De Gullah/Geechee Celebrate Another Environmental Victory! NO Seismic Guns and Offshore Drilling!

Gullah/Geechee Nation ♦ October 2, 2020 ♦ Leave a comment

De Gullah/Geechee Nation da beat drum fa disya! Queen Quet, Chieftess of the Gullah/Geechee Nation and Founder of the Gullah/Geechee Sea Island Coalition (www.GullahGeechee.net) has worked with Oceana, #StoptheDrill, SODA, and numerous United States and South Carolina elected officials for years in a stand against offshore drilling. The Gullah/Geechee Fishing Association (www.GullahGeecheeFishing.net) was party in a lawsuit to prevent the use of seismic guns in the Atlantic Ocean due to the harassment to the creatures in the ocean and the devastation that would come to Gullah/Geechee fisheries that they rely on for subsistence. They successfully worked with partners to prevent offshore drilling in the Atlantic under US President Obama’s administration, but the current US administration attempt to overturn the ban. Today, the Gullah/Geechee Sea Island Coalition received the outstanding news that there will NOT be any seismic gun testing in the Atlantic Ocean.

Seismic gun testing is the precursor to offshore drilling. A status conference on seismic litigation revealed today the industry will not pursue efforts to employ seismic blasting to search the Atlantic Ocean for offshore petroleum deposits this year, and possibly for several years. The hearing marked a victory for dozens of organizations and thousands of coastal communities and businesses in a years-long legal and public battle challenging the government’s issuance of Incidental Harassment Authorizations, or IHAs. Those authorizations were needed because the air-gun bombardment of the sea floor would have hurt ocean animals, including the critically endangered North Atlantic right whale. The developments included: 

• Recognition by government attorneys that the IHAs would expire on Nov. 30, and there was no mechanism to extend them.
• Acknowledgment that seeking new permits would move the lengthy process back to square one.
• A concession from lawyers representing the seismic industry that it is not feasible to launch boats this year.

 “This is a huge victory not just for us but for every coastal community that loudly and persistently protested the possibility of seismic blasting,” said Catherine Wannamaker, a senior attorney at the Southern Environmental Law Center. The South Carolina Environmental Law Center (SCELP) which is a member of the Gullah/Geechee Sustainability Think Tank filed the suit on behalf of the Gullah/Geechee. Members of the Think Tank salute Catherine for her words: “There will be no boats in the water this year, and because this resets the clock, there will be no boats in the water for a long time. And we’ll continue fighting to keep it that way.” The Gullah/Geechee Nation‘s leaders and organizations will be at the ready if the fight continues. For now, bring out the drums! E shoutin time pun de shore!

Tenk GAWD fa disya!