On March 5th, Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam served as a panelist at the Blue Planet Forum at Old Dominion University (ODU). The forum is an annual event by ODU and the Chesapeake Bay Foundation that seeks to educate and engage the public on environmental issues.

Gov. Northam and City Council member Andria McClellan on the panel.

Northam spoke on his opposition to offshore drilling, citing sustainable energy concerns and pointing to potential harm to military training, aquaculture, and tourism. He warned that increased fossil fuel usage will continue sea level rise that threatens Hampton Roads.

Also on the panel were Will Baker, Chesapeake Bay Foundation President, Andria McClellan of Norfolk City Council, Professor and President Emeritus of University of Maryland Center for Environmental Sciences Don Boesch, and chief executive officer of GoldKey PHR, Bruce Thompson.

About 200 people attended the forum, at which panelists also discussed ODU’s continued work with the Commonwealth Center for Recurrent Flooding Resiliency, a partnership with the Virginia Institute of Marine Science (VIMS) and the Virginia Coastal Policy Center at The College of William and Mary.