Latest report of lingering BP spill impact on Florida panhandle – see pics at http://oilspill.skytruth.org/reports/view/203 – j

Large tar patties have been found along this stretch of beach for several weeks.This is near Topsail Park at Stallworth Lake outflow into the Gulf. Hoping to have dive teams assess this area soon.

Clean up crews have been reduced again and will only be on a certain beach once every week or two and respond to call-ins from NRC/Unified Command. Sad state of affairs for our beaches along 30-A. This is what happened last year, and why we have buried oil on nearly 30 miles of our shoreline.

This current oil has been initially tested with UV light and found to be heavily contaminated.
Extensive lab work has been ordered.

—
John Amos – President, SkyTruth
John@skytruth.org
P.O. Box 3283
Shepherdstown, WV 25443-3283
(o) 304.885.4581 (m) 304.260.8886
skype: skytruth.amos
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Special thanks to Richard Charter

http://www.tampabay.com/opinion/editorials/article1178335.ece

A Times Editorial
In Print: Sunday, July 3, 2011

Gov. Rick Scott and state Senate President Mike Haridopolos have short memories. They have forgotten about last year’s BP oil spill. They have forgotten about the millions of gallons of oil that spewed into the gulf, the dead wildlife and the soiled Panhandle beaches. They have forgotten about the financial strain it placed on residents and businesses hundreds of miles from any oil. Floridians need to remind the governor and the Senate president of the devastating impact of the nation’s greatest environmental disaster as the two foolishly open the door again to offshore drilling.

Haridopolos, a Republican candidate for the U.S. Senate, recently spoke about his quest for a comprehensive energy policy on a conference call hosted by the Florida chapter of the Consumer Energy Alliance. The alliance is a prodrilling group that features oil companies, major business groups – and deep pockets for political contributions. In the call, Haridopolos said he wants to explore all options, and he has asked for a report from the alliance by the end of the year. Don’t expect an objective assessment from that outfit. Yet in an interview last week, Haridopolos said he is keeping his pledge not to pursue authorizing oil drilling in state waters during next year’s legislative session. That should be a relief, except it sounds like someone trying not to upset either side on a clear-cut issue.

More disconcerting than Haridopolos’ maneuvering is Scott’s initial foray into energy policy. Scott reportedly said in a private meeting with energy interests last month that he wants to pursue renewable energy and get the Public Service Commission to cut energy efficiency standards for electric utilities. Cutting those efficiency standards would be the wrong direction, and even more misinformed is Scott’s goal to lower electric bills for business.

To save money by conserving and to pursue more environmentally sound renewable energy requires upfront investment. Executives with Progress Energy and other utilities have long said the amount of renewable energy options they can pursue is directly tied to how much more ratepayers are willing to spend to develop them. Even more alarming were signals by the governor’s policy director that Scott would be open to expanding oil drilling and embracing clean coal.

“What did the previous governor do?” asked Mary Anne Carter dismissively. “Kill six coal plants? We want them in the room.”

Fortunately, Carter left the governor’s staff last week and returned home to Tennessee. Any smart energy strategy that seeks to reduce carbon emissions and emphasize renewable energy will not include coal plants, which even the state’s electric utilities are not seeking to build any more. It will not include offshore oil drilling; the BP oil disaster has demonstrated the damage that can do to Florida’s environment and economy. And it most certainly will not result in immediately reducing electric rates for businesses.

Special thanks to Richard Charter

http://www.boemre.gov/ooc/press/2011/press0629a.htm

NEW ORLEANS – The Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, Regulation and Enforcement (BOEMRE) today released a Draft Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement (SEIS) for proposed oil and gas Lease Sale 216/222 in the Central Planning Area in the Gulf of Mexico. The draft SEIS updates the findings in several previously published environmental reviews covering the Gulf of Mexico and incorporates the latest available information following the Deepwater Horizon explosion and oil spill.
“The analyses contained in this draft SEIS will allow us to make objective, science-based decisions regarding offshore energy exploration, development and production,” said BOEMRE Director Michael R. Bromwich. “The public hearings on the draft SEIS we are announcing today are vehicles for gaining broad public input on the environmental effects of oil and gas operations in the Gulf of Mexico.”
The Draft SEIS is available online at: http://www.gomr.boemre.gov/PDFs/2011/2011-027.pdf
The bureau is accepting public comment before the document is finalized. The Federal Register notice announcing the Draft SEIS will be published July 1, 2011, at which time BOEMRE will begin accepting public comments at: http://boemre.gov/PublicComment.htm. Comments will be used to prepare the Final SEIS for the lease sale.
Lease Sales 216 and 222 are the last remaining sales scheduled for the Central Gulf Planning Area in the 2007 – 2012 Outer Continental Shelf Oil and Natural Gas Leasing Program. The sales were delayed due to the Deepwater Horizon tragedy and are being combined to maximize efficiency.
BOEMRE will hold public hearings in three cities to give interested parties an opportunity to comment on the draft SEIS. The meetings are scheduled as follows:
· New Orleans, La: Tuesday, August 2, 2011, BOEMRE, 1201 Elmwood Park Boulevard, New Orleans, LA 70123, beginning at 1:00 p.m. CDT.
· Houston, Texas: Tuesday, August 9, 2011, Houston Airport Marriott at George Bush Intercontinental, 18700 John F. Kennedy Boulevard, Houston, TX 77032, beginning at 1:00 p.m. CDT.
· Mobile, Ala: Thursday, August 11, 2011, Renaissance Mobile Riverview Plaza Hotel, 64 South Water Street, Mobile, AL 36602, beginning at 1:00 p.m. and 6:00 p.m. CDT.
Federal, state and local government agencies and other interested parties are requested to send their comments on the draft SEIS no later than August 16, 2011, by email to CPA Supplemental EIS@boemre.gov or by mail to: Comments on the CPA Lease Sale 216/222 Draft SEIS, Regional Supervisor, Leasing and Environment (MS 5410), Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, Regulation and Enforcement, Gulf of Mexico OCS Region, 1201 Elmwood Park Boulevard, New Orleans, LA 70123-2394.
Contact: BOEMRE Public Affairs

Special thanks to Richard Charter.