Pictured above is Governor Crist with his wife and me at the “Hands Across the Sand” event on Pensacola Beach 6/26/2010.
Over 700 people joined hands on Pensacola Beach that day.
As the oil reaches our shores here in the Gulf South, our hearts are heavy. The Panhandle’s sugar white sand is cleaned up in the areas that have been affected, yet the reports say that the water, though it appears clean, is not. I had the opportunity to organize the second “Hands Across the Sand” event which took place last Sat., June 26, 2010. The first event took place in Feb. and was held only in the state of Florida. The event was instrumental in halting the drilling for oil off the Florida Coast. The 2nd event included over 600 cities across all 50 states, as well as over 30 countries with a total of over 900 cities! We are promoting the use of clean energy and we oppose drilling for oil off our coasts. The risks are too high.
The Florida Panhandle is a treasure and must be preserved for its wildlife, for ourselves and for future generations. There is no replacing it. The sand along is a geological rarity, made from quartz crystal washed down from the Appalachian mountains eons ago. Once the sugar-white sand here is contaminated it will be gone forever. The threat is greater with each day the Deepwater Horizon continues to leak.
It is time we take seriously the exploration, development and use of clean energy and slowly yet sharply, reduce our dependence on oil.