Huntington Beach oil spill could sway 2022 midterm voters

Congressional candidates and environmental advocates discuss how the recent Huntington Beach oil spill may affect the 2022 midterms. DANIEL PEARSON, Staff Photographer

Though the 2022 midterms remain over a year away, an Oct. 1 oil spill in Huntington Beach may stimulate conversation of environmental policy in this coming election. Amid investigation efforts by California’s Department of Justice into what caused the oil spill in Orange County, the incident has sparked a debate over the long-term impacts of offshore drilling.

Former Democratic Rep. Harley Rouda, who served the 48th congressional district from 2018 to 2020, will face off incumbent Rep. Michelle Steel — the Republican candidate to whom he narrowly lost against in the district’s previous election. Independent candidate Chris Balasinski has also joined the race, advocating against the practice of oil drilling. 

Rouda has openly criticized Steel’s pro-drilling stances. The former congressman spoke at a rally Oct. 12 for EnviroVoters, an environmental conservation organization. The event was held outside of Steel’s office in Huntington Beach. 

“While we work to clean the oil off our beaches, Michelle Steel still believes that offshore drilling is something to support,” Rouda said to the crowd. 

Rouda is hopeful the oil spill will serve as a wake up call for voters to vote for change in the midterms. 

“Our leaders must hold oil companies to account and stop catastrophes such as this from ever happening again,” Rouda said. “We need to stop offshore drilling and transition to clean energy before it’s too late.”

As investigators are considering a ship’s anchor to be a possible cause of the pipeline oil leak, Steel has introduced the Stopping Hazardous Incidents in the Pacific Act of 2021 (the SHIP Act). Steel’s press release on the bill points to recent reports that the oil pipe “may have also been struck several times by other ships’ anchors.” The SHIP Act would ban cargo ships from idling or anchoring in the coastal waters of Southern California for up to 180 days from the legislation’s passing. 

“It’s time to get the ports working again and get these ships moving and out of our waters,” Steel said in a statement on Twitter.

Congressman Sam Graves (R-MO) says he believes the Biden administration has not done enough to address the supply chain issues that have caused container ships to be congested offshore. 

“(The President) and his party’s leaders in Congress are exacerbating or ignoring the underlying supply chain issues,” Graves said in an Oct. 13 statement. 

The bill has its skeptics, as ports in Los Angeles and Long beach are responsible for around 40% of containerized cargo imports in the United States each year. The Marine Exchange reports there are 80 ships currently at anchor or at drift areas in the ports. 

California State Senator Dave Min, a Democrat from the 37th district, believes that while a cargo ship may have caused this oil spill, banning ships will not stop future spills. Instead, Min said he is proposing a bill that would ban both new and existing oil infrastructure in state waters.

“(The SHIP Act) is a distraction,” Min told The Panther. “The only way to stop the spilling is to stop the drilling.”

However, Min said he does anticipate pushback from his colleagues saying that many are afraid to voice opposition against the fossil fuel companies. Min added he is confident to go forward with the bill, because of the support he knows it will get from voters. 

“The economics are clear here; our coastal economy — our beaches — are so precious, and they’re also so valuable,” Min said.

Many local businesses on the Orange County coast were forced to temporarily close due to the oil spill. 

Florida Reps. Republican Vern Buchannan (FL-16) and Democrat Kathy Castor (FL-14) have been leading a bipartisan effort to ban oil drilling through the reintroduction of the Florida Coastal Protection Act. The legislation, which would permanently ban drilling off Florida’s coastlines, was originally filed during the last congressional session but did not get a vote. Bills like this grow increasingly crucial, since President Obama’s 2016 executive order banning new oil and gas drilling in federal waters will expire next year.