Florida remains in federal offshore oil, gas plan: US Interior chief

US Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke said Tuesday that federal waters offshore Florida remain in the Trump administration's proposed 2019-2024 offshore oil and gas leasing plan.

"Florida is still in the process," Zinke said during a Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee hearing.

Following a meeting with Florida Governor Rick Scott, a Republican, on January 9, Zinke announced he was "removing Florida from consideration for any new oil and gas platforms," in regards to the draft proposed program his agency released the week before. That proposed plan calls for 47 sales in federal waters, including 12 sales in the Eastern Gulf of Mexico, three in the South Atlantic and one in the Straits of Florida, over a five-year period.

Zinke has offered no details on exactly what federal waters he plans to remove from the plan. Walter Cruickshank, the head of Interior's Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, has said no formal decision has been made on the proposed five-year program.


More: https://www.platts.com/latest-news/oil/washington/florida-remains-in-federal-offshore-oil-gas-plan-21568086

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Zinke: Oil and gas exploration off the Pacific coast might not happen

Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke expressed doubt Tuesday that oil and gas exploration will happen off the Pacific coast as part of the Trump administration’s proposal to dramatically expand offshore leasing, saying California, Oregon and Washington have “no known resources of any weight” for energy companies to extract.

Discussing the Atlantic coast while testifying before the Senate Energy Committee, the secretary similarly described Maine as a state with little recoverable oil and gas.

Zinke stopped short of saying that the three Pacific states would be exempted from the president’s plan to offer leases on 95 percent of the outer continental shelf. But in his reply to a question from Sen. Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.), he acknowledged her state’s deep opposition.

“I think I’m going to mark down Washington as opposed to drilling,” Zinke said after Cantwell asked him to extend the public comment period for the drilling proposal. It is clear “the state of Washington is deeply, passionately opposed to oil and gas drilling off the coast,” he continued, promising that will be reflected in the next draft of the plan.

California and Oregon also are strongly against drilling off their shores, as are virtually all states along the Atlantic coast.

Zinke’s suggestion that the Pacific coast could be spared from drilling came in the last stage of a hearing that at times was heated. The former Navy SEAL commander engaged in several sharp exchanges with Democrats, who criticized the cost of his air travel on private aircraft and seeming favoritism for the oil and gas industry.


Much more: https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/energy-environment/wp/2018/03/13/zinke-oil-and-gas-exploration-off-the-pacific-coast-might-not-happen/?utm_term=.8289601ba387

Meet the students of Saudi Arabia's first driving school for women

Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman is making unprecedented changes in Saudi Arabia with a large focus on the role of women. The kingdom is the last country that denies women the freedom to drive, but that won't be for long. "CBS This Morning" co-host Norah O'Donnell went to the world's largest all-female university in Riyadh, where Saudi women are test-driving their freedom.

Dr. Ruba Alzuhairi is studying to become a surgeon, but she's also studying for her driver's license. She is one of the women paving the way at the driving school at Princess Nourah bint Abdulrahman University – Saudi Arabia's first driving school for women.

"This will also decrease some of the cost that I'm paying on taxis, on a driver. This will help me be independent," Alzuhairi said.

"This is a small change, but it's a significant impact on our society," said another woman studying there. She says men are "significantly positive" about the idea. "That's why it's the right timing. Back in 2011 and 2013 there was negative reaction."

What's changed? "The whole society," says another woman.


More (Includes video): https://www.cbsnews.com/news/saudi-arabias-first-driving-school-for-women/



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