Cuba Oil Spill Coast Guard Plan
Cuba Oil Spill Coast Guard Plan
Coast Guard planning for potential Cuba oil spill
By William E. Gibson, Washington Bureau
WASHINGTON – The Coast Guard has formed contingency plans to protect U.S. waters and beaches in case of a major oil spill from drilling operations off the north coast of Cuba.
Cuba has contracted with a Spanish Company, Repsol, to drill exploratory wells, likely beginning later this year.
“As a result of the proposed North Cuba Basin oil exploration, the Coast Guard is updating plans required to ensure that we are ready to address a potential discharge from drilling off the coast of Cuba that could potentially impact U.S. waters,” Coast Guard Rear Admiral William Baumgartner said in a letter to U.S. House members David Rivera and Ileana Ros-Lehtinen, Miami Republicans.
The House members had met with Baumgartner on Monday to talk about Cuban drilling plans.
“There is no longer a question of if but a question of when Cuba will start drilling for oil,” Rivera said. “Some of the drilling sites could be as close as 50 miles from the coast of Key West.”
Rivera has co-sponsored a bill that would deny leases and permits to drill in U.S. waters to companies that do business with Cuba and other countries subject to U.S. sanctions or embargoes.
Repsol spokesman Kristian Rix told the Sun Sentinel, “Regarding safety, we are confident that we have the right personnel and materials to drill safely and successfully in the area.”
Former Florida Sen. Bob Graham, co-chairman of a national commission on offshore drilling, is urging U.S. officials to form a regional pact with Cuba and Mexico to establish safety standards and a oil-spill response plan.
source: Coast Guard planning for potential Cuba oil spill Central Florida Political Pulse Orlando Sentinel
