Latest news with #BPDeepwaterHorizon
Yahoo
16-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Oil drilling ban along Apalachicola River passes unanimously in Florida House
North Florida beaches including this one at Grayton Beach State Park were among those threatened by the BP/Deepwater Horizon oil spill that polluted the Gulf of Mexico in 2010. (Via Florida State Parks) Amid growing concerns over a plan to drill for oil and gas near the Apalachicola River, a proposal by two North Florida lawmakers to ban oil exploration and drilling in that region passed unanimously in the Florida House on Wednesday. The bill (HB 1143) is sponsored by Republican Jason Shoaf and Democrat Allison Tant. It would ban the drilling, exploration, or production of oil, gas, or other petroleum products within 10 miles of a national estuarine research reserve. There are three such reserves in Florida — the Apalachicola in North Florida, the Guana Tolomato Matanzas in Ponta Verde Beach, and Rookery Bay in Naples. The bill sponsors have said that their legislation is a response to a decision last December by the Florida Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) to permit an exploratory oil well near the Apalachicola River in Calhoun County. 'When this oil drilling initiative was announced in our press, my entire community, all of North Florida, went on fire,' said Tant. 'It was an organic response by people here in this area who just were devastated by this possibility.' Shoaf noted that Sunday marks the 15th anniversary of the BP Deepwater Horizon oil spill, an event that led to miles of oiled beaches in the Florida Panhandle. 'During the oil spill, just the threat of oil coming to our area completely crippled our economy and now we face another threat that is starting to really scare the entire community,' Shoaf said on the House floor. Pinellas County Democratic Rep. Lindsay Cross also noted the anniversary of the BP oil spill, which lasted for 87 days and was the largest marine oil spill in U.S. history, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. 'In just a few days, we will remember the 11 men who were killed during that tragedy and the horrific impact to our natural areas, our wildlife, and also to our economy here in the state of Florida,' she said. 'Despite being hundreds of miles away, tourism in the Tampa Bay area plummeted, and I know that in places in the Panhandle with oil washing onto the shores, this was a real threat.' The bill calls for the DEP to conduct a 'balancing test' when a permit application is submitted. The test must include the community's conditions, hydrological connections, uniqueness, location, fish and wildlife use, time lag, and the potential cost of restoration in case of an explosion, blowout, or spill. The bill has one significant difference with its Senate companion, sponsored by North Florida Republican Corey Simon (SB 1300). That measure does not include language about banning development within 10 miles of a reserve. SUPPORT: YOU MAKE OUR WORK POSSIBLE
Yahoo
26-03-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Rep. Lauren Boebert hints Trump administration is working to rename DC the ‘District of America'
Rep. Lauren Boebert has hinted that the Trump administration is working behind the scenes on a plan to rename Washington, D.C., the 'District of America.' 'I would caution my colleagues on the other side of the aisle to refrain from making fun of the 'Gulf of America' because next up, you know it may end up being the 'District of America' that we're working on,' Boebert told lawmakers during a Water, Fisheries and Wildlife Subcommittee hearing Tuesday in response to jibes from opposition members. 'So just, you know, keep the jokes at bay, and maybe we'll just stick with the Gulf of America for now.' President Donald Trump took bold action on his first day in office after he signed an executive bill that ordered the renaming of the Gulf of Mexico as the 'Gulf of America.' Earlier on in the hearing, Rep. Jared Huffman, a California Democrat, brought up the contentious issue of renaming the water basin. He began by stating: 'Now, back to the Gulf of America. Stephen Colbert proposed this as a joke in 2010, and it's important to remember what was going on at the time – what led to the joke.' Huffman went on to explain that the late-night show host first made the 'Gulf of America' suggestion in relation to the catastrophic BP Deepwater Horizon spill in the Gulf of Mexico in 2010. The roughly 4.9-million-barrel spill caused widespread environmental devastation in the Gulf region, claimed 11 lives, and devasted the coastal economy. 'Colbert used the name change as a gimmick to raise awareness of the disaster. It dragged on for five months – something our Republican friends seem to have forgotten about as they advance to a dirty drilling agenda,' Huffman continued. 'My entire career has been centered around natural resources,' Huffman told reporters in December 2024 upon being re-elected. Boebert, a MAGA loyalist who has made a determined effort to advance President Trump's agenda – including his 'Drill Baby Drill' pledge and the suggestion to place Trump's face on a $100 bill. According to her manifesto on energy, she supports the development of 'all domestic energy sources, including hydropower, nuclear, oil, natural gas, geothermal, and renewables.' While she claims to want 'clean air and clean water,' she recognizes the need for 'recreation opportunities and good-paying jobs.' In 2022, Boebert brazenly entered a State of the Union address draped in a shawl emblazoned with Trump's 'Drill Baby Drill' pledge. Huffman was vocally critical during the meeting of the 'chaotic government takeover' under Trump and Musk and did not hesitate to call out the renaming of the Gulf. Boebert chided opposing lawmakers, telling them to 'keep the jokes at bay, and maybe we'll just stick with the 'Gulf of America for now.' The hearing was held to discuss several contentious environmental issues, including the 1973 Endangered Species Act. 'It is weirdly appropriate that they are taking what started out as a joke and actually moving it forward as part of their 'Drill Baby Drill' agenda and unfortunately that means the joke is on us', Huffman rebuked. He also slated DOGE's recent flurry of federal cuts on environmental staff, claiming that Fish and Wildlife 'had lost almost 50 percent of their team,' including biologists and scientists, because of Musk's pillaging. According to the National Wildlife Refuge System, roughly 370 U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service employees were axed in mid-February in the wake of DOGE federal cuts. 'These firings, which disproportionately target biologists and natural resource professionals, are a direct attack on science-based conservation and the future of America's wildlife,' the organization wrote at the time.
The Independent
26-03-2025
- Politics
- The Independent
Rep. Lauren Boebert hints Trump administration is working to rename DC the ‘District of America'
Rep. Lauren Boebert has hinted that the Trump administration is working behind the scenes on a plan to rename Washington, D.C., the 'District of America.' 'I would caution my colleagues on the other side of the aisle to refrain from making fun of the 'Gulf of America' because next up, you know it may end up being the 'District of America' that we're working on,' Boebert told lawmakers during a Water, Fisheries and Wildlife Subcommittee hearing Tuesday in response to jibes from opposition members. 'So just, you know, keep the jokes at bay, and maybe we'll just stick with the Gulf of America for now.' President Donald Trump took bold action on his first day in office after he signed an executive bill that ordered the renaming of the Gulf of Mexico as the 'Gulf of America.' Earlier on in the hearing, Rep. Jared Huffman, a California Democrat, brought up the contentious issue of renaming the water basin. He began by stating: 'Now, back to the Gulf of America. Stephen Colbert proposed this as a joke in 2010, and it's important to remember what was going on at the time – what led to the joke.' Huffman went on to explain that the late-night show host first made the 'Gulf of America' suggestion in relation to the catastrophic BP Deepwater Horizon spill in the Gulf of Mexico in 2010. The roughly 4.9-million-barrel spill caused widespread environmental devastation in the Gulf region, claimed 11 lives, and devasted the coastal economy. 'Colbert used the name change as a gimmick to raise awareness of the disaster. It dragged on for five months – something our Republican friends seem to have forgotten about as they advance to a dirty drilling agenda,' Huffman continued. 'My entire career has been centered around natural resources,' Huffman told reporters in December 2024 upon being re-elected. Boebert, a MAGA loyalist who has made a determined effort to advance President Trump's agenda – including his 'Drill Baby Drill' pledge and the suggestion to place Trump's face on a $100 bill. According to her manifesto on energy, she supports the development of 'all domestic energy sources, including hydropower, nuclear, oil, natural gas, geothermal, and renewables.' While she claims to want 'clean air and clean water,' she recognizes the need for 'recreation opportunities and good-paying jobs.' In 2022, Boebert brazenly entered a State of the Union address draped in a shawl emblazoned with Trump's 'Drill Baby Drill' pledge. Huffman was vocally critical during the meeting of the 'chaotic government takeover' under Trump and Musk and did not hesitate to call out the renaming of the Gulf. Boebert chided opposing lawmakers, telling them to 'keep the jokes at bay, and maybe we'll just stick with the 'Gulf of America for now.' The hearing was held to discuss several contentious environmental issues, including the 1973 Endangered Species Act. 'It is weirdly appropriate that they are taking what started out as a joke and actually moving it forward as part of their 'Drill Baby Drill' agenda and unfortunately that means the joke is on us', Huffman rebuked. He also slated DOGE's recent flurry of federal cuts on environmental staff, claiming that Fish and Wildlife 'had lost almost 50 percent of their team,' including biologists and scientists, because of Musk's pillaging. According to the National Wildlife Refuge System, roughly 370 U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service employees were axed in mid-February in the wake of DOGE federal cuts. 'These firings, which disproportionately target biologists and natural resource professionals, are a direct attack on science-based conservation and the future of America's wildlife,' the organization wrote at the time.
Yahoo
09-02-2025
- Climate
- Yahoo
Tar balls make sticky mess on Palm Beach beaches during busy weekend
The weather this weekend was perfect for a trip to the sun-kissed shoreline of Palm Beach. But beachgoers faced a viscous mess that started Saturday: Tar balls, accumulations of a sticky black material, dotting the coast. The U.S. Coast Guard reported the tar balls in a post on X, the social media platform formerly called Twitter, on Saturday. Coast Guard crews surveyed the Atlantic shoreline from Palm Beach to Port Everglades and did not find the source of the tar balls, the agency said Saturday. In a Sunday morning update, the Coast Guard said conditions were the same "if not improved" from the previous day. While the tar balls are "a nuisance mess," they are not dangerous and Palm Beach's beaches are open, said Craig Pollock, the town's chief lifeguard. Tar balls were reported at Midtown Beach and Phipps Ocean Park, he said. It's been years since tar balls washed up in Palm Beach, Pollock said. "I can't even remember the last time we had tar balls wash up on the beaches," he noted. According to Palm Beach Daily News archives, the most recent sightings may have been in 2010, following the BP Deepwater Horizon oil spill. Decades ago, it happened so frequently that one lifeguard was nicknamed "Tar Toes" who was known to carry a kit to help beachgoers clean their feet, Pollock said. "It would get all over your clothes, your feet, your shoes, your surfboard," he said. Lifeguards noted the tar balls' presence on the condition boards at the town's beaches, Pollock said. For people who are visiting or new to Palm Beach: "They're probably in total shock from it," he added. To clean the tacky gelatinous blobs off of skin, clothes or shoes, Pollock suggested using Vaseline or baby oil and a rag or paper towels. Tar balls are clumps of oil that form a mass around debris in the water, according to the Florida Department of Environmental Protection. "The source is generally believed to originate from offshore petroleum production, drilling, and marine transportation discharges, which includes vessels pumping bilges and tank cleaning," the DEP said. "However, natural seepage from the ocean floor is also considered a source." To report a pollution spill, the Coast Guard said to call the National Response Center at 800-424-8802. The tar balls were seen along beaches south of Palm Beach, including in Lake Worth Beach and Boynton Beach, according to multiple news reports. In Broward County, some beaches in Fort Lauderdale were temporarily closed Saturday because of the tar balls, Fort Lauderdale Fire Rescue said on social media. The agency posted an update Sunday morning that while people going to the beach should watch for jellyfish, the beaches were open with no reports of "tar balls or oily substance today." Aside from the tar balls, beach conditions this weekend were ideal for visitors, Pollock said. There was a light chop and seas were at 1 to 2 feet, he said. Kristina Webb is a reporter for Palm Beach Daily News, part of the USA TODAY Florida Network. You can reach her at kwebb@ Subscribe today to support our journalism. This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Daily News: Tar balls make sticky mess on Palm Beach beaches during busy weekend
