The petroleum industry celebrated the proposal, while complaining that it didn\u2019t go far enough. Environmental groups warned of disaster.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis represents a significant shift in federal policy and, in my view, a threat to the environment, the economy and the lifestyle of living in the Lowcountry of South Carolina,\u201d\u009d said Chris DeScherer, a Charleston-based senior attorney for the Southern Environmental Law Center. \u201cIt\u2019s not just the coastal waters, wetlands, and wildlife that depend on them, but the businesses and the tourism industry.\u201d\u009d<\/p>\n
Erik Milito, director of Upstream and Industry Operations for the American Petroleum Institute, said offshore oil and gas exploration and drilling is much safer today than just five years ago.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe are now in a new age,\u201d\u009d Milito said in a conference call with reporters. \u201cWe\u2019ve decreased the risk dramatically.\u201d\u009d<\/p>\n