We're Crabby About Drilling

Last updated
We're Crabby About Drilling
Formation2018
Membership
40+
Founder
Judy Droitcour

We're Crabby About Drilling is an advocacy group formed by citizens living on Oak Island, North Carolina, focused on preventing off-shore drilling and seismic testing. Known locally as the "Oak Island Crabbies" the group is opposed to the federal government's proposed plan for ocean drilling and seismic blasting in the Cape Fear littoral as set forth in the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) Draft Proposed Program for 2019-2104. [1]

Contents

History

Proposed Offshore Drilling Areas Proposed Offshore Drilling Areas.jpg
Proposed Offshore Drilling Areas

In 2014, Kure Beach, North Carolina, a small town in New Hanover County immediately north of Brunswick County, became one of the first municipalities to oppose off shore drilling in the Atlantic Ocean. [2] Since then more than 130 municipalities, six governors and an alliance representing over 41,000 businesses and 500,000 fishing families have united in their opposition to offshore oil and gas drilling and/or exploration in the Atlantic. [3] We're Crabby About Drilling was formed in 2018 to join this organized opposition to seismic testing and offshore drilling.

Organization

We're Crabby About Drilling consists of roughly 40 volunteers, most of whom are retirees with some prior experience in their various areas of responsibility. Meetings are held as needed to coordinate activities and bring members up to speed on current/expected developments.

Activities

Crabby Against Drilling Booth-Earth Day 2019 Crabby Against Drilling-Earth Day 2019.png
Crabby Against Drilling Booth-Earth Day 2019

The group's efforts are currently focused on Brunswick Country ocean front communities (Southport, Bald Head Island, Caswell Beach. Oak Island, Holden Beach, Ocean Isle and Sunset Beach) with a goal to have these municipalities pass resolutions opposing both seismic testing and offshore drilling [4] and also join in as amici curiae to a law suit filed by the Southern Environmental Law Center and various other entities in South Carolina to prevent the BOEM from approving seismic testing. [5] Concurrent with this activity, efforts to educate the citizenry about seismic testing and offshore drilling include manning an information booth at the annual Earth Day event [6] and sponsoring a film screening that same month at the Oak Recreation Center focused on off-shore drilling concerns. [7] In May 2019 the group supported the "Hands Across The Sand" event [8] with a "get out the crowd" appeal.

Hands Across the Sand-Oak Island (2019).jpg
Hands Across The Sand–Oak Island NC gathering on May 18, 2019

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Brunswick County, North Carolina</span> County in North Carolina, United States

Brunswick County is a county located in the U.S. state of North Carolina. It is the southernmost county in the state. As of the 2020 census, the population was 136,693. Its population was only 73,143 in 2000, making it one of the fastest-growing counties in the state. With a nominal growth rate of approximately 47% in ten years, much of the growth is centered in the eastern section of the county in the suburbs of Wilmington such as Leland, Belville and Southport. The county seat is Bolivia, which at a population of around 150 people is among the least populous county seats in the state.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Caswell Beach, North Carolina</span> Town in North Carolina, United States

Caswell Beach is a small seaside town located on the Atlantic Ocean at the mouth of the Cape Fear River in Southeastern North Carolina, United States. Occupying the eastern part of Oak Island in Brunswick County, its population was listed at 395 in the 2020 census. Prominent features include the Civil War era Fort Caswell, the Oak Island Lighthouse co-located with the Oak Island Coast Guard Station, and the Oak Island Golf Club, the sole business in town and one of the few eighteen-hole courses located on a North Carolina barrier island. Along with the Town of Oak Island which occupies the central and west parts of the island, Caswell Beach is part of the Wilmington, NC Metropolitan Statistical Area.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Oak Island, North Carolina</span> Town in North Carolina, United States

Oak Island is a seaside town located in the southeastern corner of North Carolina, United States. Part of Brunswick County, the major portion of the town is on Oak Island which it shares with Caswell Beach. Founded in 1999 as the result of the consolidation of two existing towns, Oak Island's main industry is tourism. Per the 2020 census, the town has a permanent population of 8,396 while its summer population is near 50,000. It along with the town of Caswell Beach is part of the Wilmington, NC, Metropolitan Statistical Area.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Oak Island (North Carolina)</span>

Oak Island is located on the Atlantic Ocean coast in Brunswick County, North Carolina near the South Carolina border. A barrier island, it contains the towns of Oak Island and Caswell Beach, Fort Caswell and the Oak Island Coast Guard Station which is co-located with the Oak Island Lighthouse. Almost 13 miles long, the island averages about one mile wide. Approximately 7000 people live on it year-round, a number which can balloon to over 40,000 during the summer

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Pleasure Island is a coastal barrier island in Southeastern North Carolina, United States, just south of the City of Wilmington. Pleasure Island is located within Federal Point Township, in New Hanover County. The coastal resort towns of Carolina Beach and Kure Beach, as well as the annexed communities of Wilmington Beach and Hanby Beach are located on the island. The southern end of Pleasure Island was separated from Bald Head Island by Corncake Inlet until the inlet was shoaled and closed in 1998 by Hurricane Bonnie; thus Pleasure Island and Bald Head Island are no longer separate islands.

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References

  1. "BOEM Seismic Testing Plan". BOEM.gov. Retrieved 2019-04-03.
  2. "Kure Beach Flashpoint". Oceana.org. 31 August 2017. Retrieved 2019-04-03.
  3. "Protecting the Atlantic Coast". BAPAC.org. Retrieved 2019-04-03.
  4. "Seismic Surveys". NCCF.org. Retrieved 2019-04-05.
  5. "SELC Lawsuit". SELC.org. Retrieved 2018-04-03.
  6. "Earth Day Festival". NCCoast.org. Retrieved 2019-04-03.
  7. "Sea Stories Film Festival". CoastalReview.org. 18 March 2019. Retrieved 2019-04-03.
  8. "Hands Across The Sand". HandsAcrossTheSand.org. Retrieved 2019-04-03.