Along the beaches of Northwest Florida, the Gulf is part of everyday life. It’s where people work, where families gather, and what draws visitors here year after year. That’s why a new federal proposal to expand offshore drilling closer to Florida’s coast is raising concerns.
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The U.S. Bureau of Ocean Energy Management is considering a plan that would open nearly 20 million acres of the eastern Gulf to offshore oil and gas drilling. That’s an area roughly the size of South Carolina and just under half the size of Florida. If approved, drilling would move closer to Florida than ever before…