Lowcountry divided on Obama offshore drilling plan

Rerecca Lurye andErin Moody via The State 
With President Barack Obama's announcement Tuesday allowing oil drilling off the eastern seaboard from Virginia to Georgia, Lowcountry leaders and activists on opposite sides of the question are digging in their heels.

Land off South Carolina's coasts would be available for oil and gas leases for the first time under the five-year plan, which would begin in 2017.

The issue has been pushed to the forefront locally by Beaufort Mayor Billy Keyserling, who has spoken against the practice and is concerned it could damage the environment and tourism. Two weeks ago, he spoke at a rally with representatives from the Coastal Conservation League, 

Conservation Voters of SC and the nonprofit group Oceana, which released a report opposing drilling in favor of wind farms as a potential economic booster.

"The president will do what the president will do, but I'm the mayor of Beaufort and I think this could put the coast at risk and it isn't worth the risk," he said of Tuesday's proposal.

The Hilton Head Island-Bluffton Chamber of Commerce has not taken a stance on offshore drilling, though spokesperson Charlie Clark said Tuesday's announcement would likely spark discussion at an upcoming government affairs committee meeting.

"We will continue to monitor the issue at the federal, state and local level," Clark said.

While drilling would likely not begin for more than a decade, seismic testing -- in which air guns are used to create sound pulses to search for oil deposits -- could start as early as this year. The U.S. Bureau of Offshore Energy Management is expected to open a swath of the Atlantic Coast from Delaware to central Florida for such testing.

Nine companies have filed geophysical and geological permits with the BOEM to test Atlantic waters.