An executive order signed by the Trump Administration in late April seeks to expand oil and gas exploration in the Gulf of Mexico, with many in the industry eyeing the eastern Gulf. Florida environmental groups argue the change could threaten tourism and the environment, but Florida's oil and gas industry say it would be a welcome change.
Trump's executive order directs Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke to review an Obama-era ban on offshore oil and gas exploration in the Gulf, the Arctic, and the Pacific and Atlantic Oceans. The ban came in part as a response to BP's 2010 Deepwater Horizon oil spill disaster in the Gulf.
Florida Sen. Bill Nelson has long backed a moratorium on drilling in the the eastern Gulf of Mexico. Nelson is working to expand the moratorium, which ends in 2022. Other efforts are underway to in Congress that could protect the eastern Gulf.
Monday at 1 p.m., Florida Petroleum Council executive director David Mica joins the program to discuss how this executive order could change the future of oil and gas exploration in the Gulf, and what that change could mean for Florida.
Also joining the program is Jaclyn Lopez, the Florida Director and staff attorney for the Center for Biological Diversity.
