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Burnett Oil

  • Burnett Oil Co. did not have a rendering of its proposed exploratory oil drilling facility it might build in the Everglades should permits be granted and oil deposits rich enough to be tapped are found. This is a photo of another company’s oil drilling operation in the Big Cypress Swamp Preserve in 2015.
    Drilling firm challenging denial of oil exploration efforts in Big Cypress Swamp
    Tom Bayles
    Oil exploration firms are crossing paths trying to get permits to drill test wells in the greater Florida Everglades watershed, despite accusations that one of the firms, Burnett Oil Co., has left behind miles of scars in the environmentally-sensitive land during previous efforts. Trend Exploration of North Fort Myers, another firm that wants to drill for oil in Collier County, is challenging a November decision by the Florida Department of Environmental Protection to deny it a permit the company sought to drill an exploratory well to seek oil reserves. Florida Division of Administrative Hearings Judge Francine Ffolkes is scheduled to hear Trend Exploration’s appeal.