By Jim Heald and Charlie Justice
There is a threat that looms over Florida right now, one that could shut down our coastal businesses and jeopardize our national security preparedness. We are talking, of course, about dangerous and deadly oil spills. And these toxic oil spills can ruin economies and impact national security in the process.
Florida has been largely protected from offshore drilling due to its status as a major tourism destination and a unique place for military training and testing activities. But now the entire state is on the table for offshore drilling and the toxic oil spills that follow. That’s why we recently went to Washington, D.C., to ask our political leaders to leave Florida out of plans that are being developed behind closed doors.
Right now, the Trump administration’s Department of the Interior is drafting its new offshore drilling plan for the next five years, and every coast, sanctuary and beach in Florida is on the line at this initial stage. That includes thriving tourism hotspots, from Jacksonville to Tampa Bay, along with the areas that have been set aside for military training purposes to help strengthen the United States’ national security.
Congress protected a large swathe of Florida’s waters from offshore drilling through the 2006 Gulf of Mexico Energy Security Act. This area, called the Eastern Gulf Test and Training Range Complex, is larger than all other training ranges in the continental U.S. combined, and is one of the most strategic and important national security assets in the country.
When the provisions of the Military Mission Line were close to expiration, Florida’s entire coast was temporarily protected in 2020 by President Donald Trump, who issued a moratorium on oil and gas exploration off Sunshine State waters until June 30, 2032. Former President Joe Biden acted earlier this year to make this protection permanent.
Unfortunately, Florida’s coast is once again at risk for offshore oil drilling and spilling in the Interior Department’s potential five-year oil and gas plan.
The first comment period for this new oil and gas plan just ended, and there were close to 90,000 public comments, nearly all of which opposed the expansion of offshore drilling. Multiple cities in Florida passed resolutions and spoke up to urge the U.S. government to protect Florida’s coasts, and business and defense groups, including the Tampa Bay Beaches Chamber of Commerce and Defense Support Initiatives Committee, spoke up again for protection. There is a strong bipartisan tradition here in Florida to prevent offshore drilling expansion that continues to this day.
We cannot afford to be negligent when it comes to Florida’s thriving blue economy and important role in U.S. national security. We must continue to protect our coasts from offshore drilling and save our businesses, fisheries and the Eastern Gulf Test and Training Range — and all of our coastline — from the destruction expanded offshore drilling would unduly bring.
The best and most effective way to do that is by ensuring Florida’s current protections are made permanent and by rejecting any proposals that risk offshore drilling coming closer to our critical test range and beautiful shores.
Healthy, thriving coastlines are vital to millions of Floridians. Permanently protecting these waters from oil spills not only preserves the surrounding environment, it also safeguards our coastal economies and supports critical American jobs. In 2021, the tourism and recreation sector led all segments of the U.S. marine economy in growth, expanding by a whopping $49.8 billion. We can’t afford to put all this at risk for oil spills that will devastate our businesses and fisheries.
An analysis in the aftermath of the Deepwater Horizon oil spill, which did not even occur in Florida’s waters, found that this disaster cost our state more than $1 billion in visitor spending. This would skyrocket further if a spill happened in our own waters, not to mention potentially harming our military in the process.
That terrifying hypothetical could now become a new reality.
The Trump administration must uphold its own commitment and heed the overwhelming bipartisan call from our state to protect our coasts from expanded offshore drilling and leave Florida out of its proposed oil and gas plan. We must also work to pass the Florida Coastal Protection Act, a bipartisan bill introduced earlier this year in Congress that would permanently protect our waters by law from offshore drilling and spilling.
Protecting our coasts will permanently safeguard Florida’s cherished shorelines, preserving a vital way of life for the millions who visit the Sunshine State and those of us who proudly call it home.
Jim Heald, colonel, U.S. Air Force (retired), is a 26-year military veteran with multiple command positions at Eglin Air Force Base. Charlie Justice is CEO of the Tampa Bay Beaches Chamber of Commerce. This opinion piece was originally published by the Tampa Bay Times, which is a media partner of The Invading Sea. Banner photo: An offshore drilling platform at sunset in the Gulf (iStock image).
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