from the Florida Today Yesterday
Our views: Drilling for answers
Florida Today, 10/28/2009
Forum today will explore move to OK oil drilling off Florida's Gulf coast
To drill or not to drill, that's the big -- and very controversial -- question.
And it's a question that needs the most rigorous examination, because ending the more than two-decade ban on drilling for oil off Florida's Gulf coast would have major, long-term ramifications for our state.
The battle lines are drawn:
The oil companies and their supporters in the Legislature are pulling out the stops to approve drilling within 10 miles of the coast, saying it would create thousands of jobs and pump billions of dollars into Florida's bone-dry budget.
Opponents say it would put the state's environment and beach-dependent tourism industry at risk from spills and other drilling-related pollution, and the oil industry's job and money claims are overblown.
They'll meet for debate tonight in a forum at Florida State University in Tallahassee co-sponsored by the college and Gannett's four newspapers in Florida, including FLORIDA TODAY.
The 7-9 p.m. session will be Webcast live on floridatoday.com. Brevard residents can e-mail their questions to
FlaForum@tallahassee.com for consideration by panelists, who will represent drilling proponents and detractors.
State Sen. Mike Haridopolos, the Merritt Island Republican and incoming Florida Senate president, will be among those on the panel. He's sponsoring the pro-drilling measure in the Senate, and during a recent meeting with FLORIDA TODAY's editorial board promised an exhaustive review of the issue.
That's good because anything else is unacceptable.
Name the oilmen
Some of what Haridopolos said worried us, especially his answer to a question about the secretive group of oilmen financing the drilling push.
Haridopolos said he didn'tknow who they were and insisted it shouldn't matter.
Actually, it matters a greatdeal, because our state's irreplaceable natural resourcesare at stake.
The public has a right to know their identities. Open government demands it to prevent oil companies with deep pockets from cutting deals behind closed doors.
If Haridopolos truly means what he says about complete transparency on the drilling issue, as the prime Senate sponsor of the bill, he should find out at once who they are and publicly name names.
Meanwhile, we can all become better informed about potential benefits and risks of drilling by listening to both sides present their views tonight.
Key GOP defections
Several key Republican lawmakers in the Senate are bucking their party and oppose drilling, according to the St. Petersburg Times.
They include current Senate President Jeff Atwater, who says he's not convinced Floridians want drilling and that it's not among his priorities for the 2010 session.
Four other GOP senators say they won't vote to approve it: Sens. Victor Crist, R-Tampa; Dennis Jones, R-Seminole; Paula Dockery, R-Lakeland; and Durell Peaden, R-Crestview.
"Once you ruin those pristine beaches, they're ruined forever," Peaden told the Times about the risk from spills. He went on to blast the out-of-state oilmen as "shysters" promoting a "shell game" at the expense of Florida's tourism economy.
That view received support recently. Top scientists at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration have issued a strong warning against drilling in the Arctic, Atlantic seaboard and Gulf of Mexico in a new report obtained by the Chicago Tribune.
They say it would have a negative impact on marine life, commercial and recreational fisheries and other resources in the ocean. They recommended excluding large tracts in those areas from the federal government's draft offshore leasing plan for 2010-15.
The scientists also criticized the Interior Department's assessment of the dangers from oil spills, saying they're "understated and generally not supported or referenced."
Significantly, Mike Sole, secretary of Florida's Department of Environmental Protection, questioned the oil companies' promise that drilling would bring $2.25 billion a year into the state's budget during testimony last week before a House committee.
He said Alabama receives $50 million to $300 million annually from oil royalties and taxes and Texas takes in about $45 million a year. Florida would need a lot more than that to even consider risking the state's $65-billion-a- year tourism industry to the devastating impacts of an oil spill.
Ignore scare tactics
The oil companies have responded with scare tactics.
Florida Energy Associates, the industry's lobbying arm, released a video that says if Floridians don't support drilling and its supposed fiscal windfall, they might face a sales tax hike or state income tax.
That's not going to happen.
Conservative Republicans control the Legislature and most view raising the sales tax as a non-starter -- especially when they're up for re-election next year. To them, an income tax is even more unpalatable.
All of this and more should be on the table during tonight's Florida State forum.
Tune in.