PETROLEUM EXPLORATION OFFSHORE FROM NEW YORK.

A serious shortage of natural gas and low-sulfur fuel oil will probably develop within a few years in the United States if present trends continue unchanged. The area offshore from the eastern United States is a potential source for large amounts of petroleum and natural gas, and is one of the few areas remaining on this continent that is unexplored by drilling. The geology offshore from the eastern United States suggests that: areas with good potential for petroleum or natural gas deposits are more than 20 miles offshore except in southern Florida, hence Long Island Sound, Long Island, and a 20-mile strip south of Long Island are outside the areas with good potential; and geologic circumstances such as the special conditions that increased the danger of the oil spill in the Santa Barbara Channel probably are not present along the eastern seaboard. If petroleum deposits exist offshore from the eastern United States, their development and the delivery of petroleum to the eastern seaboard by pipeline may entail less risk of accidental spillage than supplying an equivalent amount by tanker.