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Call To "Drill, Baby, Drill" Misleads Nation, Threatens Florida

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The Tampa Tribune

Published: September 7, 2008

It's the standard pitch of used-car salesmen: "Hurry! Decide now! This deal won't last!" Close the deal quickly, the car man knows, so customers won't compare prices or consider alternatives.

Rushed decisions rarely turn out well, something Americans, especially Floridians, should keep in mind as they consider the chant at last week's Republican National Convention: Drill, Baby, Drill.

Drill, baby, drill won't lead this nation to energy independence or lower gas prices. And if not carefully approached, offshore drilling could be the ruin of Florida's tourist-based economy.

Americans no longer swallow strong-armed tactics at car lots. Neither should drill, baby, drill define the framework for developing a comprehensive energy policy that requires compromises all around.

Where We Stand

Long-time readers of this page know the Tribune has long stood against drilling off Florida's coast. For all its progress in cleaning up operations, the oil industry remains a dirty business, one that involves massive amounts of muds and toxic metals that pollute air and water. Transport and storage pose even greater risks. Accidents happen. Spills occur. You can bet on it.

If the world's best beaches start looking like some of those in Texas, where oil rigs dot the horizon and oil globules gum the sand, tourist dollars that have kept Florida from imposing an income tax could dry up.

Nevertheless, two years ago, this page supported the compromise that opened more Gulf of Mexico acreage to drilling - beyond 125 miles out.

Off the coast of Tampa Bay, the buffer extends 235 miles out to accommodate military flight training, though Defense Secretary Robert Gates has agreed to consider flight-plan alterations.

Similarly, it may be appropriate to reconfigure the boundaries for oil excavation, but additional offshore drilling should be considered only as part of a comprehensive energy policy that lessens the nation's dependence on foreign oil and fossil fuels in general.

And it should retain strong protections for the coast.

World Demand Driving Price

It is worth noting that after President Bush opened more than 8 million acres in the gulf - and 26 million acres of public land - to oil excavation, gas prices didn't drop.

For one thing, more than four-fifths of the acreage available for excavation has not been drilled.

For another, oil is a lucrative global commodity. Multinational companies that buy the rights to American oil and natural gas deposits sell their products on the world market. Given the trend line in global demand, drill, baby, drill would likely afford little relief at American pumps.

Offshore drilling may give rise to a catchy political slogan, but it misleads people into thinking there is an easy substitute for ending our nation's dependence on foreign oil.

Drilling Only Part Of Answer

Though we have opposed drilling off the coast, this page has supported the construction of clean-coal power plants and a second nuclear plant in Crystal River, despite Congress' failure to find a solution for the disposal of nuclear waste.

We've also supported the governor's push for renewable and alternative energy sources, including wind turbines. The siting of windmill farms will surely create debate, though, since Florida's winds are strongest along the coast.

But we remain critical of Bush for failing to develop a comprehensive energy policy, for refusing to set standards that would lower our dependence on foreign oil and for pooh-poohing a call for conservation.

Because of high gas prices, the Washington Post reports that American motorists drove 12.2 billion fewer miles this June, wiping out five years worth of growth in demand. But conservation doesn't easily lend itself to a chant.

Still, while important, conservation is only part of the answer. We cannot conserve our way out of this dependency, which, as oilman T. Boone Pickens has so effectively communicated, is causing an enormous transfer of wealth from America to the Middle East, where a number of fat-pursed dictators don't especially like us.

Both presidential candidates, Republican John McCain and Democrat Barack Obama, endorse the development of new energy sources. Obama has signaled he would support additional offshore drilling if it's included in a comprehensive energy policy. McCain, who had previously opposed offshore drilling, is pushing to open protected areas quickly. Republican vice president candidate Sarah Palin told a cheering crowd last week, "The fact that drilling won't solve every problem is no excuse to do nothing at all."

McCain and Palin should understand that the choice is not between drilling and doing nothing. The choice is between hurtling forward with a drill-baby-drill frenzy or developing a responsible strategy that balances the risks and benefits - and sets a moon-shot goal for weaning America from foreign fuel.

Florida Gov. Charlie Crist has done little to advance the debate. After years of standing against offshore drilling, he jumped on the drilling bandwagon as soon as McCain did. Later he said he supports additional drilling only if it is "far enough, safe enough and clean enough," but he's made no effort to define what that means.

Compromise On Reasoned Risks

Florida should be willing to contribute to a comprehensive effort that helps the nation transition to clean energy sources. While allowing rigs close to shore should be unthinkable, it's worth considering the cost-benefit ratio for allowing rigs, say, 75 miles out.

But the Sunshine State cannot afford to gamble its coast for a half-hearted energy policy that will further fuel the nation's oil addiction.

What's needed is not an angry chant, but a careful and objective look at the risks and benefits.

Crist should take a cue from California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, who stands strong against constructing oil rigs in the sunsets of coastal states.

"Anyone who tells you this will lower our gas prices anytime soon is blowing smoke," Schwarzenegger said at a climate-change summit in Miami.

"If everyone in the country took the simple step of making sure they had correct air pressure in their tires, their gasoline costs would go down 4 percent. America's oil consumption would drop by 800,000 barrels a day. That is twice the amount some experts have said we would get if we pumped all of our known offshore reserves."

Proper tire inflation has been pooh-poohed by those who seek to drill, baby, drill.

But a comprehensive plan for securing this country's future must include consumer behavior, conservation and probably a few tweaks in the boundaries for offshore drilling.

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