by Rev. Dr. Jim Watkins
Bente Stachowske / Greenpeace
When most folks on the South Carolina coast first learned about the possibility of offshore oil drilling in the Atlantic, their initial thoughts were either of economic or environmental harm. Economically, studies show that tourism out-performs even the most generous projections of oil income 27-1. Seventy percent of the state’s accommodation tax comes from the coast, and the pandemic has highlighted the crippling financial impact of losing the tourism industry. The economic concern is more than justified, even before you factor in potential property value losses. Environmentally, it is obvious that offshore drilling threatens the pristine ecosystems along the South Carolina coast.
That was most folks. For me, my first reaction wasn’t about economics or the environment; it was about faith. Offshore drilling and the seismic blasting that precedes it is not in keeping with God’s call to be good stewards of Creation.
Seismic blasting involves air gun explosions going off every ten seconds for weeks on end, and has been proven to deafen, injure, and even kill marine wildlife. Whales, dolphins, and other sea mammals that rely on echo location to detect danger, find food, and locate family members are particularly vulnerable.
One species that is exceptionally threatened by offshore seismic blasting and drilling along the east coast is the right whale. There are only about four hundred North Atlantic right whales left in God’s oceans. These whales spend their entire lives between coastal South Carolina and New England, and their migratory path takes them through proposed testing and drilling areas. On the other end of the size spectrum, tiny plankton, the first link in the ocean food chain, are also damaged by seismic blasting. The image of seismic blasting takes me back to my infantry officer days, when soldiers would “fish” by throwing hand grenades into ponds.
Another fact that cannot be overlooked is that drilling leads to spilling. The U.S. Representative I worked as a staffer for was on the committee charged with cleaning up the Exxon Valdez spill from 1989. It is still not cleaned up completely. 10 years after the Deepwater Horizon spill in the Gulf of Mexico, a study which surveyed upwards of 2,500 fish around the spill site found chemical components of crude oil in every single one.
The two leading causes of oil spills are human error and weather. Technology improves, but humans will always make mistakes (that is what original sin is all about). Spills destroy the entire ecosystem of an area. Not only are the ocean creatures impacted, but so are the creatures of the marsh. My wife and I are fortunate to watch seven different kinds of egrets feed in the creek behind our house. In my mind’s eye, I now often see them covered with oil.
We need to help folks see that is not only an economic and environmental issue, but also a faith issue. We need to educate ourselves and others in the faith community (Reinhold Niebuhr once said “consecrated ignorance is still ignorance”). We must advocate and engage in the formation of public policy that protects Creation. The separation of church and state means that neither controls the other – it does not mean that faith values cannot contribute to forming public policy. The Congressman I worked with would often turn to me on a particular issue and say, “Jim, where are your folks?” No one was communicating from a faith perspective.
The most powerful sentence in the public arena is, “I am your constituent.” Let’s be faithful constituents who stand for protecting Creation.
That was most folks. For me, my first reaction wasn’t about economics or the environment; it was about faith. Offshore drilling and the seismic blasting that precedes it is not in keeping with God’s call to be good stewards of Creation.
Seismic blasting involves air gun explosions going off every ten seconds for weeks on end, and has been proven to deafen, injure, and even kill marine wildlife. Whales, dolphins, and other sea mammals that rely on echo location to detect danger, find food, and locate family members are particularly vulnerable.
One species that is exceptionally threatened by offshore seismic blasting and drilling along the east coast is the right whale. There are only about four hundred North Atlantic right whales left in God’s oceans. These whales spend their entire lives between coastal South Carolina and New England, and their migratory path takes them through proposed testing and drilling areas. On the other end of the size spectrum, tiny plankton, the first link in the ocean food chain, are also damaged by seismic blasting. The image of seismic blasting takes me back to my infantry officer days, when soldiers would “fish” by throwing hand grenades into ponds.
Another fact that cannot be overlooked is that drilling leads to spilling. The U.S. Representative I worked as a staffer for was on the committee charged with cleaning up the Exxon Valdez spill from 1989. It is still not cleaned up completely. 10 years after the Deepwater Horizon spill in the Gulf of Mexico, a study which surveyed upwards of 2,500 fish around the spill site found chemical components of crude oil in every single one.
The two leading causes of oil spills are human error and weather. Technology improves, but humans will always make mistakes (that is what original sin is all about). Spills destroy the entire ecosystem of an area. Not only are the ocean creatures impacted, but so are the creatures of the marsh. My wife and I are fortunate to watch seven different kinds of egrets feed in the creek behind our house. In my mind’s eye, I now often see them covered with oil.
We need to help folks see that is not only an economic and environmental issue, but also a faith issue. We need to educate ourselves and others in the faith community (Reinhold Niebuhr once said “consecrated ignorance is still ignorance”). We must advocate and engage in the formation of public policy that protects Creation. The separation of church and state means that neither controls the other – it does not mean that faith values cannot contribute to forming public policy. The Congressman I worked with would often turn to me on a particular issue and say, “Jim, where are your folks?” No one was communicating from a faith perspective.
The most powerful sentence in the public arena is, “I am your constituent.” Let’s be faithful constituents who stand for protecting Creation.