SAN DIEGO (NEWS 8) - Pumped to push back on plans promoting offshore drilling, many packed Mission Beach Saturday for the Hands Across the Sand event organized by Oceana.
“We're really happy to see the crowd here today. Everybody coming out together to join hands across up and down the coast,” said Brady Bradshaw with Oceana Southern California.
The Trump administration proposes to vastly expand offshore drilling near California for the first time in more than three decades.
"California has a very stringent, clean energy plan in place and San Diego has a mandated enforceable climate action plan,” explained Stephanie Corkran who lives in San Diego. “It just doesn't make sense to do this at this point in human history.”
But oil insiders say "responsible drilling would boost jobs and bring in billions of dollars, helping the U.S. achieve global energy dominance.”
“There are more jobs in clean energy than there are in coal energy and it's crazy that the Trump administration wants to double down on the 20th century and not invest in the 21st century,” said Todd Gloria a California Assemblymember for District 78.
There will be one public comment opportunity for all Californians to talk on the topic and that will be Thursday, February 8 at the State Capitol in Sacramento.
"Without this effort today, San Diegans might not heard on this issue,” continued Gloria.
At one point during the rally, the crowd linked arms and then laid down in order to spell out "no oil" in the sand.
Organizers of Saturday’s event encouraged supporters to act now by texting OCEAN to 5-2-8-8-6.
