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Broxson Offers Support For Fracking Bill As It Gains House Favor
December 3, 2015
House Republicans continued moving forward Wednesday with a bill that would create a new regulatory structure for oil and natural-gas drilling in Florida, with most of the attention focused on the controversial practice known as “fracking.” In a 9-3 party-line vote, the House Agriculture & Natural Resources Appropriations Subcommittee approved the measure.
The bill, which passed another House subcommittee last month, has drawn opposition from environmentalists and some local governments. Cities and counties are concerned about part of the bill that would give regulatory authority about oil and gas drilling to the state, effectively taking power away from local governments.
Rodrigues told the House panel Wednesday that sponsors have been negotiating with the Florida Association of Counties and the Florida League of Cities about the issue, which is known as state “preemption” of local authority. As they did during the meeting last month, environmentalists and other opponents argued, in part, that fracking could pose dangers to Florida’s water and create health risks.
“Passing this bill would effectively lay out a welcome mat for the fracking industry,” said Rep. Jose Javier Rodriguez, a Miami Democrat who voted against the bill.
But Rep. Doug Broxson, R-Gulf Breeze, said oil and gas drilling have long taken place in Northwest Florida’s Santa Rosa County and that the bill’s critics are not from there. “The good people of Santa Rosa County are very proud to say that we’ve done our part in adding back to this country domestic production that has saved the lives of men and women who have had to go across the ocean to protect our quality of life,” Broxson said. “And I’m proud to say that we’ve done our part and hopefully Florida will do its part in the future to keep our economy strong.”
The bill needs to clear the House State Affairs Committee before it could go to the full House during the 2016 legislative session, which starts Jan. 12. A Senate version has not been heard in committees.
by The News Service of Florida
Comments
12 Responses to “Broxson Offers Support For Fracking Bill As It Gains House Favor”
Why would we risk polluting the largest aquafur in North America?
REGARDING:
“I lived in a state that contaminated it’s water and the rate of cancer is MUCH higher there”
Presumably, not due to fracking since most fracking took place since President Obama took office and few are even suspected of contaminating the water supply. We have Superfund sites all over the country from wood treatment, dumping of toxic wastes on the ground or leaking tanks (and the recent massive release of wastes due to an EPA official’s boo-boo).
Some soils are naturally dangerous due to native rocks with arsenic, lead, mercury, uranium and suchlike.
And there are states which use surface waters as both water supply and wastewater disposal. The water in New Orleans has already gone into and out of several sewage systems ere it goes into their babies’ formula. (Yummy!)
David for recycling
REGARDING:
“The water table here in Florida is higher than in some other states”
When fracking is done, it is not done in the fresh water strata but in the hydrocarbon bearing strata, often several miles down and separated from fresh water by those several miles of impermeable rock. (If they weren’t impermeable, the hydrocarbons would have leaked out long ago, like they are doing at the Labrea Tar Pits.)
It probably has been done in shallower strata and reached the surface, but that doesn’t mean it has to.
And sometimes people blame fracking for things which were already that way. Louis L’Amour mentioned in one of his westerns that there were canyons with slow natural gas leaks which would occasionally build up and catch fire briefly.
Today, we would probably blame fracking.
David for discernment
REGARDING:
“Fracking in Florida’s porous limestone would be an environmental and geological disaster.”
More importantly, unnecessary.
Limestone is already fractured.
David for geology
REGARDING:
“please someone tell me what fracking has to do with our military being deployed to protect our way of life ”
The idea is that energy produced domestically is energy we didn’t have to get from the Middle East and whose supply and distribution don’t have to be protected in order to keep the lights on in the schools and hospitals and the ambulances, fire trucks and police cars able to move.
Fracking increases domestic production and we can ignore Middle East wars.
David for defunding terrorists
please someone tell me what fracking has to do with our military being deployed to protect our way of life if you want to comtaminate our water so big oil and OTHER PEOPLE can make money then vote for it i wonder if broxson is in someones back pocket
A few years ago the fracking began around my home town in West Virginia. It was welcome at the time as there were no jobs in the area. After a period of time opinions quickly changed,. I was talking to a friend, she said she was getting a glass of water and when she turned on the faucet “BROWN WATER” with a strong odor came out!!!
Nuff said.
Fracking in Florida’s porous limestone would be an environmental and geological disaster.
No Fracking.
Don’t speak for me Doug Broxson. I live in Santa Rosa County Florida and I do not support your plan of polluting our ground water to line the pockets of politicians.
I would hope they have consulted with mining engineers and knowledgeable people before they pass this bill. The water table here in Florida is higher than in some other states and could very easily become contaminated if not handled properly. I lived in a state that contaminated it’s water and the rate of cancer is MUCH higher there as well as the fact that you have to drink bottled water and never drink the tap water. Once contaminated it can’t be fixed.
As much as it would be good for the oil biz, which I am all for 100%, this will never fly in Florida. If they were never allowed to drill off the coast of Florida how do they expect to do something like this on land? I mean, to inject, with superhigh pressure, drilling fluids composed of God knows what, straight into the ground…
I just don’t see it happening. I saw a documentary on this with people lighting their tap water taps up like a torch, I think the title was “Gas” or similar. Never say never though, I guess.