Washington Post is now saying the Interior Department is denying it has extended the drilling freeze to shallow waters, contradicting an e-mail written earlier Thursday by the head of the Minerals Management Service’s [MMS] supervisor of field operations for the Gulf of Mexico.
WaPo: An Interior Department spokesman said “shallow water drilling may continue as long as oil and gas operations satisfy the environmental and safety requirements Secretary Salazar outlined in his report to the President and have exploration plans that meet those requirements. There is no moratorium on shallow water drilling.” [emphasis added]
President Obama last week announced that his administration would suspend drilling in deepwater in the Gulf for six months.
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