Federal Review Brings Residents Out to Protect Coast
By Laurel Busby
News & Information Editor
At an Aug. 10 meeting, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration gathered public input as part of its California Coastal Management Program performance review, which may be an initial step toward ending California’s authority to curtail offshore drilling and other projects that threaten the coast.
Canyon resident Judi Jensen attended the Monday meeting at the Hilton Santa Monica Hotel, and she said, “Offshore drilling is a real danger now…. This is scary stuff and it definitely matters if we object to this.”
Until Aug. 22 at 11:59 p.m., residents can share their views by emailing czma.california-evaluation@noaa.gov with "Comments on Performance Evaluation of the California Coastal Management Program" in the subject line.
According to an Aug. 11 L.A. Times article, experts see NOAA’s review as an effort by the federal government “to open California’s coast to more offshore oil drilling, more rocket launches and possibly even floating nuclear reactors.”
Howard Lutnick, the secretary of the U.S. Department of Commerce, posted on X that the review was to ensure the state’s compliance with the federal Coastal Zone Management Act (CZMA).
“California has repeatedly and unfoundedly obstructed spaceport development in bad faith,” Lutnick said in his post. He added that he was “directing NOAA to conduct a full, formal review of California’s compliance with CZMA, including an assessment of, among other considerations, how, if at all, California has interfered with not just spaceport development, but also other economic development and federal view considerations concerning offshore oil production, maintenance of pipelines, and desalination.”
In his post, Lutnick disparaged a 2024 performance review under the Biden administration that found California to be in compliance with CZMA. This review was not finalized. Typically, such performance reviews take place every 5-10 years.
According to Jennifer Savage of the Surfrider Foundation, Lutnick’s criticism of California’s management of its coast is inaccurate.
“Since 1980, California has reviewed at least 135 aerospace and space launch-related projects under its coastal program and objected to only two, both over unresolved procedural issues and documented harm to endangered wildlife from sonic booms,” Savage wrote in an article. “The state has reviewed 18 undersea fiber optic cable projects over the past 30 years and concurred with every one, while securing protections for fishing grounds, marine habitat, and whale and sea turtle safety along the way. California has conducted offshore oil and gas reviews consistently for 49 years, approving well-sited projects while requiring real safeguards against spill risk and habitat damage.”
(Transcripts of the NOAA meetings, including two virtual meetings on Aug. 11 and 12, can reportedly be obtained by emailing czma.california-evaluation@noaa.gov. The Surfrider Foundation has gathered information at this link that may be helpful in crafting a letter to NOAA.)
