An administrative law judge ruled Monday that the Florida Department of Environmental Protection should reject a permit allowing oil drilling in the Apalachicola River floodplain in Calhoun County.
Judge Lawrence Stevenson issued a 53-page recommended order this week that found the state did not look closely enough at the potential damage oil drilling presents to the river.
The recommended order comes after a challenge filed by the Apalachicola Riverkeeper last year when state officials approved a draft permit for a company called Clearwater Land and Minerals to drill an exploratory well in Calhoun County.
The permit approval was met with opposition from counties and cities along the Apalachicola River, all of who rely on the river as a cornerstone of their economies.
Judge Stevenson wrote that DEP took an exceedingly narrow view of the scope of the project for purposes of environmental review, limiting it to the immediate location of the drilling pad on the site, adding that a spill would have catastrophic consequences due to the proximity of the well to nearby streams, wetlands and ponds.
Under administrative law, Stevenson’s recommended order will now go back to the Department of Environmental Protection for a final order.
The Apalachicola Riverkeeper said they remain hopeful that DEP will adopt the Recommended Order and make a final decision of permit denial.
They also pointed out that the order does not stop additional oil drilling permit applications within the Apalachicola River floodplain and are asking people to continue to urge elected officials to move forward legislatively to ban oil drilling near the Apalachicola River.
You can read the full order at https://www.doah.state.fl.us/ROS/2024/24002283.pdf
Judge Lawrence Stevenson issued a 53-page recommended order this week that found the state did not look closely enough at the potential damage oil drilling presents to the river.
The recommended order comes after a challenge filed by the Apalachicola Riverkeeper last year when state officials approved a draft permit for a company called Clearwater Land and Minerals to drill an exploratory well in Calhoun County.
The permit approval was met with opposition from counties and cities along the Apalachicola River, all of who rely on the river as a cornerstone of their economies.
Judge Stevenson wrote that DEP took an exceedingly narrow view of the scope of the project for purposes of environmental review, limiting it to the immediate location of the drilling pad on the site, adding that a spill would have catastrophic consequences due to the proximity of the well to nearby streams, wetlands and ponds.
Under administrative law, Stevenson’s recommended order will now go back to the Department of Environmental Protection for a final order.
The Apalachicola Riverkeeper said they remain hopeful that DEP will adopt the Recommended Order and make a final decision of permit denial.
They also pointed out that the order does not stop additional oil drilling permit applications within the Apalachicola River floodplain and are asking people to continue to urge elected officials to move forward legislatively to ban oil drilling near the Apalachicola River.
You can read the full order at https://www.doah.state.fl.us/ROS/2024/24002283.pdf
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