Christie joins Democrats in calling for halt to offshore oil and gas exploration

By Zack Colman | Washington Examiner

Three West Coast Democratic governors came out against offshore drilling this week, but it’s a Republican governor’s moves on the Atlantic Ocean that have drawn some attention.

New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie‘s Department of Environmental Protection went to court earlier this month to block a federally fundedoil and gas exploration project that uses seismic airgun testing off the Atlantic coast, saying it could harm the state’s fishing and tourism industries. A district court judge rejected the request, but the Christie administration is appealing the ruling.

In fact, Christie’s opposition to seismic airguns — which blast sonic booms from boats down to the ocean floor to survey for oil and gas deposits — uses the same arguments environmentalists and his Left Coast gubernatorial brethren Jerry Brown of California, John Kitzhaber of Oregon and Jay Inslee of Washington pose.

at Washington Examiner.