Gov. Jay Inslee today issued the following statement after a phone call with Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke regarding the recent draft offshore drilling plan. Zinke recently announced he is exempting the state of Florida from the new plan.
“I spoke with Secretary Zinke today and reiterated my opposition to his offshore oil drilling proposal. I told him the concerns of Washingtonians and West Coast residents deserve be treated with the same consideration and deliberation as those in Florida.
"Secretary Zinke did not provide that commitment, unfortunately. But this fight is far from over. We will continue advocating for Washington to be removed from the plan. We stand ready to provide any additional information about our coastline's pristine natural beauty and the economic backbone it provides for communities. This offshore drilling proposal is a serious threat to one of our state's greatest assets, and we will continue to fight this proposal as long as it takes."
Inslee joined California Gov. Jerry Brown and Oregon Gov. Kate Brown in condemning the plan last week, and wrote to Zinke to express his strong opposition to the plan. The Department of the Interior is holding a public meeting to take comments regarding the offshore drilling proposal in Tacoma on Feb. 5.