By William E. Gibson, Washington Bureau
7:20 p.m. EDT, March 16, 2011
WASHINGTON — To help prevent a potential oil spill from wrecking
Florida's environment, former U.S. Sen. Bob Graham urged federal
officials Wednesday to form a pact with Cuba and Mexico to enforce
safety standards and establish disaster-response plans for offshore
drilling.
Graham's warning reflects growing concerns about Cuban plans to drill
exploratory wells about 50 miles from the Florida Keys in the midst of
the Gulf Stream, which rushes along Florida's east coast.
"Potential sites are close enough to the United States that if an
accident like the Deepwater Horizon spill occurs, fisheries, coastal
tourism and other valuable U.S. natural resources could be put at great
risk," Graham and William Reilly, co-chairmen of a national commission
on offshore drilling, told the Senate Committee on Environment and
Public Works.
"This [drilling off Cuba] will be almost at the back door of the Florida
Keys," Graham added during a break in the committee hearing. "The Keys
would be the first in line; the east coast of Florida would be next. The
risk specific to Florida, and more broadly to the United States, is very
real."
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Graham, a Democrat from Miami Lakes who also served as Florida's
governor, said he and Reilly will meet with Mexican officials next month
to press for a regional agreement on drilling practices to guard against
another disaster.
"We think Mexico could be the interlocutor to work with Cuba to bring
them into this," Graham said. "This may take the form of a treaty or
some other formal agreement. Then we can take the next step, with Mexico
in the lead, to try to bring Cuba into standards and enforcement of
those standards."
Cuba has contracted with Repsol, a Spanish company, to drill exploratory
wells as early as this year. Respol, with long experience in offshore
operations, has asserted that it maintains the strictest safety measures.
Nevertheless, Florida environmentalists and members of Congress are
alarmed by the prospect of rigs so close to the state's shores,
especially near marine sanctuaries in the Keys. The Deepwater Horizon
spill south of Louisiana, which fouled the Gulf coast and ruined its
summer tourist season, dramatized the risks.
Florida leaders for many years struggled to maintain a federal ban on
drilling near the state's shores, though some Republicans more recently
have proposed expanded offshore production to generate jobs, raise
revenue and boost U.S. supplies of oil and natural gas.
A 2006 federal law set a no-drilling zone that extends at least 125
miles from Florida's west coast, and as much as 230 miles in some places.
The Cuban exploration would drill in the narrow Florida Straits only 50
miles from the fragile ecosystem of the Keys. The rigs would be directly
in the path of the Gulf Stream, a powerful current that carries water
alongside the South Florida beaches and up the Atlantic coast.
"If oil spilled from a well in the North Cuba Basin, it would coat
popular South Atlantic beaches like Miami and West Palm," U.S. Sen. Bill
Nelson, D-Fla., warned the Senate last month. "I am not prepared to take
chances with Florida's coral reefs and other marine life, nor with the
livelihood of millions of Floridians who depend on tourism for their
economic well-being."
Nelson introduced a bill that would require federal agencies to prepare
for a potential spill in Cuban waters. Under the bill, if a company
that's drilling near Cuba wants to lease drilling rights in U.S. waters,
it would be required to prove it has a spill-response plan for both
places. The bill also would require federal officials to recommend a
multinational agreement on ways to prevent and contain oil spills, much
like Graham's proposal.
Another bill introduced by U.S. Rep. Vern Buchanan, R-Sarasota, and 11
other Floridians would go further by authorizing U.S. officials to deny
drilling leases to companies that do business with any nation facing
trade sanctions, such as Cuba.
Though the United States and Cuba are adversaries with no formal
diplomatic relations, they do cooperate in several ways, including sea
rescues and weather warnings. Graham said that Mexico, which has closer
ties to Cuba and is also exploring oil ventures, could act as a liaison
for a regional agreement.
Graham plans to visit Mexico the first week of April to make his case,
and he hopes to visit Cuba to press the same concerns.
Members of the Senate committee indicated they want to carry out some of
the commission's recommendations.
"We know one thing: If oil is drilled, oil will be spilled," said Sen.
Frank Lautenberg, D-N.J. "We saw it in the worst of terms in the Gulf of
Mexico. We don't need to repeat that experience."
Wgibson@tribune.com, 202-824-8256
http://www.sun-sentinel.com/business/fl-oil-drilling-cuba-graham-20110316,0,5729293.story
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