Years after the BP oil spill, ‘we face another threat that is starting to really scare the entire community,’ one lawmaker said.

The Florida House unanimously approved a bipartisan proposal on Wednesday, April 16, that effectively bans oil drilling for 52 miles along the banks of the Apalachicola River. 

Now the bill (HB 1143) goes to the Senate, where a less stringent companion bill is ready for that full chamber to consider. With the legislative session set to end by May 2, it’s anybody’s guess whether a compromise will make it to the governor’s desk.

The House proposal by Rep. Jason Shoaf, R-Port St. Joe, and Rep. Allison Tant, D-Tallahassee, prohibits the Department of Environmental Protection from approving an oil and gas drilling permit within 10 miles of the state’s three National Estuarine Research Reserves (NERRs) – which includes the Apalachicola, Tolomato Mantanzas near St. Augustine, and Rookery Bay south of Naples.  

The Apalachicola NERR has some of the highest density of fish, reptiles, and amphibians in North America and takes in nearly half of the 107-mile-long river that empties into Apalachicola Bay. 

Shoaf introduced the bill by noting the upcoming 15th anniversary of the BP Gulf oil spill (April 20) that shut down Apalachicola Bay and devastated the coastal economy. 

“We’re still carrying scars from that 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. 

Last April, the Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) permitted an exploratory oil well in the Apalachicola floodplain for Clearwater Land and Minerals. The decision is currently under legal challenge, but Shoaf and Tant are moving to ensure the project never gets past the exploratory stage. 

If oil were to be found then Clearwater would have to seek a permit to pump oil from the ground. “That is a whole other process,” Shoaf explained. “This would block the next permit they would have to obtain before they could commercially drill for oil.”   

Earlier Wednesday, a Senate committee cleared a companion measure (SB 1300) for it to be considered by the full chamber.

The bill by Sen. Corey Simon, R-Tallahassee, lacks the House’s outright ban but does include a requirement for DEP to conduct a “balancing test” when considering drilling applications within one mile of rivers, lakes, and other water bodies.  

The test would weigh environmental and economic concerns against the potential loss expected from an oil spill or other accidents. 

When asked about the differences between the two bills, Simon said he will meet with Shoaf for a conversation “to work things out.” 

And Shoaf said he is willing to compromise – as long as it “achieves the goal to stop drilling.” 

James Call is a member of the USA TODAY NETWORK-Florida Capital Bureau. He can be reached at jcall@tallahassee.com and is on X as @CallTallahassee.