Coast Watch: NC Holds Up Undersea Seismic Testing
Citing concerns about adverse impacts on sea life, the NC Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) has held up forward movement on permitting for seismic testing off the North Carolina coast.
New scientific reports undercut the credibility of industry claims that the seismic gun blasting to search for undersea oil and gas deposits would not be disruptive to fish and sea mammals in the surrounding waters. Armed with this information, state regulators demanded more information from the proponents of the testing. North Carolina is empowered to hold up federally permitted activities such as this under the “consistency reviews” required by federal and state coastal management laws.
“Based on the new studies, the state believes the activities you have proposed will have coastal effects substantially different than originally described, and may severely impact the biological, social and economic value” of the state’s recreational and commercial fisheries, read the letter signed by NC Coastal Management Director Braxton Davis.
