WILDCOAST Opposes New Oil & Gas Leasing Program: A Threat to Our Coasts, Communities, and Climate

November 25, 2025

SAN DIEGO, CALIFORNIA (November 21, 2025) WILDCOAST is taking a strong stand in opposition of the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management’s proposed Outer Continental Shelf (OCS) Oil and Gas Leasing Program for 2026-2031. 

The federal government has proposed opening up our pristine coasts along Alaska, California, the Gulf of Mexico, and Florida to new drilling leases, despite bipartisan opposition. We have seen the devastating and detrimental effects of offshore drilling on our coastal and marine ecosystems, communities, and economies too many times. We must act now to prevent these plans from causing further catastrophe.

Environmental and Public Health Impacts

The risks associated with offshore drilling are profound and far-reaching, starting long before any oil is extracted. 

Seismic Testing Harms Marine Life

In the early stages of searching for oil reserves, fossil fuel companies use deafening seismic testing. This process involves creating some of the loudest man-made sound in the ocean, which can be heard for miles. Many marine species including whales, dolphins, and sea lions rely on sound to navigate, hunt, and communicate. When those abilities are hindered, the consequences can be severe, causing disorientation, mass strandings, and even death if heard within a close distance. 

Oil Spills Devastate Ecosystems

Once the reserves are found, we face the inevitable risk of catastrophic oil leaks and spills. We know the devastating images all too well: birds, turtles, dolphins, and other marine life covered in oil, which they also ingest and inhale. The effects of a spill can change the health of ocean ecosystems for decades, according to a review in the International Journal of Advanced Research in Science and Technology. 

Health Risks to Responders and Communities 

The risks extend beyond wildlife to people, too. The health effects on cleanup operators are highly concerning. A study published in J Toxicol Environ Health B Crit Rev found that symptoms can persist for years after exposure including mental, physical, physiological, genetic, immunity, and endocrine effects. 

Furthermore, air quality plummets in regions with oil and gas production, impacting even populations living well outside the immediate drilling areas. A peer-reviewed study in Environmental Research found that, in 2016 alone, air pollution caused by oil and gas production caused 

  • 7,500 excess deaths
  • 410,000 asthma attacks
  • 2,200 new cases of childhood asthma in the U.S. 

Fueling the Climate Crisis

Beyond the immediate local disasters, this proposed program directly fuels the global climate crisis. Approving new leases means committing to the extraction and burning of millions of barrels of fossil fuels, directly releasing massive amounts of carbon dioxide and potent methane into the atmosphere, accelerating global climate change.

This proposed drilling creates an unacceptable risk that threatens to reverse decades of conservation progress.

While WILDCOAST combats climate change daily through natural solutions including mangrove and lagoon restoration to sequester carbon, this program would lock the U.S. into an old, polluting energy system. The scale of the resulting emissions and potential spills far outweigh the capacity of natural solutions to reverse, making the proposed OCS Oil and Gas Leasing Program fundamentally incompatible with a sustainable future.

Threat to Our Economy

Our economy is also on the line. Businesses that rely on a healthy environment – including tourism, recreation, and fishing, provide about 3.3 million jobs and $250 billion in the U.S. GDP. An oil spill could devastate these coastal economies for years. 

Beyond that, the costs associated with the air pollution from oil and gas production cost the U.S. approximately $77 billion in annual health costs. Adding to this burden, U.S. residents pay the consequences of climate change-related events, amounting to a staggering $820 billion every year, according to a report by Natural Resources Defense Council. 

We Don’t Need More Offshore Drilling

We do not need additional oil and gas leases to meet U.S. energy needs.

Concerns about gas prices increasing rapidly are understandable. However, these prices are determined by global markets, and the U.S. government itself has even declared that these new drilling sites would not lower gas prices This new leasing program only guarantees risks, not relief. 

Your Voice is Critical in This Fight

We need your help to protect our coast. The Department of the Interior is inviting public comments until Friday, January 23, 2026. Your voices have made a difference before, and will do the same again. 

We also invite you to join us in the fight against these devastating plans: 

  • What: San Diego People’s Hearing: Protect Our Coast from Offshore Drilling
  • When: December 4th from 6:00 – 8:00 pm
  • Where: Encinitas Community Center. 
  • RSVP: We encourage you to RSVP here. 

About WILDCOAST

WILDCOAST conserves coastal and marine ecosystems and addresses climate change through natural solutions. In California, WILDCOAST helps to conserve over 545,000 acres of Marine Protected Areas, previous habitats that are directly threatened by the proposed Outer Continental Shelf Oil and Gas Leasing Program. Learn more about our conservation efforts at WWW.WILDCOAST.ORG.

Back to Blog