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National Park Service Approves Seismic Testing For Oil In Big Cypress National Preserve

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In a move that baffled and angered national park advocates, the National Park Service has given the go-ahead for an oil company to explore for deposits beneath Big Cypress National Preserve in Florida, even though the company's test of its equipment was judged "clearly a failure" by park observers.

“I have honestly never been as disappointed in the Park Service as I am right now. It defies logic, that during the (Park Service) centennial and with (Interior) Secretary (Sally) Jewell just down there, that they would bend over backwards to make it as easy for this oil company to do whatever they want inside a national park," Nick Lund, the National Parks Conservation Association's point man on the issue, said Friday evening during a phone call.

"This is 70,000 acres inside the national preserve. There’s nine threatened and endangered species within the planning area, including the critically endangered Florida panther…I don’t know what NEPA (the National Environmental Policy Act) exists for if not for this thing.”

Also expressing great disappointment was Matthew Schwartz, executive director of the South Florida Wildlands Association.

"NPS has years of experience with off-road vehicles in the preserve.  All of their own research indicates that this operation will likely lead to significant impacts to the preserve's natural resources," he said in an email.

Drawing the condemnation was the Park Service's announcement Friday afternoon that it had concluded that allowing Burnett Oil Co. to use seismic testing to search for oil reserves in the preserve's Nobles Grade area would have "no significant impact."

"Considering the field test and also the mitigation requirements that are outlined both in the revised EA (environmental assessment) and the FONSI (Finding of No Significant Impact), the decision is that the short-term impacts can be minimized and mitigated for," preserve spokesman Bob DeGross said during a phone call. "Following the mitigation requirements will lessen the long-term impacts.”

U.S. Sen. Bill Nelson was so concerned about the testing that in February he called on Interior Secretary Jewell to direct the Park Service to conduct a "comprehensive" review of the proposal.

“If history is any indication, approval of Burnett's request for a massive seismic survey essentially signals a green light for future drilling and fracking,” Sen. Nelson wrote in a letter to the Interior secretary. “That's why I strongly urge you to complete an Environmental Impact Statement for Burnett Oil Company's proposed seismic survey.”

But Park Service staff determined that a more extensive and involved EIS was not merited "based on information and conclusions outlined in an environmental assessment completed for the proposed survey."

At NPCA, Mr. Lund pointed out that this approval applies to 110 square miles of the preserve, and is only the first of four phases the Texas-based oil company hopes to explore.

"It's larger than Shenandoah National Park that would be explored," he said of the total footprint.

When the preserve was created, the Park Service was given the surface rights, while the mineral rights were retained by the previous owners, Mr. DeGross pointed out. "Our role is to evaluate their proposed method of accessing (those mineral rights) and then identify potential impacts and how they can be mitigated or minimized," the park spokesman said.

A year ago Burnett Oil crews tested their equipment in a small section of the preserve, a test that park observers deemed a failure in a document (attached below) that South Florida Wildlands had acquired through a Freedom of Information Act request. One of "thumper" trucks used for the experiment actually got stuck in the wet soils and crews on site had to "call for heavy equipment from a nearby oil and gas production site to come pull the vehicle out."

"One purpose for this test was to inform what the unknown impacts for this new technology may be in the wetland environment. When the environmental impacts of an action are unknown, an EIS is usually required," the park observers wrote in the document. "If the test had shown that the impacts were not significant, an EA would be justified. Since the extrapolated impacts could be significant, an EIS may be warranted."

Mr. DeGross was not familiar with the document that laid out those concerns, but said he was pretty sure that the revised EA had taken the test into consideration and called for smaller vehicles to be used during the testing.

That didn't mollify the conservation groups.

"All of their own research indicates that this operation will likely lead to significant impacts to the preserve's natural resources. Those include rutting and oxidation of fragile soils, hydrological changes due to compaction of soil, destruction of vegetation, and the spread of invasive plant species such as Brazilian pepper into parts of the preserve which may never have seen motor vehicles," Mr. Schwartz said. "We also expect disturbances to federally listed wildlife such as the Florida panther and Eastern indigo snake. Plus direct impacts to the use and enjoyment of this magnificent preserve by the public.

"Much of the land in the target area is wetlands," he added. "A good percentage has also been proposed for or is eligible for inclusion in the Federal Wilderness System. It is almost inconceivable that NPS believes it can go forward with a project of this magnitude without first preparing a full-blown Environmental Impact Statement to examine all possible impacts."

While the preserve is home to the endangered Florida panther, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has never defined critical habitat for the big cat, and so how the testing might impact the panthers was not an overriding factor. Just the same, Mr. DeGross said the area being opened to seismic testing is not heavily used by panthers.

Still, he went on, "there are going to be some areas that can’t be accessed because of resource issues.”

While Mr. DeGross said the preserve's enabling legislation clearly allows for oil exploration in the park, NPCA's Mr. Lund said Big Cypress' General Management Plan allows for the agency to block a project "if it would be detrimental to the purposes of the preserve (for example, the existing regulations could not provide the level of protection necessary) or if the levels of environmental impact resulting from such operations were unacceptable (for example, the 10 percent threshold was exceeded). If the denial was viewed as a potential for the taking of property, funds would be sought from Congress to acquire the affected mineral estate."

Once the seismic testing gets underway, it will be closely monitored by park staff, said Mr. DeGross. The operators will have archaeologists and biologists with them as they’re operating, and the proposed routes that the vehicles will be take will need to be reviewed and approved by the Park Service before they go through those routes," he said.

Burnett Oil’s plan is to use sound waves created by truck-mounted vibrators to create 3-D maps of potential oil and gas reserves.

The environmental assessment only covers the seismic survey. Should Burnett Oil wish to pursue production of resources, they must submit a new plan of operations, which would undergo additional environmental review and public comment periods, the Park Service said.

Both NPCA and South Florida Wildlands officials were reviewing the options for blocking the testing.

Comments

Excellent post, Dr. Runte.  Again, the fickle middle finger of politics and money is pointed at our national parks.


Big Cyprus must not be having a very good year.  Looks like Thumper Trucks aren't their only challenge this year.  I just found this article on the FIREHOUSE MAGAZINE website:

http://www.firehouse.com/news/12206829/firefighter-news-sparkler-caused-...


Margo,  You are absolutely correct.  Gopher Tortoises are found in Collier County.  I have seen many of them.  That being said they are not found in Big Cypress National Preserve.  It is just the wrong habitat and the wrong hydroperiod


There is great danger in making such general statements such as these.  ORV impacts directly related to where the use occurs and this is true with the proposed seismic equipment.  Previous ORV Impact studies have concluded that there is permanent damage from ORVs, especially but not only in the many sensitive areas already identified within the Preserve.  If you haven't seen any permanent scars, then you you need to visit more of that backcountry or look at aerial photos of ORV trails through sensitive resources or read the studies done on ORV impacts.


Several folks commented on the EA versus and EIS and some suggest the EA was prompted by pressures from Interior or higher.  This might be true, however, I must note there have been several other decision at Big Cypress where the legislation and legislative history has not being followed:  e.g., the use of "multiple use" with planning documents to justify expansion of some uses.

Second, wherever the decision rests, the last time an EA was attempted for such a major seismic survey, the Environmental Groups immediately sued because an EA cannot cover the cummulative impacts of such a survey.  I suspect that if someone sued today, the results would be the same, the proposal was scaled back to surveys on public roads.


Funny how some people can read minds of others (Dr. Runte and the President).


I worked at Big Cypress on their fire crew.  We reduced the vegetation from around their oil pumping plant, and hunters cabins, driving swamp buggies made into fire trucks.  In the winter I was there, the ground (limestone) was covered with 2 feet of water.  With what has gone on in that area, seismic testing is not a pressing problem.  They need to continue to try and get the water going the way it was before the highways and canals replumbed the system.


Mr. Runte says there isn't much difference between republicans and democrats?  There is a big difference when you are in land acquisition for the Dept of Interior.  When republicans have a president, most land acquisition is not done unless there is a lawsuit, or if it is only an easement, or when Bush was in, an ocean.  When democrats are in, they try to preserve some of the best lands around for species and habitats.  I know, I have worked for Interior for over 20 years.


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