Each dollar of income earned in the phosphate industry generates 

 $3.36 of other income. 



Each new dollar earned by the phosphate industry will generate $3.8 

 of other economic activity. 



PROJECTIONS 



Growth of the phosphate industry is determined largely by the demand for 

 agricultural fertilizers. The demand for fertilizer is influenced by crop 

 demand, water availability, pricing, weather, and Government regulation. The 

 dynamics of these relationships make growth projections difficult. 



In 1978, a comprehensive evaluation of the phosphate deposits of Florida 

 using the "minerals availability system" was conducted for the U.S. Department 

 of the Interior, Bureau of Mines. A conclusion of that study is as follows: 



The total Florida capacity can be made available to meet a total 

 projected demand increase of 3% per year for the next twenty-five years 

 if the deposits become environmentally, technologically, and economically 

 viable... at that time (about 2002) capacity demand for Florida would ex- 

 ceed one hundred million tons annually. The identified deposits, al- 

 though falling short of capacity demand at that level, would contain suf- 

 ficient resources to continue production for an extended period at a high 

 rate of production. 



Notwithstanding the availability of the phosphate resource and market de- 

 mand, water availability and energy costs will probably represent the most 

 significant factors regarding future phosphate production. 



OIL AND GAS EXPLORATION AND PRODUCTION 



HISTORY OF OIL PROSPECTING 



Oil prospecting in Florida began at the turn of the century and continued 

 sporadically until the early 1940's when the State's first oil discovery was 

 made in Collier County (Florida Geological Survey 1953). The well drilled at 

 Sunniland by Humble Oil and Refining Co. began producing in 1943 and produced 

 20,550 barrels (bbl ) of crude oil before being abandoned in 1946. A small oil 

 field has been developed at Sunniland since then and continues to produce 

 (Gunter 1952; Vernon and Henry 1961). In 1943-77, 161 onshore wildcat wells 

 (wells drilled where oil fields have not been established) were drilled in the 

 Sunniland formation of the South Florida basin. Ten oil fields were dis- 

 covered of which 7 were located in Southwest Florida (Figure 4). Six oil 

 fields in Collier and Lee Counties are currently producing oil and gas. The 

 Sunniland Field, located in Collier County, has the highest production. In 35 

 years, this field has produced about 31% of the crude oil extracted in South- 

 west Florida. In 1977, 12 producing wells yielded an average of about 112 

 barrels per day (bbl/d) each. The field originally contained an estimated 

 37.6 million barrels of recoverable reserves; 17 million barrels were produced 

 by 1979. Only a small part of the oil reserve is gas (oil-gas ratios are 

 about 100 to 1; Babcock 1964). 



137 



