have typically focused on how much more oil or natural gas would be produced, how much more tax revenue would be collected and how many new jobs
would be created if the nation expanded areas available for drilling. One set of issues, a critical set from the standpoint of healthy oceans, that has largely been ignored is the marine resources and sustainable activities that would be subjected to
potential harm from new offshore drilling.

For the first time, this report collects comprehensive information about what’s at risk in the ocean and on our precious coasts should offshore drilling be expanded to areas like the eastern Gulf of Mexico, the Atlantic Ocean or the Pacific coast.

The report includes an overview of the marine and coastal environment in each Minerals Management Service (MMS) planning area including special marine ecosystems, unique coastal places and parks, extraordinary marine life and the value
of coastal recreation and fishing (commercial and recreational) for each state within the MMS region. For each MMS planning region, the report compares the annual value of sustainable activities like tourism and fishing to the value of estimated oil and natural gas resources in the region.