Defenders' Experts
Offshore Drilling in the U.S.
There are more than 7,500 active offshore oil and gas drilling leases in the United States. These major industrial facilities have tremendous impacts on the ocean floor, water and air quality, and fragile marine ecosystems. A crisis such as an oil spill can wreak havoc on coastal wildlife habitat, destroying critical wetlands, estuaries and beaches.
Disaster in the Gulf
On April 20, 2010, catastrophe struck the Gulf of Mexico with the explosion and sinking of BP's Deepwater Horizon oil rig, which killed 11 crew members and left many others injured. And the environmental destruction is only beginning.
Get the Latest News on the Defenders Blog
Visit the blog regularly to stay up to date on what's happening in the Gulf. You'll find the latest scientific reports, eyewitness video accounts and analysis of the continuing disaster.
Recent Entries
How Offshore Drilling Harms Wildlife
Offshore drilling poses serious threats to a wide range of species, including sea turtles, brown pelicans, dolphins, sperm whales, bluefin tuna, coral reefs and more.
Read our fact sheets to see how an oil spill, like the current tragedy in the Gulf, impacts critical species and their habitats.
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