Oil and gas drilling in the environmentally critical Apalachicola River floodplain came a step closer to reality Tuesday as state environmental regulators gave a thumbs up to issuing permits to a Texas company.

Cholla Petroleum of Dallas applied for permission two months prior to Hurricane Michael to sink six exploratory wells between 13,600 feet and 14,200 feet between Dead Lakes and the Apalachicola River in Calhoun County.

The exploratory drilling would punch into the Floridan aquifer, which environmentalists said could put the water supply for the Panhandle at risk of contamination.

The permits do not authorize hydraulic fracking or commercial production, the DEP said.

"Should any of the wells prove successful, the company would then have to undergo a separate and subsequent process for an operating permit to commercially produce oil or gas, providing additional data, a spill prevention and cleanup plan and other information to DEP for review," DEP spokeswoman Dee Ann Miller said in an email to the Democrat.

Tuesday, Alvaro Linero, the DEP's program administrator for Oil and Gas, sent an email to William Lawson, the oil company's vice president for land that it intends to publish a notice of intent to issue the permits, which can be found here: https://floridadep.gov/water/oil-gas/content/current-applications

The notice was emailed to 16 other individuals, including Calhoun County Commission Chairman Gene Bailey, Phillip McMillan, vice president, Neal Land & Timber Company, the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, Georgia Ackerman, executive director of Apalachicola Riverkeeper, Preston Robertson, president of the Florida Wildlife Federation, and Mary Gutierrez, executive director of Earth Ethics Inc.

From the archives:

Ackerman called the development "alarming." Residents of Calhoun County have sent letters to the DEP asking the agency to deny the permits.

"Drilling oil wells poses a real threat to the health and recovery of the Apalachicola River, the floodplain and Apalachicola Bay," Ackerman told the Democrat. "The risk of damage to water quality, biologic and geologic integrity of the ecosystem from oil drilling far exceeds any benefits that a small number of property owners and an oil company will gain. These are not in the public interest for those of us that use and care for the Apalachicola River and Bay."

The DEP must publish a public notice given that there is a reasonable expectation the proposed drilling “result in a heightened public concern or likelihood of request for administrative proceedings” according to DEP documents.

The permits would not allow Cholla to perform "well stimulation activities at a pressure sufficient to cause hydraulic fracturing of the oil producing formation."

The oil company plans call for constructing limerock pads and stormwater containment areas on five pads at on private land about 15 miles south of Blountstown and several miles southwest of Marysville.

All five drilling pads would be close to flowing river waters during normal high flows, Apalachicola Riverkeeper said on its website. Each is considered a non-routine well site subject to special restrictions.

"At those times, about ninety-five percent of the Apalachicola River floodplain is connected aquatic habitat," the statement said.

The drilling pads would be surrounded by flowing water during major flood events, and could threaten Port St. Joe's drinking supply if a hydrogen sulfide processing plant is built if drilling is pursued, the Riverkeeper group said.

The drilling sites were based on seismic testing conducted by Cholla Petroleum in 2016.

"Oil and gas permits, including exploratory, are carefully evaluated under Florida law ... to ensure that all aspects of the operation will follow the law and are protective of the environment, human health and safety, drinking water and underground natural resources," Miller said. "DEP's thorough review was performed in conjunction with review by other agencies."

The DEP concluded the applications met those requirements, she said.

Petitions for an administrative hearing by the applicant or parties opposed to the permits must be filed with the state within 21 days of the publication of the DEP notice.

If issued, the permits would give Cholla a one-year period to conduct drilling operations.

Earlier this month, the DEP issued a notice of intent to issue a permit for another company, Spooner Petroleum of Mississippi, to conduct exploratory drilling in Gulf County. The company wants to drill in the Wetappo Creek watershed.

Contact Schweers at jschweers@gannett.com. Follow him on Twitter @jeffschweers.