William Luther: “I am from Minnesota, a State with a proud heritage of protecting our natural resources for future generations. In fact…”

“I am from Minnesota, a State with a proud heritage of protecting our natural resources for future generations. In fact, in the late 1980s, Minnesota took part in enacting a multi-State ban on oil and gas drilling in the waters of the Great Lakes. Yet, today, discussion persists about drilling in this pristine area, particularly directional or slant drilling, is what is being discussed. Since 1979, the seven existing directionally drilled wells have produced enough energy to cover less than a half day of our Nation's consumption. Think about this: risking the Nation's largest supply of fresh water for a few hours of consumption. As a Nation, we must not fall back into the old way of doing things in this country. We will never get balance in our energy policies if we continue to debate drilling in our Nation's most pristine areas. I urge this Congress to have the vision to develop new approaches to energy policy in this country. I urge Members to consider the ramifications, before risking this resource for a few hours of energy consumption. Let us give our children and their children the splendor of the Great Lakes coastline.”