Obama urged to alter his drilling plan by (R) & (D) House members

[Bluebear]

Alarmed by a massive oil spill near the Gulf Coast, two U.S. House members from Florida urged President Obama on Wednesday to reconsider his plan to expand offshore oil and gas drilling.

“The explosion of the Deepwater Horizon oil rig in the Gulf of Mexico and the fallout from the disaster are stark reminders that drilling for oil too close to Florida’s coastline imperils Florida’s economy, environment and security,” House members Bill Young and Kathy Castor wrote to the president.

Both are from the Tampa Bay area. Young, a Republican, is the senior Florida representative in Congress. Castor is a Democrat from Tampa.

They cited estimates that the massive oil slick, larger than West Virginia, will make its way to the Florida coastline by the weekend.

“Fisheries, tourism, the health of the Gulf’s pristine beaches are all imperiled by this massive slick looming just 90 miles from the Florida Panhandle,” they wrote. “This disastrous event should alter the administration’s plan to bring oil rigs closer to Florida’s coastline.”

Obama has proposed opening a vast tract to energy exploration 125 miles from the Florida coast.

http://weblogs.sun-sentinel.com/news/politics/dcblog/2010/04/obama_urged_to_alter_drilling.html

[Bluebear]

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