Republican presidential hopeful John McCain’s proposal to lift a ban on offshore drilling riled some Black Floridians this week, who argued that such a plan would do nothing to ease their current pain at the gas pump.
The proposal also brought an outcry from presidential hopeful Barack Obama and state Democrats. Florida Gov. Charlie Crist reversed his earlier stance on drilling off the Florida coastline and decided to side with McCain, who has said his energy plan would only have a “psychological impact’’ on Americans.
According to the Energy Information Administration (EIA),
drilling would have no impact on domestic crude oil and natural gas production until about 2030.
“It would be a relatively small effect, because it would take such a long time to bring those supplies on,” Guy Caruso, who heads the federal EIA, said Wednesday. “It doesn’t affect prices that much.”
Republicans push to lift drilling ban
The National Petroleum Council estimates that five billion barrels lie off Florida’s coast alone, while the Energy Information Administration suggests the number is closer to 16 billion barrels. Other estimates go as high as 21 billion barrels.
President Bush last week urged Congress to lift a decades-old ban on offshore oil drilling to reduce dependence on foreign imports and offset the high energy prices. McCain said states should be allowed to pursue energy exploration in waters near their coasts and get some of the royalty revenue.
Crist urged federal lawmakers last year to reject legislation, which they did, that would have allowed drilling as close as 45 miles off Florida’s beaches. He also supported the moratorium during his 2006 campaign for governor.
Pollution on both coasts?
The possible negative impact of offshore drilling on Florida’s marine industry and $65 billion in tourism is unknown since a 1981 congressional ban stops oil rigs within 125 miles of Florida’s coast. Its precious waters, a coastline of 1,197 statute miles and tidal shoreline of 2,276 statute miles, includes 663 miles of beaches and 11,000 miles of rivers, streams and waterways. Florida is home to the second largest area of fresh water in the U.S., Lake Okeechobee.
If the boundary for oil and gas drilling in the Gulf of Mexico moves within 125 miles of Florida, a broad swatch of beaches on both coasts would be at risk for pollution, oceanographers say.
Oil rigs in the eastern Gulf of Mexico would be affected by the powerful Loop Current, which circulates warm water from the Caribbean Sea up toward Louisiana, then sweeps it down through the Straits of Florida, around the Keys and up the Atlantic coast to join the Gulf Stream.
Pollution sucked into the Loop Current would flow south to the Florida Keys, then be pushed north along the state’s Atlantic coast.
“The beaches of Florida are like the mountains of Colorado. They are somewhat our defining feature, and anything that threatens to jeopardize those beaches raises great concerns,” said former Florida governor and U.S. senator Bob Graham, a Democrat.
Congresswoman: Big Oil benefits
“In an already tight economy, the last thing we need to do is endanger nearly one million jobs and the $65 billion tourism economy
,” said Congresswoman Corrine Brown, a Florida Democrat. “If he (Crist) is really concerned about Floridians, he wouldn’t support this risky proposal.”
Brown and the Florida Democratic congressional delegation issued a statement last week challenging Crist and McCain.
“Instead of calling for drilling just off th
e beaches of Florida, President Bush and Sen. McCain should join us in support of Democrats’ ‘Use It or Lose It’ legislation, which directs oil companies to use the 68 million already open acres before they build rigs just off our coastline.
“The oil companies have had every incentive to drill in these locations because they are not paying the royalties to American taxpayers, as they should. ‘Big Oil’ (major oil firms) interests have unfortunately been more important to this administration than the concerns of our neighbors. Now all Americans are paying the price.”
Giving Crist benefit of the doubt
High costs of gas and energy cause Hollywood resident Marilyn Ponte’s exasperation and frustration.
“I don’t know why they are even talking about offshore drilling as if that is going to help us. It won’t lower gas prices. That is what we need,” she told the Florida Courier.
But Rep. Darryl Rouson, a Democratic Florida state representative from St. Petersburg, wants to give Crist the benefit of the doubt.
“The governor has been a good governor when it comes to the environment and energy. I’m sure he made a considered and deliberate decision when he encouraged states’ rights with respect to offshore oil drilling,” Rouson told the Florida Courier.
“However, I will need more information before I can join him. My inclination is to preserve the status quo. The beaches and the tourism industry are critical to the Florida economy. We have to preserve our pristine beaches and protect our water and wildlife that thrive on our shores.”
‘Why not start now?’
Eric McDade of EKE Consultants and Environmental Professionals agrees with Crist.
“I think it’s a great idea. It’s hell of a lot better than begging foreign countries,” he told the Florida Courier. “The real issue is money. Who gets the money and who owns the particular rights to the oil they find? If I had any money, I would buy some of it myself. Why should we have to jump through hoops for us to survive when we have the resources right here?
But oil drilling itself is a toxic business. When rigs first drill into the ocean floor, the crews use fluids called “drilling muds” which include toxic substances including barium, chromium and arsenic. The Environmental Protection Agency found that such discharges into the eastern gulf would “introduce significant quantities of contaminants to these relatively pristine waters.”
“The areas they’re talking about drilling in aren’t where it is populated. Besides, they have a way to isolate where the runoff will go. Cofferdams are relatively new and they are expensive, but they encase the drill around the rig. Shoring outside the perimeter of where you’re drilling can go up to 500 square yards from the drill’s point of entry. It will take a minute, but why not start now?” McDade said.
One example: Exxon Valdez
The afteraffects of the 1989 Exxon Valdez oil spill into Alaska’s Prince William Sound are still being felt. The vessel spilled 10.8 million U.S. gallons of Prudhoe Bay crude oil into the sea, and the oil eventually covered 11,000 square miles of ocean. Then Exxon, now Exxon Mobil, was blamed for its slow cleanup response.
Almost 15 years after the spill, a team of scientists at the University of North Carolina found that the effects are lasting far longer than expected.
The team estimates some shoreline habitats may take up to 30 years to recover
. The region was a habitat for salmon, sea otters, seals, and seabirds.
“The Exxon Valdez is the horrific scene everyone pictures when they hear of offshore drilling. It is still fresh in people minds,” Miami Gardens resident Robert Ethan told the Florida Courier. “The amount of oil we can extract from offshore drilling can’t be refined to make gasoline because it isn’t the sweet crude they get from Saudi Arabia and we haven’t built any refineries to increase crude oil production in 30 years. We would be better off considering oil passé.”
Congresswoman Brown agrees. “Nearly 20 years after the Exxon Valdez oil spill we have yet to completely clean up Prince William Sound. Sometimes nature causes oil spills. Storms along the Gulf Coast in 2005 caused 124 oil spills in the waters of the Gulf of Mexico
.
“Hurricane Katrina caused a 233,000-gallon oil spill and Hurricane Rita worsened the damage with 508,000 gallons of oil spilled. Presently, cleanup methods for oil spills are incapable of removing more than a small fraction of the oil spilled,” she explained.
