Miami Congressional Hearing Targets Oil Spill Preparedness for Drilling in Cuba & Bahamas
Transportation and Infrastructure Committee Chairman John L. Mica (R-FL) will chair a congressional field hearing in the Miami, Florida area to examine Cuban and Bahamian plans to drill exploratory oil wells in waters off the Florida coast. The hearing will review the U.S. Coast Guard’s preparedness to handle potential oil spills occurring in these waters.
Members of Congress from South Florida, including U.S. Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtenin (R-FL), U.S. Rep. Mario Diaz-Balart (R-FL), U.S. Rep. David Rivera (R-FL), and U.S. Rep. Allen West (R-FL) plan to participate in the hearing.
The panel will hear testimony relating to limitations on U.S. enforcement and oversight capability of incidents in Cuban and Bahamian waters, and learn what steps the U.S. Coast Guard has taken to prepare or respond to potential spills at these new sites. Florida Coast Guard Sectors Jacksonville, Miami, Key West and St. Petersburg are updating their Area Contingency Plans, and the Service’s Seventh District, headquartered in Miami, is overseeing work on an Offshore Drill Response and Regional Contingency Plan that focuses on response strategies and tactics to combat a spill at sea.
Chairman Mica will chair the U.S. House Subcommittee on Coast Guard and Maritime Transportation on Monday to review the efforts that are underway to be able to respond quickly to a spill at any of these new deepwater drilling sites. More information about Monday’s hearing can be found here.
Members of the media planning to attend, please RSVP to Justin Harclerode or Caroline Califf, (202) 225-9446 or Alan Byrd at (407) 415-8470.
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WHAT: Hearing of the Subcommittee on Coast Guard and Maritime Transportation: “Offshore Drilling in Cuba and the Bahamas: The U.S. Coast Guard’s Oil Spill Readiness & Response Planning”
WHEN: 10:00 a.m., Monday, January 30, 2012
WHERE: The Atlantic Room
Double Tree Hotel
17375 Collins Avenue
Sunny Isles Beach, FL 33160
WITNESSES:
• The Honorable Jennifer Carroll, Lieutenant Governor, State of Florida
• Rear Admiral William D. Baumgartner, Commander, District 7, United States Coast Guard
• Rear Admiral Cari B. Thomas, Director of Response Policy, United States Coast Guard
• Ms. Debbie Payton, Chief of the Emergency Response Division, NOAA Office of Response and Restoration
• Mr. Lars Herbst, Regional Director, Gulf of Mexico Region, Bureau of Safety and Environment Enforcement, U.S. Department of Interior
• Dr. John Proni, Executive Director, Florida International University Applied Research Center (ARC)
Source: Transportation and Infrastructure Committee
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Update - January 31, 2012
The following is the statement of U.S. Rep. John L. Mica (R-FL), Chairman of the House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure, on today’s Congressional hearing in Miami on offshore drilling in Cuba and the Bahamas, and the U.S. Coast Guard’s readiness and response planning for potential oil spills:
“With a deep water platform in place, Cuba is moving forward with its plans to drill for oil 56 miles from the Florida Keys. It is important that the United States is prepared in the event of a spill or disaster, and our Congressional panel will hear from the U.S. Coast Guard and others on our preparedness and the challenges we face from Cuban and Bahamian drilling. Both countries off Florida’s coast plan deep water drilling at depths greater than the BP Gulf well.”
For more information about today’s Congressional hearing, including testimony of witnesses, go to www.transportation.house.gov.