A Florida Senate committee supports changes to oil drilling permitting

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Amid a battle about a plan for oil and gas drilling in Northwest Florida, a Senate committee Thursday approved a bill that would set new guidelines for permitting such projects. The Senate Agriculture, Environment and General Government Appropriations Committee unanimously backed the proposal (SB 300), filed by Sen. Corey Simon, R-Tallahassee. The bill would require the Florida Department of Environmental Protection to use a “balancing test” when considering proposed drilling permits within one mile of rivers, lakes and other water bodies. “This balancing test should assess the potential impact of an accident or a blowout on the natural resources of such bodies of water and shore areas, including ecological functions and any water quality impacts,” the bill says. “The balancing test must consider the ecological community’s current condition, hydrologic connection, uniqueness, location, fish and wildlife use, time lag and the potential costs of restoration.” The bill was filed after the Department of Environmental Protection last year approved a draft permit for a Louisiana-based company to drill an exploratory well in Calhoun County. A challenge to the draft permit is pending at the state Division of Administrative Hearings, as environmentalists argue the project threatens the Apalachicola River and Apalachicola Bay. Simon’s district includes the region. A House version (HB 1143), sponsored by Rep. Jason Shoaf, R-Port St. Joe, is ready to go to the full House, though it has some differences from the Senate bill.