Gas prices tempt Florida lawmakers to rethink drilling

Charlotte Sun
July 22, 2008
 
By NEIL HUGHES
Staff Writer

Fahrenheit $4: The price-per-gallon at which offshore oil drilling becomes a serious option in Florida.

In a well-publicized reversal, Gov. Charlie Crist recently announced his interest in offshore drilling to curb rising gas prices. It directly contradicts with his steadfast opposition to the practice held years ago.

But with gas prices at record highs, the governor has said he would support the currently-banned option in order to help lower gas prices. And with his endorsement, along with that of Republican presidential candidate John McCain, talk of offshore drilling in Florida has been heating up.

The option could be on the table for state officials if the federal government decides to repeal its longstanding moratorium that has blocked energy development over 80 percent of the country’s coastal waters.

State officials in Southwest Florida generally agree with Crist’s sentiment — as long as the drilling does not pose a threat to Florida’s environment.

“Some things that are apparently dangerous, with enough effort, can be done safely,” said Rep. Paige Kreegel, R-Punta Gorda, citing nuclear power plants as an example of potentially catastrophic power sources that operate safely.

That’s not to say anyone is particularly excited by the prospect of offshore drilling.

In fact, Rep. Michael Grant, R-Englewood, and Sen. Mike Bennett, RSarasota, would rather discuss alternative energy to reduce U.S. dependence on oil. In their eyes, the current oil prices are an opportunity for the country to focus its efforts.

“Why don’t we do the right thing right now, and let’s keep the pressure on to develop renewable sources so that we as a country can become independent of foreign oil?” said Bennett, who is chairman of the Florida Committee on Communications and Public Utilities.

The Florida senator criticized members of the federal government for what he said has been inaction in seeking renewable energy sources.

“If, in fact, the United States government were not addicted to oil money from the lobbyists, they would have taken us down the path of renewable a long time ago,” he said.

Bennett doesn’t have a problem with the act of drilling — he thinks it’s safe and could be done at a distance where it wouldn’t be an eyesore — but he opposes it because he would prefer the country put its efforts on alternatives.

He recalled great historical feats by Americans, such as putting a man on the moon, as evidence of collective American ambition at work.

“The Manhattan Project, they delivered that project in 18 months, because they delivered the best and the brightest,” Bennett said.

According to Libby Cheney, vice president, region support directorate for Shell exploration and production, it would take five to seven years to get an oil-drilling platform out in the Gulf. By Bennett’s logic, if Americans can put a man on the moon and invent the atomic bomb in that time, they can find a viable alternative to oil.

“You cannot tell me we cannot become independent of foreign oil in less time than it takes us to drill it and get it out there,” he said.

Grant, too, hopes the discussion remains on alternative energy rather than oil.

“At some point in time, you can’t be dependent on Saudi Arabia, Iraq or Iran for the energy you need,” Grant said, noting that increasing capacity will likely not reduce U.S. dependence on foreign oil.

Currently, nearly twothirds of the United States’ oil comes from foreign countries, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration.

For starters, he’d prefer drilling for gas before oil.

“If there’s any pollution involved with gas, I’m unaware of what it would be,” he said.

All three officials — Kreegel, Grant and Bennett — said they are concerned about the environmental effects of offshore oil drilling. But none expressed a belief that current drilling practices pose any threat to the environment.

Kreegel said he subscribes to the same newly-adopted rules as Crist: If oil drilling can be clean, safe, reliable and aesthetically pleasing, it’s OK with him.

He cited the existing oil fields in the Gulf of Mexico as a testament to the safety of the practice. “Hurricane Katrina passed over those oil fields,” Kreegel said. “How much oil was spilled from there? Zero, from what I know.”

The Associated Press contributed to this report.