Perspective: Oil industry respects gulf environment

I do not presume to speak for Texans, but I would imagine most of them are proud of their beaches. I would also suggest that the millions of people from the Midwest and other regions who flock to Texas beaches each year would not continue doing so if that state's beaches were in the condition described by reporter Craig Pittman (Is this in Florida's future? Aug. 12.)

Yes, some of Texas' waters are murky, but that has nothing to do with offshore oil and natural gas activity and very much to do with the millions of gallons of murky Mississippi River water flowing into the Gulf of Mexico every day. Much of that state's beach sands are brown, but that is the color they have always been. Unfortunately anyone willing to spend countless hours on any beach is bound to collect an assortment of debris from many sources. And small tar balls will from time to time wash onto beaches. Most of them, however, are the result of naturally occurring bottom seepage of crude oil, which the Department of Interior estimates is more than 25 times greater than all spillage from industry operations in the gulf.

The fact remains that exploration and production in the gulf is one of the most heavily regulated and closely monitored activities anywhere. The U.S. Coast Guard, the Minerals Management Service and the Occupational Health and Safety Administration, all conduct regular and unannounced inspections of all offshore facilities. U.S. operators participate in voluntary safety and environmental standards, in cooperation with the MMS and the Coast Guard. The result is that before a single drop of oil is removed from beneath the seabed, an offshore platform will have met some of the most rigorous environmental standards ever devised. The spill Pittman referred to from 21 years ago was by an operation of a foreign government with little similarity to a U.S.-regulated activity, then or now.

Cutting-edge technology allows platforms to extract more oil and natural gas in a safer manner. The exemplary safety record, even in the face of devastating hurricanes, has proved the success of these efforts.

The top priority of the thousands of men and women who work in the U.S. offshore industry is to ensure that offshore exploration and production are conducted in a safe and environmentally sensitive manner. Their efforts were recognized in a 1999 U.S. Department of Energy report ("Environmental Benefits of Advanced Oil and Gas Exploration and Production Technology"), which states clearly: "The U.S. oil and gas industry has integrated an environmental ethic into its business culture and operations."

In addition, oil and natural gas activity contributes heavily to land and water conservation efforts in the states. Between 1968 and 1999, Florida received $575-million in federal Land and Water Conservation Funds -- $203-million more than any other gulf state.

Our industry has an outstanding record for good stewardship of public lands and for operating in a safe and environmentally sensitive manner. No better proof of that can be found than in nature itself, in the hundreds of thousands of fish and other wildlife that thrive beneath and around those platforms.
-- David Mica, director, Florida Petroleum Council, Tallahassee

Stop the drilling

Re: Is this in Florida's future?.

I have written to the president, vice president, governor and a couple of senators about offshore drilling. No response.

My husband and I have traveled to beaches all over the United States and seen them deteriorate with offshore drilling. Galveston Island used to be a great get-away until oil was on shore: oily surfboards and feet. Santa Barbara and Santa Monica: disasters as far as oil.

Let's stop it before it's too late for our pristine Florida beaches.
-- Mary L. Dahmer, Redington Shores

Drilling's negative effects

Thank you for your recent story on the negative effects of offshore oil drilling on the environment. I have walked on Galveston Beach and have been saddened by the oil globs all over the shore and in the water. I also worry about oil leaks that cannot be stopped for almost a year, like the Ixtoc 1 leak in 1979.

It is a dim voice that promotes drilling in the light of these harsh facts. It still angers me to think of our governor proclaiming that oil drilling off our coast is somehow good news for Florida. I cannot help thinking he has always favored his brother's pro-oil position, but found it politically expedient to offer a "paper opposition."
-- Nick Glover, Odessa

Admit on academics

Re: Black UF freshman numbers plummet, Aug. 12.

The Times, in characteristic fashion, is quick to blame Jeb Bush's One Florida plan for the expected decline in enrollment of African-Americans in UF's freshman class for the coming year. However, if one would examine this situation with "realism" rather than "racism" in mind, these plummeting enrollment numbers are perfectly understandable.

As the article states, "the average SAT score for UF freshmen this year is almost 1,300" and "the average GPA for freshmen is a perfect 4.0." Contrast these statistics with the article Math test scores adding up, but racial disparities remain (Aug. 3), which reported that among high school seniors, nearly 70 percent of blacks scored below the basic standard in a test given last year known as the National Assessment of Educational Progress. Combine this with the fact that a disproportionately large number of young black men are either incarcerated or on parole and you've got to wonder just where the pool of academically eligible African-American students will come from.

The answer, as the Times seems to suggest, is to go back to the failed concept of admittance by affirmative action whereby race becomes at least as important as SAT scores and some of our best and brightest high school students are denied admission to what is probably the most prestigious school in Florida because they fail the "color" test!

Let's keep a level playing field and admit students based upon their academic talents and not on whether they are needed to satisfy an ill-conceived but politically correct quota system.
-- Bob Lindskog, Palm Harbor

No cause for criticism

Regarding the news story on the front page of the Aug. 12 Times, Black UF freshmen numbers plummet, there should be no reason for alarm. If the applicants scoring highest in high school performance and/or university admissions tests were chosen, there should be no cause for criticism. The best qualified students -- regardless of race, religion or ethnic roots -- should be chosen. To say any group needs special dispensation is to say that the group is inferior.

Down the road, we must see that our best students are outfitted for their superior roles in our society. We need the development of our best brains to safeguard our American way of life -- to keep us No. 1 in military strength, space, health, education, science and inventions, trade and finance.

The future of the United States hangs in the balance.
-- L.L. Hermann, Palm Harbor

The best opportunity

Re: Black UF freshmen numbers plummet, Aug. 12.

Our son is a recent high school graduate with a GPA of over 4.0. His transcript and high school activities led to receipt of an early decision admission letter from New York University. NYU is one of the top 50 national universities according to U.S. News.

The grandfather of this student grew up on a small farm in Chauncey, Ga. The grandfather and his 11 brothers and sisters were descendents of African slaves in America. They worked hard, maintained a positive attitude and recognized they could create greater opportunities for their descendents in America.

Our son attended suburban public schools in Hillsborough County for 11 years. He rubbed elbows with the kind of students who make up the majority at UF. He could have sought admission to UF along with them. In choosing to study in Manhattan, though, the son honored the efforts of his ancestors (and others) by seizing the best opportunity his education in Florida offered him.
-- Jason D. Mims, Valrico

No apology was due

It isn't often I agree with Mary Jo Melone, but I did agree with her Aug. 12 column The blur of color, a lack of facts hide truth, about the Progressive National Baptist Convention.

She was correct in saying that no apology was due. Hopefully the Marriott will have the good sense to not pay any reparations. That isn't due either.
-- Charles Farrell, St. Petersburg

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