April 3, 2025 By Doug Alderson
The Florida Legislature has jumped into the fray concerning oil drilling in the Apalachicola Basin with the filing of two bills, HB 1143 By Representatives Jason Shoaf and Allison Tant in the House and SB 1300 by Senator Corey Simon in the Senate. The House bill would prohibit drilling within ten miles of any National Estuarine Sanctuary in Florida, affecting not only the Apalachicola River and Bay but Rookery Bay in southwest Florida and the Guana-Tolomato-Matanzas Reserve near St. Augustine. The Senate bill specifies factors that DEP must consider when evaluating a permit, but it lacks an outright ban or buffer zone.
During the House hearing, Representative Shoaf specifically asked that persons who would be economically affected by an oil spill speak before the committee. These included oyster farmers and fishing captains. “The bay is the lifeblood of thousands of residents and visitors,” said Hunter Levine of the Captain’s Collective Podcast. “If this place doesn’t qualify for strong protection, I don’t know what would.”
Members of the committee also had strong words. “Energy security is important, but food security is important, too,” said Representative Dean Black of Jacksonville. “This bill achieves that balance.”
Representative Allison Tant of Tallahassee, one of the bill’s sponsors, concluded, “We have special natural resources not found anywhere else. Those of us who are natives of this state know how vital it is to protect these resources.”
Representative Shoaf, who is in the natural gas business, said the mere threat of oil from the BP oil spill shut down businesses all along the Forgotten Coast. “That’s why I filed this bill,” he said. Both sponsors cited the widespread “organic movement” of opposition that occurred when DEP approved Clearwater’s exploratory drilling permit last spring.
Both bills unanimously passed their first committee assignments on Thursday, March 25th. The only testimony in opposition to the House bill came from Eric Hamilton of the American Petroleum Institute. He stated that the House bill would impinge upon existing mineral rights.
Each bill has additional committee stops before reaching the floors of their respective houses. Obviously, Apalachicola Riverkeeper, working closely with the nonprofit Downriver Project, would like to see the Senate bill adopt the language of the stronger House bill. If the bills are different when passing the House and Senate, the differences are worked out in a conference committee. So, several more hurdles still lay ahead before the scheduled end of session on May 2nd.