Maryland will become part of a lawsuit by eight other states against seismic testing in the Atlantic Ocean for offshore exploration.
Governor Larry Hogan gave the okay to the suit and called the federal action misguided that could jeopardize the hard work to improve the state’s air and water quality.
The Salisbury Daily times reports that Hogan has authorized the Department of Natural Resources to move ahead with the suit.
Seismic testing uses air guns to look for oil and gas deposits along the coast.
Last month the federal government gave five companies to permit begin seismic testing.
The lawsuit claims that it violates a number of federal laws including the Marine Mammal Protection Act.
New Jersey Bans Drilling in State Waters
BELMAR, N.J. (AP) - New Jersey is expanding its attempt to prevent oil and natural gas drilling off its coast.
It already has enacted a law preventing drilling activities in state waters.
Now it has joined a multistate lawsuit aimed at reversing federal approval for underwater seismic testing that involves blasting the sea bed with sound waves.
Attorney General Gurbir Grewal says the idea is to prevent drilling from ever happening by blocking the first step in oil exploration - the sonic testing that looks for buried oil or gas deposits.
New Jersey joins Connecticut, Delaware, Maine, Massachusetts, New York, North Carolina and Virginia in their suit against sound testing.
