Senate Committee Approves Oil, Gas Drilling Off Florida's Coast

By J.R. Pegg

WASHINGTON, DC, March 9, 2006 (ENS) - The Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources adopted legislation Wednesday that would open 2.9 million acres of the eastern Gulf of Mexico off the coast of Florida to oil and natural gas drilling.

The bill passed the committee by a vote of 16-5, but opponents said the fight was far from over.

"I understand where this train is going but I do look forward to an opportunity on the Senate floor to discuss this further," said Senator Mel Martinez, a Florida Republican.

Committee Chairman Pete Domenici, a New Mexico Republican and cosponsor of the bill, rebuffed concerns that the bill bans leasing within 100 miles of the Florida coast. Critics contend that the buffer is insufficient to protect the state's beaches from environmental harm.

"The risk to Florida is so minimal - if even existent - compared to the benefits," Domenici said.

The legislation specifically orders the Interior Department Secretary to open 2.9 million acres of a portion of the Gulf known as Area 181 within one year.

Domenici said the area opened by the bill holds an estimated six trillion cubic feet of natural gas - "enough to heat nearly six million homes for 16 years."

Gas production from the area is likely to come online within five years.

"This is the most significant American asset available that could reduce the price of natural gas or stabilize it," Domenici said. "It is so imminent and so large in quantity that it would have that effect."

The Bush administration is also pushing forward with efforts to open the area.

Satellite image shows the Eastern Gulf of Mexico. X marks the approximate location of Area 181. (Image courtesy NOAA)

Proponents note that Area 181 is not restricted under the federal moratorium that bars oil and gas development in some federal waters - it was originally approved for leasing under the Clinton administration.

"There is no moratorium on this property right now," Domenici said.

Martinez said the legislation does not offer Florida "any permanent protection," from additional oil and gas development and fails to address the consumption side of the energy equation.

"This bill does not provide for the National Environmental Policy Act to be complied with," Martinez said, "so we are going forward with this without any idea of what the environmental impact will be."

Martinez called on colleagues to support legislation that allows drilling in 1.2 million acres of the area and provides for a 150 mile buffer for Florida's coasts.

"We are not simply saying 'no,'" he said. "I would urge moderation."

The Florida Republican along with Senator Bill Nelson, a Florida Democrat, have warned they will move to block the Domenici bill on the Senate floor if it does not safeguard Florida's coasts.

Martinez was the lone Republican to oppose the measure.

Democrats Dianne Feinstein of California, Mary Landrieu of Louisiana, Ron Wyden of Oregon, and Robert Menendez of New Jersey also voted against the bill.

Landrieu, a proponent of increased drilling in the Gulf, said she could not support the bill without a provision that allows states to share in the profits from the lease sales.

The Gulf Coast states of Alabama, Louisiana, Mississippi and Texas have produced much of the nation's oil and gas, Landrieu said, but have not received their fair share of money from operations in federal waters.

Beach near Pensacola, Florida. Area 181 is approximately 100 miles from Pensacola. (Photo credit unknown)

The federal government could reap some $11.2 billion in royalties over the life of the lease in addition to another $1 billion from the initial lease sales.

"There is no way we can work out an allocation of resources from these royalties in this bill," Domenici told Landrieu before the vote. "We will work on that between the time the bill leaves here and when it comes up for a vote on the Senate floor."

Later on Wednesday Landrieu was announced as a cosponsor to a bill that would direct 50 percent of federal revenues from Area 181 to the Gulf Coast states.

The legislation, introduced Wednesday by Mississippi Republican Senators Thad Cochran and Trent Lot, excludes Florida because the state has a leasing moratorium on most of its coastline.

Lott said he plans to offer the bill as an amendment or substitute to Domenici's legislation.

Florida Governor Jeb Bush, the younger brother of the President, today said the bill to allow more drilling in the eastern Gulf is "troubling." The governor was credited in 2001 with blocking a federal plan to drill in 4.5 million acres of the Gulf.

Governor Bush told the "Herald Tribune" newspaper that he has been talking over the terms of the current drilling proposal with Senator Domenici. "If Congress acts, it may be in a way that will do harm to our coastline, and I'm looking forward to working with the senators and delegation on the bill," he said.

The governor said he favors the Nelson-Martinez bill with its 150 mile protective buffer, but said it is not likely to succeed in Congress.

A map of Area 181 can be found here: http://energy.senate.gov/public/_files/181Map.pdf