http://www.minnpost.com/ronway/2008/07/09/2505/lifting_drilling_ban_wouldnt_do_much_for_gas_prices_report_saysAs national polls show that more than 70 percent of Americans favor lifting a 29-year ban on offshore oil drilling to help address skyrocketing pump prices for gasoline, U.S. Rep. Michele Bachmann, R-Minn., is crisscrossing her district with a call to remove barriers to drill in offshore areas and the Alaska National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR).
According to the Center for Economic and Policy Research (CEPR) in Washington, however, there's not enough oil in offshore areas to make much difference in world prices — which drive most worldwide pump prices, including those in the United States.
Citing figures from the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA), the center said that at full production — which would be more than 20 years off, the EIA projects — offshore reservoirs may yield 200,000 barrels of oil per day.
"This is only about two-tenths of a percent of current world production, and that's not enough to affect world prices," said Dean Baker, the lead author of a CEPR report entitled "Offshore Drilling and Energy Conservation: The Relative Impact on Gas Prices."
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