Senator calls for oil rig investigation

The Longboat Key Town Commission was provided with a letter from Sen. Bill Nelson Wednesday, April 28, that calls for an investigation of the oil industry safety claims in the wake of an oil rig explosion off the coast of Louisiana.

The Town Commission was sent the letter, in part, because the town sent a resolution to Nelson’s office that opposes oil drilling in the Gulf off Florida’s shores.

Wrote Nelson: “The oil industry has insisted technology and safety have advanced enough that new drilling operations off coastal states including Florida would be safe and environmentally clean. But the blast that sank a rig off Louisiana and left 11 workers missing is bringing calls for increased congressional scrutiny on the safety issue.”

Nelson asked the U.S. Interior Department late last week to investigate and then provide a comprehensive report on all U.S. drilling accidents over at least the last decade.

Nelson also wants a congressional investigation by the Senate Commerce Committee on which he serves and which oversees two agencies with key roles in oil spill cases — the U.S. Coast Guard and National Atmospheric and Oceanic Administration.

Contact Kurt Schultheis at [email protected].