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Martinez, Nelson craft gulf drilling deal

The senators from opposing parties come up with a plan that they hope will keep oil rigs far from Florida's coast.

By WES ALLISON
Published February 1, 2006

WASHINGTON - Alarmed by recent attempts to encourage oil and gas drilling off Florida's Gulf Coast, the state's U.S. senators are pushing for broader and permanent protection.

If it wins congressional approval, a bill crafted by Republican Sen. Mel Martinez and Democratic Sen. Bill Nelson would keep oil rigs as far as 260 miles off Florida's west coast. That's far more protection than any of the other drilling deals recently debated in Congress.

As part of the deal, oil companies would get access to a now-closed but long-sought section of sea bottom that experts believe is rich in natural gas.

Drilling is forbidden in most of the eastern Gulf of Mexico thanks to a hodgepodge of two-decade-old federal bans, but they begin to expire next year. And oil-friendly forces in Congress, buoyed by rising energy prices, are pushing several plans to allow offshore drilling as close as 20 miles from land.

The senators' proposal is ground-breaking because neither Nelson nor Martinez has ever shown any willingness to dicker on drilling. If approved, the bill would end the yearly scramble by Florida lawmakers to stop gas and oil exploration in the gulf.

Martinez and Nelson have scheduled a news conference for this morning. According to a draft obtained by the St. Petersburg Times, the bill would ban drilling east of the U.S. military's training area in the gulf, some 260 miles off Tampa Bay and 150 miles off the Panhandle.

A no-drilling buffer of 150 miles also would surround the state's southern and eastern shores.

In exchange, oil companies could seek permits to drill in the south-central section of Lease-Sale Area 181, a boxy chunk of gulf real estate about the size of Vermont. Companies with existing drilling rights within the new boundaries would be compensated.

Nelson and Martinez have been shopping the plan to environmentalists and fellow Florida lawmakers in recent days, and the pair met last week at Martinez's Orlando home to finalize details.

Nelson, who lives in the same neighborhood, confirmed last week that he jogged over to Martinez's house to discuss a bill - "He served me Gatorade" - but he refused to provide details.

A spokeswoman for Martinez also declined to comment.

On Tuesday, Martinez's and Nelson's staffs briefed aides to at least eight U.S. House members from Florida, including Mike Bilirakis, R-Tarpon Springs; Debbie Wasserman Schultz, D-Broward County; Clay Shaw, R-Fort Lauderdale; and Jim Davis, D-Tampa, a leading drilling opponent who is running for governor and who has opposed past compromises.

Attendees said the bill was generally well-received, though some aides were upset they weren't told about it sooner.

Davis also spoke with Nelson on Tuesday evening. He said the bill sounds promising, but he wanted to review it this morning before deciding to back it. If he finds it agreeable, Davis said, he will call Rep. Jeff Miller, a Panhandle Republican, about co-sponsoring a companion bill in the House.

"Any time two United States senators in different parties get together and say something is good for the state, that is very powerful," Davis said. "But I need to read the details."

Miller's spokesman, Dan McFaul, said Miller and Nelson also spoke Tuesday. It is similar to a last-minute deal proposed in the House in November, he said, but Miller also wants more details. "We're glad they're moving in this direction."

Representatives from several environmental groups, including the Sierra Club, the Florida Public Interest Research Group and the League of Conservation Voters, also met recently at the Defenders of Wildlife office in downtown Washington to review a draft of the plan.

The reception was positive, attendees said. Mark Ferrulo, director of Florida PIRG in Tallahassee, which has been fighting drilling for more than 20 years, said his organization plans to back the bill.

"This legislation represents a laundry list of protections we've long fought for. It actually expands our current areas that would be protected, and makes it permanent," Ferrulo said.

Specifically, the deal would protect the so-called "stovepipe" section of Area 181, just 20 miles off Pensacola, and block exploration in the eastern part of Area 181, which oil companies have been eyeing.

Area 181 totals about 6-million acres. The Bush administration opened 2-million acres to drilling in 2001, and federal prohibitions on drilling in the rest start to expire next year.

Nelson's and Martinez's bill would protect the 3.2-million acres of Area 181 closest to shore, while allowing drilling in about 800,000 acres, according to a draft.

"There's never been any compromise or legislation that's ever talked about giving protections for those areas," Ferrulo said.

But passing the bill will mean aligning some difficult political parts:

It needs the blessing of the Bush administration and congressional leaders, which have close ties to the oil industry. They include Sen. Pete Domenici, R-N.M., chairman of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee, who favors more offshore energy production and who has sparred with Nelson over protections for Florida's coast.

It would mark a significant political victory for Nelson, who is up for re-election this year. Republican leaders may not want to hand that victory to him. Martinez would benefit, too, but he's not up for re-election until 2010.

House Resources Chairman Richard Pombo, R-Calif., who negotiated with Floridians over a deal last year, prefers a measure that would address offshore drilling nationwide, spokeswoman Jennifer Zuccarelli said. "There are members from California, Democratic members, who are up in arms about this, because it doesn't address the Pacific."

Meanwhile, rising energy prices have increased pressure to boost domestic oil and gas production, and several bills to ease long-standing restrictions have been introduced.

One that would allow gas exploration within 20 miles of shore now has 120 sponsors in the House. And last month, the U.S. Department of Interior drew tentative new Gulf of Mexico boundaries that could put waters off Florida under the control of Louisiana, which supports offshore drilling.

"I don't think this bill is going to mean all the other bad bills are going to be dropped by the oil industry and their allies," Ferrulo said, "but we're going to be on the offensive this session instead of always playing defense."

Wes Allison can be reached at 202 463-0577 or allison@sptimes.com

[Last modified February 1, 2006, 01:04:14]