Title: Drilling and Exploration Practices off the Florida Coast

Summary: Expressing the Senate's opposition to the Federal Government's interest in using harmful offshore oil and gas drilling and exploration practices off the Florida coast, etc.

Full Text:
WHEREAS, seismic airguns fire intense blasts of compressed air, one of the loudest manmade sounds in the ocean, every 10-12 seconds for days, weeks, or months on end, and WHEREAS, seismic airgun noise has been shown to harm and injure dolphins, whales, endangered sea turtles, fish, and other marine life, and WHEREAS, exploratory and commercial drilling and the extraction and transportation of offshore oil and gas resources pose significant risks of oil spills and chronic leakage to this state, and WHEREAS, eventual offshore drilling may require significant onshore infrastructure, such as pipelines or refineries, which would harm the character of the Florida coast, and WHEREAS, offshore drilling activities threaten this state s treasured vacation destinations along the Florida coast which are of intrinsic economic value to numerous industries, and such activities threaten the essential nursery habitats for recreational and commercially important fisheries and the natural buffers from storm surge and hurricanes which such areas provide, and WHEREAS, the Legislature recognizes that the tourism and fishing industries, which depend on a healthy and vibrant coastal environment, both serve as major economic drivers benefiting current and future residents, property owners, and visitors to this state, and WHEREAS, the Legislature endeavors to be a good steward of this state s environment and its resources, and WHEREAS, the exploration and development of oil and gas resources off the Florida coast will not effectively address the long-term energy needs of our country, and WHEREAS, the Legislature finds that it would be more economically and ecologically responsible to pursue nonpolluting sources of renewable energy, such as solar and wind, which pose less risk to the coastal environment and economic health, before using uncertain methods of seismic airgun blasting to explore and develop offshore oil and gas deposits, NOW, THEREFORE, Be It Resolved by the Senate of the State of Florida: That the Senate recognizes that offshore oil and gas drilling and exploration, including seismic airgun blasting, will put this state s environment, beaches, marine resources, and local economies at risk and expresses its opposition to the Federal Government s interest in pursuing such practices off the Florida coast.