Regional leaders back New England offshore drilling ban

PROVIDENCE, R.I. (WLNE) — Rhode Island Senator Sheldon Whitehouse and Congressman Seth Magaziner are leading a bipartisan group of New England delegates to ban offshore drilling along the coast of New England.

Leaders like Maine Senators Susan Collins and Angus King, the entire Rhode Island Congressional Delegation, and Massachusetts senators have backed the New England Coastal Protection Act.

The leaders wrote in their release, ocean and coastal industries, like tourism, fishing, and recreation, generate more than $17.5 billion in New England annually, and drilling off the shore would cut into that livelihood.