Opponents of offshore drilling will join hands in Rehoboth Beach Saturday to take a stand against the Trump administration’s proposal to open up Delaware’s coast to oil and gas exploration.
Those who are participating in the national movement, called "Hands Across the Sand", will join hands on the beach and stand in silence for 15 minutes. Kevin Chandler, the chair of the Delaware chapter of the Surfrider Foundation, says there’s a clear message environmentalists want to send:
“Protect our ocean and protect our most valuable resource along Delmarva,” Chandler said.
Chandler says the threat of an oil spill from offshore drilling is far too big a risk to take for such a little amount of oil – eight days-worth of oil for Delaware, according to an economic analysis from environmental group Oceana.
“A major spill like the Deepwater Horizon [spill], for example, would have a devastating impact economic-wise, environmentally-wise with migratory animals…” Chandler said.
“Hands Across the Sand” was started eight years ago by the Surfrider Foundation USA after the Gulf of Mexico BP oil spill.
This year’s event starts at 11:30 a.m. on Saturday, May 19 on Wilmington Avenue in Rehoboth Beach. There is a chance of rain, but Chandler said they’ll stand against offshore drilling rain or shine. Last year, about 14 volunteers came to the event at Delaware Seashore State Park in the pouring rain.
“It really kind of showed peoples’ tenacity, integrity – a valuable key point to stand out in front of a downpour for just a few minutes,” Chandler said.
For this year’s movement, more than 80 people have checked off the “going” button the event’s Facebook page and close to 800 have listed themselves as “interested”.
“Should be pretty interesting,” Chandler said.
The Surfrider Foundation started "Hands Across the Sand" eight years ago after the Gulf of Mexico BP oil spill and members of the Delaware chapter have been participating in the movement since.
This year, other environmental groups like the Marine Education Research and Rehabilitation Institute and Delaware Sierra Club are joining the platform, determined to protect Delaware’s coast.
"Hands Across the Sand" starts at 11:30 a.m. Saturday, May 19 on Wilmington Avenue in Rehoboth Beach.
