A Texas-based oil company that has applied to build well pads and roads in the Everglades has advocates of the Big Cypress National Preserve on edge.

Stakeholders believe it’s likely a precursor to future oil drilling efforts.

Conservation and activist organization Friends of the Everglades is scheduled to host an online event Feb. 25 in order to engage the public on the issue and on the importance of the preserve.

The live program (available on Facebook and YouTube) is expected to address a number of issues regarding the preserve – located 45 miles west of Miami – and the threat oil drilling poses to its health.

Miccosukee poet, artist and activist Houston Cypress of the group Love the Everglades will join a panel that includes Alison Kelly of the Natural Resources Defense Council and Jacki Lopez of the Center for Biological Diversity.

The panel is also expected to discuss the value of the preserve to tribal communities, the public water supply, tourism, wildlife and the economy.

The event runs from 10 a.m. to 11 a.m. and is free. For more information and to register, click here.