Oregon Public Broadcasting

President Bush Monday lifted an executive ban on offshore oil drilling. But that doesn’t mean you’ll spot an oil rig on your next trip to the Oregon or Washington coast.  Correspondent Chris Lehman explains.

First of all, the President’s action means little if Congress doesn’t lift its own ban.  But with gas prices above four dollars a gallon, the prospect of opening up more areas for drilling is gaining popularity.

Generally, Republicans support the idea and Democrats oppose it.  But in the Northwest, it’s not clear how much oil and natural gas is out there under the waves.

Only a handful of tests have been conducted off the coast of Oregon, says state geologist Vicki McConnell.

Vicki McConnell:  “So we don’t have a lot of data.  I cannot definitively say one way or the other whether there is a potential for oil and gas.”

Likewise, there’s not much reason to start exploration off Washington State given that better prospects exist off California and the Gulf Coast.

Either way, the Olympic Coast National Marine Sanctuary would keep half of the Washington continental shelf off limits.

All three West Coast governors are on record against offshore drilling.