Gulf Drilling

[Seadog]

NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- The U.S. House of Representatives approved a controversial bill Thursday that opens up vast stretches of the U.S. coast to oil and gas drilling, paving the way for a reversal of a 25-year ban on energy exploration off a majority of the country's shoreline.

Congressional staffers say the bill will have a harder time in the Senate, which is currently considering a much more modest proposal.

The bipartisan bill, which passed by a 232 to 187 margin, will give individual states the right to allow drilling in the federal waters that extend from 3 to 100 miles off the coast and permanently open the federal waters between 100 and 200 from shore.

Currently, most drilling is allowed only in parts of the Gulf of Mexico.

The bill also provides states an incentive to open waters under their control, as it directs some royalties to state coffers. Currently all royalties from energy extraction in federal waters go to Washington.

The bill targets the natural gas rich Atlantic coast, the Pacific coast and portions of Alaska, and the west coast of Florida.

[Seadog]

oops, sorry had it in wrong forum, didn't see this one.

[John R]

folks, if you don't want to see platforms within sight of the horizon or you're worried about more spills happening due to increased numbers of platforms, i urge you to contact your senators and let them know how you feel about this issue. no action equals apathy, and many of our elected officials are hoping for just that.

jr

[Smiling JOe]

...and here (http://flsenate.gov/Legislators/index.cfm?Mode=District%20Information&Submenu=2&Tab=legislators)is where to find your Senator so you can email or write him/her.

[DD]

Don't let this happen to you.........

http://i49.photobucket.com/albums/f285/rgeorgeff/rig.jpg

I love Texas, but don't visit the coast because of THIS.:eek: Write!

[SoWalSally]

http://www.thepetitionsite.com/takeaction/932117819?ltl=1151761932

[DD]

An email I received from uncle in south louisiana:

"Don’t expect gas price to go down

Citgo spilled a half-million barrels of waste oil in the ship channel here

Citgo and Conoco refineries couldn’t get ships in

So they have a new excuse for high prices"

Plus, it's a big old mess. :bang:

[aquaticbiology]

i still miss hearing the drilling rig's whistle in the early morning hours on vacation back in the 70's

[30A Skunkape]

Please please please contact your senators and urge them to approve this bill. What nobody on this thread has even addressed yet is the fact that the bill will give Louisiana a much larger chunk of royalties from oil/gas drilling and refining that occur within our waters;the plan is to use these funds to both restore our wetlands (which in large part have been sliced, diced and washed away so the rest of the country can have petroleum) and help with levee construction. As it is now, Louisiana gets a shockingly small portion of $ considering the toll taken on our environment. It is the right thing to do;if we continue to take the largest environmental hit, we should at least have the chance to access the funds to fix the mess. If you don't want to see the rigs off the Florida coast, or whatever other coast you are concerned about, and don't want to bail out New Orleans after the next big hurricane, act now!

[SHELLY]

Write a letter to your senator, get in your SUV and drive the 1/2 block to the corner and deposit it in the mailbox--we can do this folks!

[goofer44]

Just a clarification. Since this bill was passed in the U.S. House of Representatives, don't you have to contact your U.S. Senator ? Not your state senator.

[BeachSteelers]

I repeat Vote the Incumbent Out. It's our only way for real democracy.Kill your local lobbist too.

[John R]

This week, Florida Senator Mel Martinez sided with the oil industry and their allies in Congress by announcing his support for a bill that will allow new oil and gas drilling in 8 million acres of the eastern Gulf of Mexico near Florida's shores. Senator Nelson has been a champion in the fight to protect Florida's coast from oil and gas drilling, but is under enormous pressure to cave in and support the Martinez drilling deal.

Please call Senator Nelson today at 202-224-5274 and tell him to continue to stand up and fight for Florida's coastline by rejecting the Martinez drilling bill.

Here's a sample message you can leave:
"My name is ____ and I live in ________. I'm calling to urge Senator Nelson to oppose the Martinez drilling bill."

To report your call, click here, or paste this link into your web browser. This is an important part of our work!

http://floridapirg.org/FL.asp?id=1688&id3=FL&id4=ES

Then, ask your family and friends to help by forwarding this message to them.


Background:

The oil lobby would like us to believe that after Katrina and Rita, we can drill our way out of our nation's energy problems. We're not buying it. Opening our shores to drilling would only put our beaches and coastal waters at great risk for a small, short-term supply of oil and gas. Routine drilling operations dump thousands of pounds of toxic chemicals into the marine environment and a catastrophic spill- one that could spoil the ecology and economic value of Florida beaches for generations-is a real possibility. We can do better.

For example, if our cars and trucks got an average of a couple more miles per gallon, we'd save more oil than exists off the entire coast of Florida. Yet federal gas mileage standards haven't significantly changed in 20 years. Instead of allowing oil companies to drill off our coast, Florida's Senators should be leading the fight in Washington for better gas mileage and clean energy. Unfortunately, Senator Martinez has voted against clean energy proposals, and announced his support for new drilling in the waters off Florida's coast instead.

The Martinez drilling bill will allow new oil and gas drilling in 8 million acres of the eastern Gulf of Mexico near Florida's shores, in an area the size of Maryland. It will also repeal parts of the moratorium against new drilling that has protected Florida's coast for more than 25 years. Senator Nelson has been a champion in the fight to protect Florida's coast from oil and gas drilling, but is under enormous pressure to cave in and support the Martinez drilling deal.

[John R]

^^ bumpage ^^

[John R]

this is happening this week. if you haven't called yet, please do so.

[Beachlover2]

John R

Thank you for posting this and doing your best to help the environment. I called last week and would not have done so without your reminder.

Thanks :clap_1: :clap_1:

[katie blue]

I'm a FL homeowner, but my primary residence is in GA. Anyone know if I qualify to make a call?

[John R]

I'm a FL homeowner, but my primary residence is in GA. Anyone know if I qualify to make a call?

sure, this concerns every citizen. you can use your fla zip code.

jr

[Beachlover2]

I used my FL zip code - they didn't even ask for my name spelling - just my zip code.

[John R]

The U.S. Senate will vote later this week on a bill to open eight million acres off of Florida's west coast to offshore drilling. The safety of our oceans, cleanliness of our beaches, and the health and lives of our marine wildlife are in danger!

Click HERE (http://ga3.org/campaign/OCSJuly2006/ikidi784r5bdb3d?) to write your Senators today to demand that they protect our coasts and urge them to work towards a clean energy future!

A few weeks ago we alerted you to a U.S. House bill that would do away with 25 years of crucial coastal protections and potentially allow widespread oil and gas drilling off our shores.

Despite strong and outspoken opposition from thousands of SOE activists like you, the House voted to pass this disastrous bill which was written by Big Oil's favorite Congressman, Representative Richard Pombo (R-CA).

Now our hopes lie with the Senate, which still has an opportunity to reject Big Oil’s attempt to open our coasts to drilling and to push for real solutions to our energy crisis – solutions that embrace innovative new energy-efficient technologies, cut pollution, and reduce our dependence on oil.

Our coasts and marine waters are destinations for thousands of vacationing families each year, sanctuary for fish and wildlife and a critical part of America's "sea to shining sea" natural heritage. They are the economic lifeblood for thousands of tourism and fishing communities, providing billions of dollars of economic activity and millions of jobs.

Oil and gas drilling would ruin our coasts and beaches. From 1990-1999, 1.8 million gallons of oil were spilled from offshore drilling platforms and pipelines in U.S. waters--an average of almost 500 gallons a day.

Additionally, each offshore operation produces 214,000 pounds of air pollutants each year, and tens of thousands of pounds of mercury have been dumped around Gulf oil rigs.

Click here to urge your Senators to vote NO on opening our precious coasts to drilling!

Once you’ve contacted your Senators, please click here to tell at least three friends, family members or co-workers about this urgent issue and encourage them to join you in contacting their Senators.

Thank you for your continued dedication to protecting our coasts and keeping our wildlife safe.

Sincerely,

Julie Waterman
Campaign Director, SaveOurEnvironment.org
info@saveourenvironment.org