"What we ought to be willing to do is study it,' said Crist.

Florida Petroleum Council Executive Director David Mica recognizes the oil industries infamous past, but says thing have changed.

"It's not your grandfather's oil company anymore," said Mica.

The oil industry has pumped billions of dollars into high-tech equipment aimed at finding oil, preventing leaks and stopping spills. Newer oil rigs have remote centers to shut down operations in case of an emergency

During Hurricane Katrina and Rita in 2005 remote centers in Houston, Texas, were used to shut down oil rigs a hundred miles out at sea. Oil rigs survived Katrina with little oil spilled.

"One of the things that happened in Katrina is, while we had very little if any environmental damage, we had significant damage to many of our platforms," said Mica.

There's no guarantee against a spill which worries environmentalists.

"People come here for Florida's beautiful beaches if we drill for oil we run a very high risk that we'll ruin those beaches with oil spills," said Eric Draper, Audobon of Florida spokesperson.

Drilling closer than 125 miles would require a change in federal law.

The last major oil spill in America happened almost 40 years ago in Santa Barbara.