That's OK because the Florida economy was already doing so well. Tourism isn't all that important so this study won't likely have much of an impact. It's comforting to know that Big Oil is prepared for disasters which is possibly why Obama agreed to open up drilling along the east coast. LA Times:
Using computer simulations based on 15 years of wind and ocean current data, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration released a report Friday showing a 61% to 80% chance of the oil spill reaching within 20 miles of the coasts of the Florida Keys, Fort Lauderdale and Miami, mostly likely in the form of weathered tar balls.
Shorelines with the greatest chance of being soiled by oil — 81% to 100% — stretch from the Mississippi River Delta to the western Florida Panhandle, NOAA scientists said in a statement on its projections for the next four months.
Other areas of Florida have a low probability of oil hits. The Florida Panhandle has already seen tar balls wash up on beaches.
But the chances of oil reaching east-central Florida and the Eastern Seaboard are less than 1% to 20%, NOAA said. And it is "increasingly unlikely" that areas above North Carolina will be hit.
