Close call for Florida’s beaches

Florida Legislature slows down the rush to drill

This fall, Environment Florida, our allies in the green community, coastal cities and Chambers of Commerce teamed up to stop the Florida Legislature from handing our world-famous coastline over to oil companies during a special legislative session.

“The legacy of toxic pollution and oil spills from Gulf drilling shows us oil and healthy beaches do not mix,” said Environment Florida’s Adam Rivera. “Environmentalists and businesses are coming together to oppose drilling before beaches close and tourists leave.”

Pushing past the oil lobbyists

Oil lobbyists claimed advanced practices would safeguard our coastal environment and promised new undersea technology would prevent rigs from being a visual blight to beachgoers or coastal homeowners.

But the American Petroleum Institute, one of the oil industry’s most powerful trade groups, admitted, “There is no such thing as an invisible oil rig.”

And on Aug. 21, a state-of-the-art rig, touted by lobbyists as “the future of oil and gas exploration,” ruptured, causing a massive oil spill. The rig leaked for 73 days, spilling more than 9 million gallons of oil off Australia’s pristine Kimberly coastline into one of the ocean’s busiest migratory routes.

Environment Florida and the Sierra Club released a report, “Oceans under the Gun,” finding that clean, sustainably enjoyed beaches are worth more than three times to Florida’s economy than what drilling would produce.

Next steps for our beaches

 In the face of false industry claims and pressure from environmentalists and coastal businesses, pro-drilling legislators halted the push to pass drilling. Florida Senate President Jeff Atwater called on a nonpartisan panel to take as much time as needed to review drilling proposals in an unbiased, science-based manner before looking at any legislation.

“Careful deliberation about what’s at stake for Florida’s coastline is slowly replacing the rush to drill,” said Rivera. “We’re confident the facts will show that keeping protections for our beautiful beaches is the right thing to do.”