HomeMy WebLinkAbout2015-136RESOLUTION NO. 2015-16
A RESOLUTION OF THE BOARD OF COUNTY
COMMISSIONERS OF INDIAN RIVER COUNTY, FLORIDA
OPPOSING SEISMIC AIRGUN TESTING IN THE ATLANTIC
OCEAN
WHEREAS, Indian River County is located on the Atlantic Coast of Florida and endeavors
to be a good steward of the coastal environment, its natural resources, and its animals; and
WHEREAS, residents have an expectation of a quality of life tied to that environment and
demonstrated their concern for our ocean environment in Indian River County; and
WHEREAS, seismic airgun testing is being proposed by the Bureau of Ocean Energy
Management (BOEM) as a testing method for the exploration of oil and natural gas off the mid-
Atlantic coast which includes Indian River County; and
WHEREAS, seismic airguns fire intense blasts of compressed air, almost as loud as
explosives, every 1-12 seconds twenty-four hours a day for days to weeks on end, these loud
airgun blasts can be heard for many hundreds of miles and could injure or possibly kill thousands
of marine mammals and fish, including the critically endangered Northern Atlantic right whale,
and endangered and threated sea turtles, and
WHEREAS, Southern Brevard and Northern Indian River Counties are one of the most
dense nesting areas in the United States for threatened loggerhead and endangered green sea
turtles; and
WHEREAS, Indian River County is part of the Indian River Lagoon system which is a
diverse estuary, home to more than 3,000 species of plants and animals; and
WHEREAS, the full impacts of seismic testing and offshore drilling in the Atlantic Ocean
are not yet fully understood by scientists, the oil and gas industry, BOEM, or the Federal
Government, and more passive lower -impact alternative technologies may be available for
exploration in the near future.
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that the Board of County Commissioners of
Indian River County, Florida opposes seismic airgun testing and urges BOEM to consider more
environmentally passive alternatives for oil and gas exploration.
THE FOREGOING RESOLUTION was offered by Commissioner o' Rrvan and
seconded by Commissioner Fl P�,he- , and, being put to a vote was as follows:
Chairman, Bob Solari NAY
Vice Chairman, Joseph E Flescher AYR
Commissioner Wesley S. Davis NAY
Commissioner Tim Zorc AYE
Commissioner Peter D. O'Bryan AYE
The Chairman thereupon declared the resolution duly passed and adopted this Rt -h day
of December _'2015.
Attest: Jeffrey R Smith, Clerk of Cou and Comptroller
By
Deputy c
Approved:
al� ✓/ - G�/
za�
J eph,. Baird, County Administrator
Approved as to Form and Legal Suffi ' cy:
Wiliam K. DeBraal, Deputy County Attorney
Indian River County, Florida ..•Goti�Miss/p;yF9s
Board of County Commissicr�
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«:
Bob Solari, Chairman