The Apalachicola Riverkeeper is mounting a legal challenge to try to stop the latest effort to drill for oil in environmentally sensitive North Florida.

The nonprofit Riverkeeper filed a petition Thursday seeking to block the Florida Department of Environmental Protection from permitting an exploratory oil well in rural Calhoun County. The "wildcat well," operated by a Louisiana oil company, is located between the Apalachicola and Chipola rivers and upstream from the Apalachicola Bay, where restoration efforts continue following the collapse of its fisheries a decade ago.

The Riverkeeper's petition, which lists DEP and the applicant, Clearwater Land & Minerals FLA, as respondents, seeks a formal administrative hearing over the controversial drilling proposal. In a news release, the riverkeeper said the permit should be denied because of the potential damage it could cause to the river, its ecosystem and local economies.

"Our organization works tirelessly on behalf of our members and the surrounding communities to protect, restore, and advocate for the Apalachicola River and its ecosystem," said Cameron Baxley, Apalachicola Riverkeeper. "Petroleum drilling and the associated industrial activities pose significant threats to the exceptional environmental quality, economic, recreational, and scenic values that this world-class river and bay provide to our region."

In an interview with WFSU, State Republican Senator Corey Simon blasted the drilling company for “not understanding the impact.” Simon, who serves Florida’s northern counties, said tampering with Apalachicola Bay and its river systems, could directly impact rural counties like Franklin and Calhoun County.

“They need to understand that families are struggling in these areas," Simon explained. "Both counties are fiscally constrained counties. And so, we can't have anything at this point that is going to hurt their ability to come back and feed their families.”

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The Florida Department of Environmental Protection announced that it intends to allow a Louisiana company to conduct exploratory drilling for oil in the environmentally fragile Apalachicola River floodplain.

DEP on Friday issued a notice of intent to grant a permit for Clearwater Land & Minerals FLA to drill at the site, which is located in rural Calhoun County in between the Apalachicola and Chipola rivers and near the Dead Lakes.

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A plan to look and drill for oil in the Apalachicola River basin has drawn angry protests from Leon County’s delegation to the Florida Legislature and a pledge to seek stronger protection for North Florida's water.

"I have been in contact with regulators at DEP and am reviewing their analysis to ensure that our laws, rules, and processes in place are strictly adhered to for the protection of our environment and safety of Florida families," said Rep. Jason Shoaf, R-Port St. Joe.

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State Senator Corey Simon, R-Tallahassee, has come out against a controversial drilling project in the Apalachicola River floodplain.

The Florida Department of Environmental Protection has issued a notice of intent to approve an application by Clearwater Land & Minerals LLC to drill for oil in the area. Simon is concerned it would reverse state environmental efforts to restore the area.

Simon championed 25 million dollars in funding during the 2023 session to improve the basin, which has held the critical state concern label for nearly 40 years. Since 2020, the state has placed a moratorium on oyster harvesting in the area after the animal’s population plummeted.

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A nonprofit organization that works to protect the Apalachicola River will ask a judge to prevent a state agency from allowing exploratory oil drilling in the river basin.

“We are filing this challenge because the Apalachicola River provides so much to so many,” Apalachicola Riverkeeper Cameron Baxley wrote in a press release. “It deserves to be protected.”

The Apalachicola Riverkeeper announced on Thursday that it’s challenging the Florida Department of Environmental Protection’s notice of intent to issue an exploratory oil and gas drilling permit to Clearwater Land & Minerals LLC. In April, the department signaled its intent to allow the company to look for oil in an area of the river’s floodplain in Calhoun County. The proposed drilling site is located about a mile from the river.

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After a series of abandoned attempts by others, another company is hoping to strike oil in the fragile Apalachicola River basin — setting off a new round of opposition from environmentalists and other concerned citizens.

Clearwater Land & Minerals Fla, whose principals hail from Shreveport, Louisiana, applied for a state permit in December to conduct exploratory drilling in Calhoun County at a well located between the Apalachicola River, Florida’s largest river by volume, and the Chipola River just north of the Dead Lakes.

The exploratory well was built by Cholla Petroleum, a Dallas, Texas, company that abruptly walked away from long-drawn plans to explore for oil at the site in 2021. Cholla, which conducted seismic testing several years earlier, packed up its equipment and left on the eve of drilling after one of its key investors died.

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