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Tuesday, June 8, 2010
Obama is Confident
Admiral Allen yesterday told reporters a cap on the damaged oil well is keeping up to 462,000 gallons of oil a day from leaking into the Gulf. That's up from about 441,000 gallons on Saturday and about 250,000 on Friday.
Govt. wasnt trained for this
A Coast Guard official said that the BP spill has broken up into something the government had not trained for: numerous tiny spills, which are still outflanking cleanup crews across hundreds of miles of coastline.
President Obama said yesterday he's been talking closely to Gulf Coast fishermen and various experts on BP's catastrophic oil spill not for lofty academic reasons but "so I know whose ass to kick."
President Obama said yesterday he's been talking closely to Gulf Coast fishermen and various experts on BP's catastrophic oil spill not for lofty academic reasons but "so I know whose ass to kick."
The cap over Spill is capturing oil!!!!!
Forty-nine days later, the Gulf of Mexico got a bit of good news.
Answer to Protection Plan??
So far, no oil is in Weeks Bay or either river, but the slick hasn't gotten to the barrier yet. If and when it does, Hinton and the mayor will make the decision to close the bay and block off access to the Magnolia River.
"We can shut it down in three hours," Hinton said.
Why did it take so long for Hinton to get an answer about the protection plan?
Scott Hughes, a spokesman for the Alabama Department of Environmental Management, said the delay sounded like an issue for the unified command in Mobile to address. The head of the command, Coast Guard Capt. Steve Poulin, said it sounded like an issue related to the state's approval process.
Hixon, Hinton's buddy, said the whole system is broken.
"This is the biggest damn mess I've ever seen," he said.
Patricia Sevening, a member of the Magnolia Springs Garden Club who lives on a canal off the Fish River, is just happy someone is protecting her water.
"It's such a beautiful area," said Sevening, watching as boom and barges were moved into place. "This is really frightening, what it could do for generations."
"We can shut it down in three hours," Hinton said.
Why did it take so long for Hinton to get an answer about the protection plan?
Scott Hughes, a spokesman for the Alabama Department of Environmental Management, said the delay sounded like an issue for the unified command in Mobile to address. The head of the command, Coast Guard Capt. Steve Poulin, said it sounded like an issue related to the state's approval process.
Hixon, Hinton's buddy, said the whole system is broken.
"This is the biggest damn mess I've ever seen," he said.
Patricia Sevening, a member of the Magnolia Springs Garden Club who lives on a canal off the Fish River, is just happy someone is protecting her water.
"It's such a beautiful area," said Sevening, watching as boom and barges were moved into place. "This is really frightening, what it could do for generations."
How it all Started?
The story began when Hinton called his local county emergency management office to ask about plans for protecting coastal waters and was shocked by the response.
"The first thing the guy said was, `People are blowing this thing out of proportion, it's just light crude," Hinton said. "I told him I don't care if it's light crude or dark crude or sweet crude, I don't want it in my damn river."
Baldwin County officials deny that anyone ever told Hinton such a thing. But whatever happened, Jamie Hinton was fired up.
Hinton and other leaders got together to kick around ideas for safeguarding their river shortly after the Deepwater Horizon rig exploded on April 20 and sank in the Gulf of Mexico in about 5,000 feet of water off the Louisiana coast. Someone suggested using barges at the mouth of Weeks Bay to block waves out of the adjoining Mobile Bay, then adding layers of boom.
"It's not rocket science, but it sounded like it might work," Hinton said. The engineering didn't seem that hard since the passage into Weeks Bay is only about 530 feet wide and fairly shallow.
"That protects the Fish River and the Magnolia River. I thought, `that's awesome,'" he said.
Community members honed the plan, and Hinton set out to find barriers to supplement the single strand of narrow boom that BP provided, a meager allocation Hinton called "overly ridiculous." He submitted the blueprint in mid-May believing he'd get an answer quickly from the unified incident command in Mobile.
And then, with the oil oozing toward the northern Gulf Coast, Hinton waited. And waited. And waited.
After fits and starts, supposed approvals and later balks, Hinton finally got the OK last week on his fourth try to protect the river just as oil began washing ashore on Alabama beaches. With a $200,000 allocation from the $25 million that BP gave Alabama for oil spill response, rented barges, a tug and other barriers are now in the water.
"The first thing the guy said was, `People are blowing this thing out of proportion, it's just light crude," Hinton said. "I told him I don't care if it's light crude or dark crude or sweet crude, I don't want it in my damn river."
Baldwin County officials deny that anyone ever told Hinton such a thing. But whatever happened, Jamie Hinton was fired up.
Hinton and other leaders got together to kick around ideas for safeguarding their river shortly after the Deepwater Horizon rig exploded on April 20 and sank in the Gulf of Mexico in about 5,000 feet of water off the Louisiana coast. Someone suggested using barges at the mouth of Weeks Bay to block waves out of the adjoining Mobile Bay, then adding layers of boom.
"It's not rocket science, but it sounded like it might work," Hinton said. The engineering didn't seem that hard since the passage into Weeks Bay is only about 530 feet wide and fairly shallow.
"That protects the Fish River and the Magnolia River. I thought, `that's awesome,'" he said.
Community members honed the plan, and Hinton set out to find barriers to supplement the single strand of narrow boom that BP provided, a meager allocation Hinton called "overly ridiculous." He submitted the blueprint in mid-May believing he'd get an answer quickly from the unified incident command in Mobile.
And then, with the oil oozing toward the northern Gulf Coast, Hinton waited. And waited. And waited.
After fits and starts, supposed approvals and later balks, Hinton finally got the OK last week on his fourth try to protect the river just as oil began washing ashore on Alabama beaches. With a $200,000 allocation from the $25 million that BP gave Alabama for oil spill response, rented barges, a tug and other barriers are now in the water.
Rive Mired in Red Tape
It's hard to imagine a spot with more to lose from the Gulf oil spill than the Magnolia River. Gnarly trees shroud its slow-moving waters, rich with crabs and mullet. Docks have mailboxes; letters are delivered by boat. Seafood boils with friends are a weekend staple.
Jamie Hinton loves this place, just like everyone in this idyllic community off Mobile Bay, and he wants to do all he can to protect it from what he and others see as a twin threat — oil and bumbling on the part of both government leaders and corporate executives.
Hinton, chief of the Magnolia Springs Volunteer Fire Department, said Monday he spent three weeks tangled in red tape before finally getting approval to do something that's never before been needed, much less tried: using a combination of barges and oil-blocking booms to keep crude out of the Magnolia River.
On Sunday, the new system was finally in place at the mouth of Weeks Bay. Locals hope it will safeguard both the Magnolia River and the nearby Fish River, where the U.S. Postal Service operates what locals proudly call the nation's last waterborne mail route.
"What you've got here is a community that has taken charge of the situation and said, `To hell with the system,'" said Gib Hixon, an old friend of Hinton and chief of Fish River/Marlow Fire and Rescue.
"It's illegal to block this waterway. But if the oil comes, we're going to bring a barge in and use it as a gate to block it," said Hixon. "They can arrest me and Jamie if they want to."
Jamie Hinton loves this place, just like everyone in this idyllic community off Mobile Bay, and he wants to do all he can to protect it from what he and others see as a twin threat — oil and bumbling on the part of both government leaders and corporate executives.
Hinton, chief of the Magnolia Springs Volunteer Fire Department, said Monday he spent three weeks tangled in red tape before finally getting approval to do something that's never before been needed, much less tried: using a combination of barges and oil-blocking booms to keep crude out of the Magnolia River.
On Sunday, the new system was finally in place at the mouth of Weeks Bay. Locals hope it will safeguard both the Magnolia River and the nearby Fish River, where the U.S. Postal Service operates what locals proudly call the nation's last waterborne mail route.
"What you've got here is a community that has taken charge of the situation and said, `To hell with the system,'" said Gib Hixon, an old friend of Hinton and chief of Fish River/Marlow Fire and Rescue.
"It's illegal to block this waterway. But if the oil comes, we're going to bring a barge in and use it as a gate to block it," said Hixon. "They can arrest me and Jamie if they want to."
Silly but Time-proven
Gerald Wojtala, director of the International Food Protection Training Institute, acknowledged that nosing around seafood may sound silly, but said it's a time-proven technique.
"The human nose has been used on a lot of (oil) spill response," Wojtala said. "There are a lot of sophisticated tests, but when you think about it, do you want to run a test that takes seven days and costs thousands of dollars?
"This saves a lot of time and money," he added, "and it puts more eyes and noses at different points in the system."
Still, Wojtala said, nothing is fail-safe. Even without an oil spill, people sometimes get sick from tainted seafood, or suffer illnesses from contamination in red meat such as E. coli.
"It's safe to say there is no 100-percent guarantee," he said. "There's never a 100-percent guarantee. We can only be as safe as we can be."
"The human nose has been used on a lot of (oil) spill response," Wojtala said. "There are a lot of sophisticated tests, but when you think about it, do you want to run a test that takes seven days and costs thousands of dollars?
"This saves a lot of time and money," he added, "and it puts more eyes and noses at different points in the system."
Still, Wojtala said, nothing is fail-safe. Even without an oil spill, people sometimes get sick from tainted seafood, or suffer illnesses from contamination in red meat such as E. coli.
"It's safe to say there is no 100-percent guarantee," he said. "There's never a 100-percent guarantee. We can only be as safe as we can be."
US Food and Drug Administration
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration also has a role with its own inspectors, though the agency said it only has "several seafood specialists" currently in the Gulf area.
"We are ramping up inspections at facilities in the region," said FDA spokeswoman Meghan Scott, adding that inspectors would be present at seafood processors throughout the Gulf states.
She said the agency has deployed a mobile lab to Florida that is testing samples of fish caught in waters not yet believed to be impacted by oil, because fish don't stay in one place.
Gulf fishermen are already hurting from the perception that their product is tainted, said Ewell Smith, executive director of the Louisiana Seafood Promotion and Marketing Board.
"Some people also just think we're shut down altogether," Smith said, adding that higher prices for shrimp are causing smaller businesses to cancel orders simply because they can't afford it.
Smith said no oily seafood will ever make it to market.
"You're going to smell it, you're going to see it. It would be almost impossible for it to make it to market," he said.
Fishermen say they can't sell a tainted product anyway, whether it is inspected or not. Earlier in the week, fishermen brought in thousands of pounds of shrimp caught off Louisiana to the docks at Pass Christian, Miss., where the catch was offloaded and sold to processors and customers on site. No inspectors were present.
"No oil, not even a drop," said fishermen Mike Nguyen, who brought in 3,000 pounds of shrimp on Wednesday.
"When the shrimp get oily, they die and they stink," he said. "See, they're alive."
Joe Jenkins owns Crystal Seas Seafood Company on the docks at Pass Christian. He'll be buying thousands of pounds of shrimp.
"Here, we don't have inspectors on any level so we have to inspect our own seafood products to make sure they're safe and oil-free and good to eat," Jenkins said. "We're not going to have inspectors everywhere. Everybody's got to do their own job ... to make sure they don't have a problem with oily shrimp whatsoever."
Mississippi shrimper Richard Bosarge agreed, and said no one wants to sell oily shrimp.
"If we catch oily shrimp, the nets are coming up," Bosarge said shortly before heading out to sea.
He called the sniffers "ridiculous."
"They're going to smell it? No way," added Mike Triana, who works for a Mississippi gas company along the coast. "How they gonna know? I ain't eating any of it. I don't trust the nose."
"We are ramping up inspections at facilities in the region," said FDA spokeswoman Meghan Scott, adding that inspectors would be present at seafood processors throughout the Gulf states.
She said the agency has deployed a mobile lab to Florida that is testing samples of fish caught in waters not yet believed to be impacted by oil, because fish don't stay in one place.
Gulf fishermen are already hurting from the perception that their product is tainted, said Ewell Smith, executive director of the Louisiana Seafood Promotion and Marketing Board.
"Some people also just think we're shut down altogether," Smith said, adding that higher prices for shrimp are causing smaller businesses to cancel orders simply because they can't afford it.
Smith said no oily seafood will ever make it to market.
"You're going to smell it, you're going to see it. It would be almost impossible for it to make it to market," he said.
Fishermen say they can't sell a tainted product anyway, whether it is inspected or not. Earlier in the week, fishermen brought in thousands of pounds of shrimp caught off Louisiana to the docks at Pass Christian, Miss., where the catch was offloaded and sold to processors and customers on site. No inspectors were present.
"No oil, not even a drop," said fishermen Mike Nguyen, who brought in 3,000 pounds of shrimp on Wednesday.
"When the shrimp get oily, they die and they stink," he said. "See, they're alive."
Joe Jenkins owns Crystal Seas Seafood Company on the docks at Pass Christian. He'll be buying thousands of pounds of shrimp.
"Here, we don't have inspectors on any level so we have to inspect our own seafood products to make sure they're safe and oil-free and good to eat," Jenkins said. "We're not going to have inspectors everywhere. Everybody's got to do their own job ... to make sure they don't have a problem with oily shrimp whatsoever."
Mississippi shrimper Richard Bosarge agreed, and said no one wants to sell oily shrimp.
"If we catch oily shrimp, the nets are coming up," Bosarge said shortly before heading out to sea.
He called the sniffers "ridiculous."
"They're going to smell it? No way," added Mike Triana, who works for a Mississippi gas company along the coast. "How they gonna know? I ain't eating any of it. I don't trust the nose."
The Value of Human Nose
The human nose has been used for centuries to aid in making wine, butter and cheese, and is a highly efficient and trustworthy tool, said Brian Gorman with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, which is hosting the courses along with the nonprofit Battle Creek, Mich.-based International Food Protection Training Institute.
"Properly trained noses are really remarkable organs," Gorman said.
Even so, inspectors can't be everywhere. The trained sniffers will be deployed where needed, when suspicions are raised about seafood being illegally culled from closed waters, or even to test fish from open waters. No agency has yet reported finding or stopping any tainted seafood from getting to market.
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration has also been sampling seafood both in closed and open waters, and sending it off for chemical testing, with more than 600 fish and shrimp processed to date.
State and local inspectors are fanning out across the region to docks, seafood processors and restaurants, some now armed with specially trained noses. NOAA currently has 55 inspectors at its Mississippi lab, with another 55 in training.
"The message we're delivering is simple: The seafood in your grocery store or local restaurant is safe to eat, and that goes for seafood harvested from the Gulf," said Kevin Griffis of the U.S. Department of Commerce.
"Properly trained noses are really remarkable organs," Gorman said.
Even so, inspectors can't be everywhere. The trained sniffers will be deployed where needed, when suspicions are raised about seafood being illegally culled from closed waters, or even to test fish from open waters. No agency has yet reported finding or stopping any tainted seafood from getting to market.
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration has also been sampling seafood both in closed and open waters, and sending it off for chemical testing, with more than 600 fish and shrimp processed to date.
State and local inspectors are fanning out across the region to docks, seafood processors and restaurants, some now armed with specially trained noses. NOAA currently has 55 inspectors at its Mississippi lab, with another 55 in training.
"The message we're delivering is simple: The seafood in your grocery store or local restaurant is safe to eat, and that goes for seafood harvested from the Gulf," said Kevin Griffis of the U.S. Department of Commerce.
Trained Noses to sniff out Gulf seafood for oil
William Mahan bends over a bowl of raw shrimp and inhales deeply, using his left hand to wave the scent up toward his nose. Deep breath. Exhale. Repeat. He clears his palate with a bowl of freshly cut watermelon before moving on to raw oysters. Deep breath. Exhale. Repeat.
He's one of about 40 inspectors trained recently at a federal fisheries lab in Pascagoula, Miss., to sniff out seafood tainted by oil in the Gulf of Mexico and make sure the product reaching consumers is safe to eat.
But with thousands of fishermen bringing in catch at countless docks across the four-state region, the task of inspectors, both sniffers and others, is daunting. It's certainly not fail-safe.
The first line of defense began with closing a third of federal waters to fishing and hundreds more square-miles of state waters. Now comes the nose.
Mahan is an agricultural extension director with the University of Florida based in Apalachicola, where some of the world's most famous oysters are culled.
"We're being trained to detect different levels of taint, which in this case is oil," Mahan said last week. "We started out sniffing different samples of oil to sort of train our noses and minds to recognize it."
So what does an oily fish smell like?
"Well, it has an oil odor to it," Mahan said. "Everyone has a nose they bring to it ... Everybody's nose works differently. For me, the oysters are a little more challenging."
He's one of about 40 inspectors trained recently at a federal fisheries lab in Pascagoula, Miss., to sniff out seafood tainted by oil in the Gulf of Mexico and make sure the product reaching consumers is safe to eat.
But with thousands of fishermen bringing in catch at countless docks across the four-state region, the task of inspectors, both sniffers and others, is daunting. It's certainly not fail-safe.
The first line of defense began with closing a third of federal waters to fishing and hundreds more square-miles of state waters. Now comes the nose.
Mahan is an agricultural extension director with the University of Florida based in Apalachicola, where some of the world's most famous oysters are culled.
"We're being trained to detect different levels of taint, which in this case is oil," Mahan said last week. "We started out sniffing different samples of oil to sort of train our noses and minds to recognize it."
So what does an oily fish smell like?
"Well, it has an oil odor to it," Mahan said. "Everyone has a nose they bring to it ... Everybody's nose works differently. For me, the oysters are a little more challenging."
This one was Different??
This well was different in the fact that they were having so many problems, and so many things were happening, and it was just kind of out of hand," said Kemp. Her husband had worked on the Deepwater rig for more than four years.
Roshto, whose husband also had worked on the rig for four years, said he was especially worried about "all the mud they were losing" from the well, and pressure the men felt to deliver oil more quickly.
Still, she and Kemp said their husbands took great pride in their jobs, and both said the United States should continue offshore drilling in the Gulf. They said new laws are not needed to regulate oil companies, but said better enforcement of existing laws was needed.
"This tragedy will not be in vain if it serves to make the lives of every man and woman working in the oilfield the top priority and cause the powerful oil companies to know that they will be held accountable for their actions," Roshto said.
Asked by Stupak what they would ask BP executives, if they could, both women answered, "Why?"
"What went wrong?" Roshto asked. "Why weren't you out there trying to do something in the weeks before when they were having problems?"
Kemp agreed, but added: "Why is it that money is more important than someone's life?"
Roshto, whose husband also had worked on the rig for four years, said he was especially worried about "all the mud they were losing" from the well, and pressure the men felt to deliver oil more quickly.
Still, she and Kemp said their husbands took great pride in their jobs, and both said the United States should continue offshore drilling in the Gulf. They said new laws are not needed to regulate oil companies, but said better enforcement of existing laws was needed.
"This tragedy will not be in vain if it serves to make the lives of every man and woman working in the oilfield the top priority and cause the powerful oil companies to know that they will be held accountable for their actions," Roshto said.
Asked by Stupak what they would ask BP executives, if they could, both women answered, "Why?"
"What went wrong?" Roshto asked. "Why weren't you out there trying to do something in the weeks before when they were having problems?"
Kemp agreed, but added: "Why is it that money is more important than someone's life?"
Widows urge repeal of High Seas Death Law
Members of Congress vowed Monday to amend a 90-year-old law that limits the amount of money survivors can recover in the deaths of family members killed in the Gulf of Mexico oil rig explosion.
Rep. Edward Markey, D-Mass., and other members of the House Energy and Commerce committee said the April 20 Deepwater Horizon explosion exposed the need to reform the 1920 Death on the High Seas Act, which limits liability for wrongful deaths more than three miles offshore.
"One way we can hurt BP is to make sure that 'BP' stand for 'Bills Paid,' that the money for families, the money to cleanup the Gulf comes out of their pocket, and that we repeal the Death on the High Seas Act," Markey said.
"My family can never and will never be adequately compensated for our loss," said Courtney Kemp of Jonesville, La., whose husband was killed in the April 20 explosion. "What I am seeking is accountability from the wrongdoers who caused this terrible tragedy."
Kemp, 26, and Natalie Roshto, 21, of Liberty, Miss., told lawmakers that the maritime law unfairly limits how much money companies must pay in employee deaths at sea. Their husbands, Shane Roshto, 22, and Roy Wyatt Kemp, 27, both worked for Transocean Ltd., which owned the Deepwater Horizon oil rig that exploded April 20, killing 11 men.
BP PLC operated the rig, which under maritime law was considered an ocean-going vessel and registered under the flag of the Marshall Islands, a small island chain in the Pacific Ocean.
It was unclear whether Congress could repeal the law on maritime deaths retroactively, and whether any changes would apply in the Gulf.
But Markey said Congress had an obligation to fix the law.
"Your testimony is going to help to make it possible for us to repeal the Death on the High Seas Act, so that we never again have a situation like this," he told Roshto and Kemp.
"We have thousands and thousands of people who are out on these rigs, out on the ocean. And there never was any intention for you and people like you not to be able to recover for your families," Markey said.
Rep. Charlie Melancon, D-La., called the law "egregious," while Rep. Michael Burgess, R-Texas, said it might be "time to relook" at the law.
Rep. Bart Stupak, D-Mich., chairman of the oversight and investigations subcommittee, said Monday's field hearing was intended to draw attention to the local effects of the oil spill, which remains uncapped and is the largest in U.S. history. Nine lawmakers — seven Democrats and two Republicans — attended the four-hour hearing at the St. Bernard Parish government building near New Orleans.
Rep. Edward Markey, D-Mass., and other members of the House Energy and Commerce committee said the April 20 Deepwater Horizon explosion exposed the need to reform the 1920 Death on the High Seas Act, which limits liability for wrongful deaths more than three miles offshore.
"One way we can hurt BP is to make sure that 'BP' stand for 'Bills Paid,' that the money for families, the money to cleanup the Gulf comes out of their pocket, and that we repeal the Death on the High Seas Act," Markey said.
"My family can never and will never be adequately compensated for our loss," said Courtney Kemp of Jonesville, La., whose husband was killed in the April 20 explosion. "What I am seeking is accountability from the wrongdoers who caused this terrible tragedy."
Kemp, 26, and Natalie Roshto, 21, of Liberty, Miss., told lawmakers that the maritime law unfairly limits how much money companies must pay in employee deaths at sea. Their husbands, Shane Roshto, 22, and Roy Wyatt Kemp, 27, both worked for Transocean Ltd., which owned the Deepwater Horizon oil rig that exploded April 20, killing 11 men.
BP PLC operated the rig, which under maritime law was considered an ocean-going vessel and registered under the flag of the Marshall Islands, a small island chain in the Pacific Ocean.
It was unclear whether Congress could repeal the law on maritime deaths retroactively, and whether any changes would apply in the Gulf.
But Markey said Congress had an obligation to fix the law.
"Your testimony is going to help to make it possible for us to repeal the Death on the High Seas Act, so that we never again have a situation like this," he told Roshto and Kemp.
"We have thousands and thousands of people who are out on these rigs, out on the ocean. And there never was any intention for you and people like you not to be able to recover for your families," Markey said.
Rep. Charlie Melancon, D-La., called the law "egregious," while Rep. Michael Burgess, R-Texas, said it might be "time to relook" at the law.
Rep. Bart Stupak, D-Mich., chairman of the oversight and investigations subcommittee, said Monday's field hearing was intended to draw attention to the local effects of the oil spill, which remains uncapped and is the largest in U.S. history. Nine lawmakers — seven Democrats and two Republicans — attended the four-hour hearing at the St. Bernard Parish government building near New Orleans.
Wildlife Needs urgent help!
A massive oil slick caused by the BP oil drilling platform explosion in the Gulf of Mexico has reached the U.S. Gulf Coast. Efforts are already underway to protect sensitive ecological areas.
Many organizations are preparing to mobilize along the coast from Louisiana to Florida to help rescue animals and wildlife. The oil poses a serious threat to fishermen's livelihoods, marine habitats, beaches, wildlife, and human health.
Although BP has publicly stated the company will pay for all damages from the oil spill, many organizations still rely on donations to protect wildlife from this type of impact. For example, Greenpeace stated that it has opened support lines to report oiled wildlife, discuss oil-related damage, and for volunteer recruitment, and the group relies on donations from individuals for this type of work.
Many organizations are preparing to mobilize along the coast from Louisiana to Florida to help rescue animals and wildlife. The oil poses a serious threat to fishermen's livelihoods, marine habitats, beaches, wildlife, and human health.
Although BP has publicly stated the company will pay for all damages from the oil spill, many organizations still rely on donations to protect wildlife from this type of impact. For example, Greenpeace stated that it has opened support lines to report oiled wildlife, discuss oil-related damage, and for volunteer recruitment, and the group relies on donations from individuals for this type of work.
What does BP say regarding this?
In court papers, BP says that Hughes has the "experience and capacity" to handle the lawsuits and that Houston is the ideal location because most of the defendants' companies have headquarters or major operations there. BP spokesman have repeatedly declined to comment on pending lawsuits.
Some attorneys have come up with an unusual assertion: import a New York federal judge with a strong background in environmental lawsuits to Louisiana to preside over the cases.
They are recommending that the U.S. Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation appoint U.S. District Judge Shira Scheindlin. Scheindlin presided over settlement of some 200 lawsuits brought against BP and other oil companies over a toxic additive called MTBE that contaminated drinking supplies nationally — and she has no oil and gas investments, according to her financial disclosure forms.
Attorneys with the Weitz & Luxenberg firm in New York said they recommended Scheindlin rather than a Louisiana judge because "most or all of the judges in the (Louisiana) district have a conflict and cannot preside" over the consolidated cases.
Scheindlin's deputy said Friday she was out of town and unavailable to comment on whether she would accept such an appointment.
The judicial panel meets July 29 in Boise, Idaho, to hear arguments on consolidation of the oil spill cases. Recommendations also have been made for sending the cases to Alabama, Mississippi and South Florida.
Some attorneys have come up with an unusual assertion: import a New York federal judge with a strong background in environmental lawsuits to Louisiana to preside over the cases.
They are recommending that the U.S. Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation appoint U.S. District Judge Shira Scheindlin. Scheindlin presided over settlement of some 200 lawsuits brought against BP and other oil companies over a toxic additive called MTBE that contaminated drinking supplies nationally — and she has no oil and gas investments, according to her financial disclosure forms.
Attorneys with the Weitz & Luxenberg firm in New York said they recommended Scheindlin rather than a Louisiana judge because "most or all of the judges in the (Louisiana) district have a conflict and cannot preside" over the consolidated cases.
Scheindlin's deputy said Friday she was out of town and unavailable to comment on whether she would accept such an appointment.
The judicial panel meets July 29 in Boise, Idaho, to hear arguments on consolidation of the oil spill cases. Recommendations also have been made for sending the cases to Alabama, Mississippi and South Florida.
Why Questions Raised?
"Under the circumstances, I can see why the questions are being raised," Nation said. "But one of the reasons Judge Hughes was chosen to be a lecturer is that he is known as a very ethical person. I would think his being an ethics lecturer for our organization would be a positive, not a negative."
Hughes said at a hearing Friday that his work for the geologists poses no conflict and that his other oil and gas investments — which include royalties from several mineral rights interests — are not connected to BP or the other companies involved in the spill lawsuits.
Florida attorney Scott Weinstein, whose firm represents charter captains and other companies suffering economic loss from the spill — including the owners of the Ripley's Believe It or Not museum in Key West — said people might think it's unfair for BP to win its wish with a Texas judge rather than one seated in Louisiana or Florida, where the spill's impacts are greater.
"I would never assume that a judge is biased because of the jurisdiction that he or she sits in," Weinstein said. Still, "if this case winds up in Houston, many of the victims will feel very distant from where that justice is being handed out. It will not make sense to them."
Another Florida plaintiffs' attorney, Stuart Smith, was more blunt about the companies' aims.
"They would get much more sympathetic judges and perhaps a more sympathetic jury," Smith said.
Hughes said at a hearing Friday that his work for the geologists poses no conflict and that his other oil and gas investments — which include royalties from several mineral rights interests — are not connected to BP or the other companies involved in the spill lawsuits.
Florida attorney Scott Weinstein, whose firm represents charter captains and other companies suffering economic loss from the spill — including the owners of the Ripley's Believe It or Not museum in Key West — said people might think it's unfair for BP to win its wish with a Texas judge rather than one seated in Louisiana or Florida, where the spill's impacts are greater.
"I would never assume that a judge is biased because of the jurisdiction that he or she sits in," Weinstein said. Still, "if this case winds up in Houston, many of the victims will feel very distant from where that justice is being handed out. It will not make sense to them."
Another Florida plaintiffs' attorney, Stuart Smith, was more blunt about the companies' aims.
"They would get much more sympathetic judges and perhaps a more sympathetic jury," Smith said.
More on that
a judge like U.S. District Judge Stanwood Duval of New Orleans would not have to disqualify himself even though he reported royalties from "mineral interest No. 1 and No. 2" in Terrebonne Parish, La., on his 2008 forms. Likewise for Senior U.S. District Judge William Barbour Jr. of Mississippi, who listed at least 30 oil and gas interests in three states including "McGowan Working Partners" and "Petro-Hunt Bovina Field," both in Mississippi.
Some judges have close ties to the energy industry that aren't for financial gain, but could still raise questions of potential bias.
The judge BP wants to hear all of the spill-related cases, U.S. District Judge Lynn Hughes of Houston, for the past two years has been a "distinguished lecturer" focusing on ethical issues for the 35,000-member American Association of Petroleum Geologists.
Hughes is not paid a fee but does receive reimbursements for travel, food and lodging, said association spokesman Larry Nation. Hughes has appeared at petroleum geologist meetings in several Texas cities, in New Orleans and also in Cape Town, South Africa. He is scheduled to give a lecture later this month in Calgary, Canada, the oil and gas capital of that country.
Some judges have close ties to the energy industry that aren't for financial gain, but could still raise questions of potential bias.
The judge BP wants to hear all of the spill-related cases, U.S. District Judge Lynn Hughes of Houston, for the past two years has been a "distinguished lecturer" focusing on ethical issues for the 35,000-member American Association of Petroleum Geologists.
Hughes is not paid a fee but does receive reimbursements for travel, food and lodging, said association spokesman Larry Nation. Hughes has appeared at petroleum geologist meetings in several Texas cities, in New Orleans and also in Cape Town, South Africa. He is scheduled to give a lecture later this month in Calgary, Canada, the oil and gas capital of that country.
Judicial Rules!!
Federal judicial rules require judges to disqualify themselves from hearing cases involving a company in which they have a direct financial interest, and some Louisiana judges have already done so. For example, U.S. District Judge Mary Ann Vial Lemmon in New Orleans, who reported ownership of BP stock, issued an order in early May that the court clerk not allot cases involving BP or related entities to her docket.
Another New Orleans jurist, U.S. District Judge Carl Barbier, said in court Friday he is selling his oil and gas investments — which included Transocean and Halliburton — to avoid any perception of a conflict. Barbier is presiding over about 20 spill-related lawsuits and some attorneys are recommending that he be chosen to oversee all cases filed nationally.
Still another judge in Louisiana, U.S. District Judge Eldon Fallon, recused himself because his attorney son-in-law is representing several people and businesses filing suits against BP and the other companies over the rig explosion.
In many ways, the financial conflict rules are murky. For example, a judge does not have to step aside if the investments are part of a mutual fund over which they have no management control. Mere ties to companies or entities in the same industry, no matter how extensive, also don't require disqualification, according to legal experts.
"The specific rule forbids judges from hearing a case in which they have a financial interest. The more general rule forbids them from hearing cases in which their impartiality might reasonably be questioned," said Charles Geyh, an Indiana University law professor who has closely studied judicial ethics.
Another New Orleans jurist, U.S. District Judge Carl Barbier, said in court Friday he is selling his oil and gas investments — which included Transocean and Halliburton — to avoid any perception of a conflict. Barbier is presiding over about 20 spill-related lawsuits and some attorneys are recommending that he be chosen to oversee all cases filed nationally.
Still another judge in Louisiana, U.S. District Judge Eldon Fallon, recused himself because his attorney son-in-law is representing several people and businesses filing suits against BP and the other companies over the rig explosion.
In many ways, the financial conflict rules are murky. For example, a judge does not have to step aside if the investments are part of a mutual fund over which they have no management control. Mere ties to companies or entities in the same industry, no matter how extensive, also don't require disqualification, according to legal experts.
"The specific rule forbids judges from hearing a case in which they have a financial interest. The more general rule forbids them from hearing cases in which their impartiality might reasonably be questioned," said Charles Geyh, an Indiana University law professor who has closely studied judicial ethics.
Federal Judicial Panel in place
A Washington-based federal judicial panel is scheduled to meet next month to decide whether to consolidate the cases and, if so, which judge should be assigned the monumental task. The job would include such key pretrial decisions as certifying a large class of plaintiffs to seek damages, a potential multibillion-dollar settlement, whether to dismiss the cases and what documents BP and the other companies might be forced to produce in court.
The AP review of disclosure statements shows the oil and gas industry's roots run as deep in the Gulf Coast's judiciary as they do in the region's economy. For example, one federal judge in Texas is a member of Houston's Petroleum Club, an "exclusive, handsome club of, and for, men of the oil industry."
The AP review of disclosure statements shows the oil and gas industry's roots run as deep in the Gulf Coast's judiciary as they do in the region's economy. For example, one federal judge in Texas is a member of Houston's Petroleum Club, an "exclusive, handsome club of, and for, men of the oil industry."
Many Federal Judges have links with Oil
More than half of the federal judges in districts where the bulk of Gulf oil spill-related lawsuits are pending have financial connections to the oil and gas industry, complicating the task of finding judges without conflicts to hear the cases, an Associated Press analysis of judicial financial disclosure reports shows.
Thirty-seven of the 64 active or senior judges in key Gulf Coast districts in Louisiana, Texas, Alabama, Mississippi and Florida have links to oil, gas and related energy industries, including some who own stocks or bonds in BP PLC, Halliburton or Transocean — and others who regularly list receiving royalties from oil and gas production wells, according to the reports judges must file each year. The AP reviewed 2008 disclosure forms, the most recent available.
Those three companies are named as defendants in virtually all of the 150-plus lawsuits seeking damages, mainly for economic losses in the fishing, seafood, tourism and related industries, that have been filed over the growing oil spill since the Deepwater Horizon drilling rig exploded April 20, killing 11 workers. Attorneys for the companies and those suing them are pushing for consolidation of the cases in one court, with BP recommending Texas and others advocating for Louisiana and other states.
Thirty-seven of the 64 active or senior judges in key Gulf Coast districts in Louisiana, Texas, Alabama, Mississippi and Florida have links to oil, gas and related energy industries, including some who own stocks or bonds in BP PLC, Halliburton or Transocean — and others who regularly list receiving royalties from oil and gas production wells, according to the reports judges must file each year. The AP reviewed 2008 disclosure forms, the most recent available.
Those three companies are named as defendants in virtually all of the 150-plus lawsuits seeking damages, mainly for economic losses in the fishing, seafood, tourism and related industries, that have been filed over the growing oil spill since the Deepwater Horizon drilling rig exploded April 20, killing 11 workers. Attorneys for the companies and those suing them are pushing for consolidation of the cases in one court, with BP recommending Texas and others advocating for Louisiana and other states.
WE Will Get Through this Crisis- Says Obama
President Barack Obama sought to reassure Americans by saying that "we will get through this crisis" but that it would take dedication.
Later, he said he's been talking closely with Gulf Coast fishermen and various experts on BP's catastrophic oil spill and not for lofty academic reasons.
"I talk to these folks because they potentially have the best answers — so I know whose ass to kick," the president said.
The salty words, part of Obama's recent efforts to telegraph to Americans his engagement with the crisis, came in an interview in Michigan with NBC's "Today" show.
"This will be contained," Obama said earlier. "It may take some time, and it's going to take a whole lot of effort. There is going to be damage done to the Gulf Coast, and there is going to be economic damages that we've got to make sure BP is responsible for and compensates people for."
Obama's prediction of further damage only exacerbated a sense of dread filling residents in places the oil had yet to foul, like Panama City Beach.
"It just makes me sick to my stomach to think about one morning I could wake up and our beaches would be ruined," said Joseph Carrington, a 39-year-old worker at a scooter rental service who moved five years ago from Chester, N.Y., out of love for the beach.
"I have nightmares thinking about it on what it would do to us, my job, all of our jobs."
Later, he said he's been talking closely with Gulf Coast fishermen and various experts on BP's catastrophic oil spill and not for lofty academic reasons.
"I talk to these folks because they potentially have the best answers — so I know whose ass to kick," the president said.
The salty words, part of Obama's recent efforts to telegraph to Americans his engagement with the crisis, came in an interview in Michigan with NBC's "Today" show.
"This will be contained," Obama said earlier. "It may take some time, and it's going to take a whole lot of effort. There is going to be damage done to the Gulf Coast, and there is going to be economic damages that we've got to make sure BP is responsible for and compensates people for."
Obama's prediction of further damage only exacerbated a sense of dread filling residents in places the oil had yet to foul, like Panama City Beach.
"It just makes me sick to my stomach to think about one morning I could wake up and our beaches would be ruined," said Joseph Carrington, a 39-year-old worker at a scooter rental service who moved five years ago from Chester, N.Y., out of love for the beach.
"I have nightmares thinking about it on what it would do to us, my job, all of our jobs."
The Cleaning process
In a sweltering metal building in Fort Jackson, workers in biohazard suits were doing the time-consuming task of cleaning oiled brown pelicans and releasing them back into the wild. After getting 192 in the last six weeks, 86 were delivered on Sunday, the biggest rescue since the BP rig exploded on April 20, spewing oil into the Gulf of Mexico.
"We did have someone faint today because of the heat," said Jay Holcomb, executive director of the International Bird Rescue Research Center.
A table is lined with tubs, bottles and even a microwave. In the tub an enormous pelican, turned almost black by the oil, sits stoically as workers pour a light vegetable oil over it. A process they humorously refer to as marinating, which has to be done before the birds can be washed.
"They respond really well to the cleaning," said Heather Nevill, the veterinarian overseeing the process. "If we get them in time."
At Barataria Bay, La., just west of the mouth of the Mississippi River, large patches of thick oil floated in the still waters Monday. A dead sea turtle caked in brownish-red oil lay splayed out with dragonflies buzzing by.
The Barataria estuary, which has become one of the hardest-hit areas, was busy with shrimp boats skimming up oil and officials in boats and helicopters patrolling the islands and bays to assess the state of wildlife and the movement of oil.
On remote islands, oil visibly tainted pelicans, gulls, terns and herons.
"We did have someone faint today because of the heat," said Jay Holcomb, executive director of the International Bird Rescue Research Center.
A table is lined with tubs, bottles and even a microwave. In the tub an enormous pelican, turned almost black by the oil, sits stoically as workers pour a light vegetable oil over it. A process they humorously refer to as marinating, which has to be done before the birds can be washed.
"They respond really well to the cleaning," said Heather Nevill, the veterinarian overseeing the process. "If we get them in time."
At Barataria Bay, La., just west of the mouth of the Mississippi River, large patches of thick oil floated in the still waters Monday. A dead sea turtle caked in brownish-red oil lay splayed out with dragonflies buzzing by.
The Barataria estuary, which has become one of the hardest-hit areas, was busy with shrimp boats skimming up oil and officials in boats and helicopters patrolling the islands and bays to assess the state of wildlife and the movement of oil.
On remote islands, oil visibly tainted pelicans, gulls, terns and herons.
Disrupting Trips?
Adam Warriner, a customer service agent with California-based CSA Travel protection, said the company is getting a lot of calls from vacationers worried the oil will disrupt their trips — even if they're headed to South Carolina, nowhere near the spill area.
"As of now we haven't included oil into any of our coverage language, and that's not something that I've heard is happening," he said.
That kind of misperception worries residents and officials in areas that aren't being hit hard by the oil — and even those in some that are.
"The daily images of the oil is obviously having an impact," said Gov. Bobby Jindal of Louisiana, the state closest to the leak and the one where the oil is having its most insidious effects on wildlife. "It's having a heavy, real, very negative impact on our economy."
Some of the most enduring images are of pelicans and other wildlife drenched in oil.
"As of now we haven't included oil into any of our coverage language, and that's not something that I've heard is happening," he said.
That kind of misperception worries residents and officials in areas that aren't being hit hard by the oil — and even those in some that are.
"The daily images of the oil is obviously having an impact," said Gov. Bobby Jindal of Louisiana, the state closest to the leak and the one where the oil is having its most insidious effects on wildlife. "It's having a heavy, real, very negative impact on our economy."
Some of the most enduring images are of pelicans and other wildlife drenched in oil.
The Media scaring away the Tourists
In Mississippi, Gov. Haley Barbour over the weekend angrily blasted news coverage that he said was scaring away tourists at the start of the busy summer season by making it seem as if "the whole coast from Florida to Texas is ankle-deep in oil."
Mississippi, he insisted on "Fox News Sunday," was clean.
That sounded about right to Darlene Kimball, who runs Kimball Seafood on the docks at Pass Christian.
"Mississippi waters are open, and we're catching shrimp," Kimball said. Still, her business is hurting because of a perception that Gulf seafood isn't safe, she said, and because many shrimpers have signed up to help corral the spill elsewhere.
The random, scattered nature of the oil was evident Monday during a trip across the state line between Alabama and Florida.
On the Alabama side, clumps of seaweed laden with oil littered beaches for miles. Huge orange globs stained the sand in places.
But at Perdido Key, on the Florida side, the sand was white and virtually crude-free. Members of a five-person crew had to look for small dots of oil to pick up, stooping over every few yards for another piece.
"It's beautiful here today," said Josiah Holmes, of Gulf Shores, Ala. He and his wife, Lydia, had driven across the state line because the beach was such a mess at home.
For some who are planning vacations in the region but live elsewhere, the spill's fickle nature is causing confusion.
Mississippi, he insisted on "Fox News Sunday," was clean.
That sounded about right to Darlene Kimball, who runs Kimball Seafood on the docks at Pass Christian.
"Mississippi waters are open, and we're catching shrimp," Kimball said. Still, her business is hurting because of a perception that Gulf seafood isn't safe, she said, and because many shrimpers have signed up to help corral the spill elsewhere.
The random, scattered nature of the oil was evident Monday during a trip across the state line between Alabama and Florida.
On the Alabama side, clumps of seaweed laden with oil littered beaches for miles. Huge orange globs stained the sand in places.
But at Perdido Key, on the Florida side, the sand was white and virtually crude-free. Members of a five-person crew had to look for small dots of oil to pick up, stooping over every few yards for another piece.
"It's beautiful here today," said Josiah Holmes, of Gulf Shores, Ala. He and his wife, Lydia, had driven across the state line because the beach was such a mess at home.
For some who are planning vacations in the region but live elsewhere, the spill's fickle nature is causing confusion.
Oil Slick Scatters its Threats
In sensitive marshes on the Louisiana coast, oil thick as pancake batter suffocates grasses and traps pelicans. Blobs of tar the size of dimes or dinner plates dot the white sands of Alabama and the Florida Panhandle. Little seems amiss in Mississippi except a shortage of tourists, but an oily sheen glides atop the sea west of Tampa.
The oil spill plaguing the states along the Gulf of Mexico isn't one slick — it's many.
"We're no longer dealing with a large, monolithic spill," Coast Guard Adm. Thad Allen said Monday at a White House news conference. "We're dealing with an aggregation of hundreds of thousands of patches of oil that are going a lot of different directions."
Officials reported that a containment cap over the BP gusher at the bottom of the Gulf was sucking up one-third to three-quarters of the oil — but also noted that its effects could linger for years.
And as the oil patches flirt with the coastline, slathering some spots and leaving others alone, residents who depend on tourism and fishing are wondering in the here and now how to head off the damage or salvage a season that's nearing its peak.
At the Salty Dog Surf Shop in Panama City Beach, near the eastern end of the spill area, manager Glen Thaxton hawked T-shirts, flip-flops and sunglasses with usual briskness Monday, even as officials there warned oil could appear on the sand within 72 hours.
"It could come to a screeching halt real quick," Thaxton said. "So we've been calling vendors and telling them don't ship anything else until further notice."
The oil spill plaguing the states along the Gulf of Mexico isn't one slick — it's many.
"We're no longer dealing with a large, monolithic spill," Coast Guard Adm. Thad Allen said Monday at a White House news conference. "We're dealing with an aggregation of hundreds of thousands of patches of oil that are going a lot of different directions."
Officials reported that a containment cap over the BP gusher at the bottom of the Gulf was sucking up one-third to three-quarters of the oil — but also noted that its effects could linger for years.
And as the oil patches flirt with the coastline, slathering some spots and leaving others alone, residents who depend on tourism and fishing are wondering in the here and now how to head off the damage or salvage a season that's nearing its peak.
At the Salty Dog Surf Shop in Panama City Beach, near the eastern end of the spill area, manager Glen Thaxton hawked T-shirts, flip-flops and sunglasses with usual briskness Monday, even as officials there warned oil could appear on the sand within 72 hours.
"It could come to a screeching halt real quick," Thaxton said. "So we've been calling vendors and telling them don't ship anything else until further notice."
The Political Heat
Away from the action in the Gulf, the political heat remains intense in Washington with yet another congressional hearing set to bring BP and its peers under renewed scrutiny.
The Senate Judiciary Committee holds a hearing at 10:00 EDT (1400 GMT) on Tuesday titled: "The Risky Business of Big Oil: Have Recent Court Decisions and Liability Caps Encouraged Irresponsible Corporate Behavior?" Democrats in Congress have been looking at lifting such caps.
The Senate hearing follows one in Chalmette, Louisiana, where two women who lost their husbands in the April 20 rig explosion that unleashed the crisis urged members of Congress to hold BP accountable.
"I am asking you to please consider harsh punishments on companies who choose to ignore safety standards before other families are destroyed," said Courtney Kemp, whose husband, Wyatt, was one of the 11 workers killed in the explosion.
The gravity of the spill was spelled out by Admiral Allen, who said its environmental consequences could last for years.
"Dealing with the oil spill on the surface is going to go on for a couple of months" once the well is plugged, he said. "Long-term issues of restoring the environment and the habitats ... will be years."
The spill has now affected 120 miles of coastline.
After fouling wildlife refuges in Louisiana and barrier islands in Mississippi and Alabama, oil has hit some of the famous white beaches of Florida, where the $60 billion-a-year tourism industry accounts for nearly 1 million jobs.
Images of birds struggling through oil-soaked waters ringing Louisiana's ecologically fragile barrier islands and marshes have added to the public outcry and pressure on Obama.
One-third of the Gulf's federal waters, or 78,000 square miles (200,000 square km), remains closed to fishing, and the toll of dead and injured birds and marine animals is climbing.
The Senate Judiciary Committee holds a hearing at 10:00 EDT (1400 GMT) on Tuesday titled: "The Risky Business of Big Oil: Have Recent Court Decisions and Liability Caps Encouraged Irresponsible Corporate Behavior?" Democrats in Congress have been looking at lifting such caps.
The Senate hearing follows one in Chalmette, Louisiana, where two women who lost their husbands in the April 20 rig explosion that unleashed the crisis urged members of Congress to hold BP accountable.
"I am asking you to please consider harsh punishments on companies who choose to ignore safety standards before other families are destroyed," said Courtney Kemp, whose husband, Wyatt, was one of the 11 workers killed in the explosion.
The gravity of the spill was spelled out by Admiral Allen, who said its environmental consequences could last for years.
"Dealing with the oil spill on the surface is going to go on for a couple of months" once the well is plugged, he said. "Long-term issues of restoring the environment and the habitats ... will be years."
The spill has now affected 120 miles of coastline.
After fouling wildlife refuges in Louisiana and barrier islands in Mississippi and Alabama, oil has hit some of the famous white beaches of Florida, where the $60 billion-a-year tourism industry accounts for nearly 1 million jobs.
Images of birds struggling through oil-soaked waters ringing Louisiana's ecologically fragile barrier islands and marshes have added to the public outcry and pressure on Obama.
One-third of the Gulf's federal waters, or 78,000 square miles (200,000 square km), remains closed to fishing, and the toll of dead and injured birds and marine animals is climbing.
A Recent Poll Results
A Washington Post/ABC poll found that 69 percent of Americans believe the government had done a "not so good" or "poor" job handling the spill. Just over 1,000 people were surveyed in the poll, conducted between June 3 and 6.
BP's shares closed down slightly in London on Monday. It has lost about a third of its value since the crisis erupted in late April and it took another blow as Goldman Sachs downgraded its rating on BP to "neutral" from "buy."
While a complete halt to the flow of oil is not expected until August at the earliest, BP reported an increase in the amount of oil it is capturing from the well in its latest containment effort.
Coast Guard Admiral Thad Allen, who leads the government's relief effort, said London-based BP hoped to collect 20,000 barrels (840,000 gallons/3.18 million liters) per day in its latest effort.
BP said it had collected 7,541 barrels of oil in the first 12 hours of Monday. If it collected the same amount the rest of the day, the total for Monday would be more than 15,000 barrels, about 35 percent higher than the amount collected on Sunday.
Neither Allen nor BP gave an estimate of how much oil is still flowing into the Gulf. BP's latest attempt involves placing a containment cap on top of the gushing pipe on the ocean floor.
BP's shares closed down slightly in London on Monday. It has lost about a third of its value since the crisis erupted in late April and it took another blow as Goldman Sachs downgraded its rating on BP to "neutral" from "buy."
While a complete halt to the flow of oil is not expected until August at the earliest, BP reported an increase in the amount of oil it is capturing from the well in its latest containment effort.
Coast Guard Admiral Thad Allen, who leads the government's relief effort, said London-based BP hoped to collect 20,000 barrels (840,000 gallons/3.18 million liters) per day in its latest effort.
BP said it had collected 7,541 barrels of oil in the first 12 hours of Monday. If it collected the same amount the rest of the day, the total for Monday would be more than 15,000 barrels, about 35 percent higher than the amount collected on Sunday.
Neither Allen nor BP gave an estimate of how much oil is still flowing into the Gulf. BP's latest attempt involves placing a containment cap on top of the gushing pipe on the ocean floor.
Obama is Furious
President Barack Obama said he wanted to know "whose ass to kick" over the Gulf of Mexico oil spill, adding to the pressure on energy giant BP Plc as it sought to capture more of the leak from its gushing well.
"I don't sit around just talking to experts because this is a college seminar. We talk to these folks because they potentially have the best answer so I know whose ass to kick," Obama said in an interview with NBC News' "Today" to air on Tuesday.
They were the angriest words yet about the catastrophe from Obama, who has been criticized for his response to the worst oil spill in U.S. history. Obama reiterated that all those affected should be adequately compensated.
In London, BP's share price lost 3.6 percent after Obama's remarks, reversing the previous day's gains. The company's shares are down more than a third from mid-April.
The stakes remain high for all involved -- from Gulf Coast communities devastated by the disaster to Obama and his domestic standing to BP and its battered reputation with the public and investors.
"I don't sit around just talking to experts because this is a college seminar. We talk to these folks because they potentially have the best answer so I know whose ass to kick," Obama said in an interview with NBC News' "Today" to air on Tuesday.
They were the angriest words yet about the catastrophe from Obama, who has been criticized for his response to the worst oil spill in U.S. history. Obama reiterated that all those affected should be adequately compensated.
In London, BP's share price lost 3.6 percent after Obama's remarks, reversing the previous day's gains. The company's shares are down more than a third from mid-April.
The stakes remain high for all involved -- from Gulf Coast communities devastated by the disaster to Obama and his domestic standing to BP and its battered reputation with the public and investors.
BP oil spill is still leaking
BP oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico is posing a serious threat to not just BP financially but also to President Barack Obama whom many have accused of not taking proactive steps when the spill had begun.
It is around fifty days since the oil spill started in the Gulf of Mexico. We didn’t hear much from White House regarding the oil spill in the first two weeks of
Many thought that the spill was not as big as later revealed by scientists.
BP had initially said that only a very miniscule quantity of oil was spilling in the sea. It had said that only 1000 barrel of oil was going inot the sea from the ruptured oil pipeline.
But it was contested by scientists who put the oil gushing into the sea at 12000 barrel daily at the least. But right now around nineteen million barrels of oil is going into the sea and the top cap placement has been able to stop just a few thousand liters of oil into their ships from there.
This means that the remaining quantity of oil is still going down in the sea.
But even if the oil cap is able to stop even small quantity of the oil this is a major success for BP who has been facing uproar from all sides besides President Obama’s almost weekly rebuke.
Many thought that the spill was not as big as later revealed by scientists.
BP had initially said that only a very miniscule quantity of oil was spilling in the sea. It had said that only 1000 barrel of oil was going inot the sea from the ruptured oil pipeline.
But it was contested by scientists who put the oil gushing into the sea at 12000 barrel daily at the least. But right now around nineteen million barrels of oil is going into the sea and the top cap placement has been able to stop just a few thousand liters of oil into their ships from there.
This means that the remaining quantity of oil is still going down in the sea.
But even if the oil cap is able to stop even small quantity of the oil this is a major success for BP who has been facing uproar from all sides besides President Obama’s almost weekly rebuke.
Obama isn't a Bureacurat??
Barack Obama is an able administrator. He has won international praise for managing international affairs elegantly.
However, he has come under severe attack for the way he tried to handle the oil leak in the Gulf of Mexico. Now his ability to master the federal bureaucracy is being questioned. His critics say that he is the first US president since John F Kennedy to occupy the White House without enough executive branch experience and thus he is foundering. It is this that came in the way of handling the historic oil leak that has done immense damage to the environment, sea species and businesses in the region.
People who have been associated with Obama concede this fact. They say that he doesn’t think like a bureaucrat. He mostly banks on his close aides and some expert bureaucrats. Obama’s management style is under scanner for the first time since became the first Black president of the United States.
John Sununu, the former New Hampshire governor and who has worked with President George W Bush during his regime, said: "This is a centralized government power guy from the word go, and this may be the best education Obama may get on the ineffectiveness of government and just how hard it is to get the bureaucracy to solve problems."
John Burke, who teaches at University of Vermont and studied presidential management said: "He's strong on decision-making but weak on implementation and follow through,"
However, he has come under severe attack for the way he tried to handle the oil leak in the Gulf of Mexico. Now his ability to master the federal bureaucracy is being questioned. His critics say that he is the first US president since John F Kennedy to occupy the White House without enough executive branch experience and thus he is foundering. It is this that came in the way of handling the historic oil leak that has done immense damage to the environment, sea species and businesses in the region.
People who have been associated with Obama concede this fact. They say that he doesn’t think like a bureaucrat. He mostly banks on his close aides and some expert bureaucrats. Obama’s management style is under scanner for the first time since became the first Black president of the United States.
John Sununu, the former New Hampshire governor and who has worked with President George W Bush during his regime, said: "This is a centralized government power guy from the word go, and this may be the best education Obama may get on the ineffectiveness of government and just how hard it is to get the bureaucracy to solve problems."
John Burke, who teaches at University of Vermont and studied presidential management said: "He's strong on decision-making but weak on implementation and follow through,"
Monday, May 31, 2010
BP to Stop Live Video
BP said it may shut off a live video link of oil spewing from a pipe connected to its leaking well in the Gulf of Mexico, when it tries its "top kill" option to pump the well shut with mud and other material.
It is under review," a spokesman told Reuters. He declined to give a reason why the camera would stop broadcasting.
BP plans to start its "top kill" plan in the coming days. The London-based company said the measure has a 60-70 percent chance to halt the leak. [ID:nN25132932]
Congressman Ed Markey, a harsh critic of BP's response to the tragedy, said he had learned that BP planned to shut off the camera and criticized the decision.
"It is outrageous that BP would kill the video feed for the top kill. This BP blackout will obscure a vital moment in this disaster," he said in an emailed statement.
Oil from the slick has already begun to wash up on the shore in Louisiana and threatens to devastate the Gulf Coast.
BP has been accused of covering up the full extent of the spill after its estimate of the amount of oil leaking was shown to be too low.
It is under review," a spokesman told Reuters. He declined to give a reason why the camera would stop broadcasting.
BP plans to start its "top kill" plan in the coming days. The London-based company said the measure has a 60-70 percent chance to halt the leak. [ID:nN25132932]
Congressman Ed Markey, a harsh critic of BP's response to the tragedy, said he had learned that BP planned to shut off the camera and criticized the decision.
"It is outrageous that BP would kill the video feed for the top kill. This BP blackout will obscure a vital moment in this disaster," he said in an emailed statement.
Oil from the slick has already begun to wash up on the shore in Louisiana and threatens to devastate the Gulf Coast.
BP has been accused of covering up the full extent of the spill after its estimate of the amount of oil leaking was shown to be too low.
NOAA Can do credibel calculations now
New video provided by BP (BP.L) of its leaking underwater oil well should make it easier to calculate how much crude is spewing into the Gulf of Mexico, a senior government official said on Wednesday.
It's only been in the last couple of days that we have gotten video that was high enough resolution, long enough length and fast enough shutter speed to really do credible calculations," Jane Lubchenco, who heads the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, said a House committee hearing on the oil spill.
She did not say when NOAA would provide an updated estimate on the amount of oil leaking.
It's only been in the last couple of days that we have gotten video that was high enough resolution, long enough length and fast enough shutter speed to really do credible calculations," Jane Lubchenco, who heads the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, said a House committee hearing on the oil spill.
She did not say when NOAA would provide an updated estimate on the amount of oil leaking.
A Fundamental Mistake
Earlier in the day, well pressure tests showed an imbalance between the drill pipe choke and kill lines running from the drill deck to the blowout preventer. The pressure in the drill pipe was 1,400 pounds per square inch, while the choke and kill lines read zero PSI, according to BP documents gathered by the House Energy and Commerce Committee.
In BP's internal investigation, made public by the committee, BP said it might have been a "fundamental mistake" to continue with the procedure because there was an "indication of a very large abnormality."
As methane surged up the drill pipe and enveloped the rig, Brown said, a loud hiss of gas escaped from the well, which set off a stream of alarms.
"Gas alarms just kept piling up on top of each other more and more and more," Brown said. The rig was hit by a power blackout, and the explosion came soon after, he said.
"The first explosion basically threw me up against the control panel that I was standing in front of," Brown said.
As Brown raced to reach the rig's lifeboats, "it was just complete mayhem, chaos, people were scared, they were crying," Brown said.
The rig worker taking a muster of workers boarding the lifeboat, a man that Brown said he had known for nine years, did not recognize him.
This is a man that has known me for nine years and he cannot even remember my name," Brown said.
"It was just completely chaotic and nobody was really paying attention in my opinion," Brown said. "They were more concerned about just getting off the rig - escaping."
In BP's internal investigation, made public by the committee, BP said it might have been a "fundamental mistake" to continue with the procedure because there was an "indication of a very large abnormality."
As methane surged up the drill pipe and enveloped the rig, Brown said, a loud hiss of gas escaped from the well, which set off a stream of alarms.
"Gas alarms just kept piling up on top of each other more and more and more," Brown said. The rig was hit by a power blackout, and the explosion came soon after, he said.
"The first explosion basically threw me up against the control panel that I was standing in front of," Brown said.
As Brown raced to reach the rig's lifeboats, "it was just complete mayhem, chaos, people were scared, they were crying," Brown said.
The rig worker taking a muster of workers boarding the lifeboat, a man that Brown said he had known for nine years, did not recognize him.
This is a man that has known me for nine years and he cannot even remember my name," Brown said.
"It was just completely chaotic and nobody was really paying attention in my opinion," Brown said. "They were more concerned about just getting off the rig - escaping."
BP, Transocean Workers Argue
Swiss-based Transocean Ltd's Deepwater Horizon rig exploded while it was drilling a well a mile beneath the Gulf of Mexico under contract for London-based BP Plc. Eleven rig workers are presumed dead.
The Transocean mechanic's account could give the company more ammunition in its verbal battle with BP to assign blame for the disaster, which caused what is likely the biggest oil spill in U.S. history.
Around noon, rig workers met in a room adjacent to the rig's galley and "there was a slight argument that took place and a difference of opinions," said Douglas Brown, the rig's chief mechanic, speaking to a federal board of investigators in Kenner, Louisiana.
Brown said "a skirmish" took place between "the company man" from BP -- whose name he said he did not know -- and three Transocean employees.
"The company man was basically saying, 'Well this is how it's going to be,'" and Transocean rig workers "reluctantly agreed," Brown said.
The argument concerned "displacing the riser," Brown said, a reference to a decision made by rig personnel to remove heavy drilling mud from the drill pipe and replace it with water, in an attempt to wrap up drilling operations and plug the well with cement.
Drilling mud is a mixture of synthetic ingredients that is pumped into the well to exert downward pressure and prevent a column of oil and gas from rushing up the pipe.
The Transocean mechanic's account could give the company more ammunition in its verbal battle with BP to assign blame for the disaster, which caused what is likely the biggest oil spill in U.S. history.
Around noon, rig workers met in a room adjacent to the rig's galley and "there was a slight argument that took place and a difference of opinions," said Douglas Brown, the rig's chief mechanic, speaking to a federal board of investigators in Kenner, Louisiana.
Brown said "a skirmish" took place between "the company man" from BP -- whose name he said he did not know -- and three Transocean employees.
"The company man was basically saying, 'Well this is how it's going to be,'" and Transocean rig workers "reluctantly agreed," Brown said.
The argument concerned "displacing the riser," Brown said, a reference to a decision made by rig personnel to remove heavy drilling mud from the drill pipe and replace it with water, in an attempt to wrap up drilling operations and plug the well with cement.
Drilling mud is a mixture of synthetic ingredients that is pumped into the well to exert downward pressure and prevent a column of oil and gas from rushing up the pipe.
U.S. To Suspend Arctic Drilling?
Democratic Senator Mark Begich said he had been told by the Interior Department that the Obama administration will announce that consideration of any applications for exploratory drilling in the Arctic is suspended until 2011.
The suspension is part of measures President Barack Obama plans to order in response to the runaway oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico.
He is also expected to announce tougher safety requirements for offshore oil drilling and strengthened inspections of oil rigs.
The Arctic decision will suspend plans by Shell Oil to drill exploratory wells off Alaska this summer.
Shell's plans to drill in the Arctic have faced increasing controversy in recent weeks as the government tries to contain the massive oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico.
"I am frustrated that this decision by the Obama administration to halt offshore development for a year will cause more delays and higher costs for domestic oil and gas production to meet the nation's energy needs," Begich said in a statement
The suspension is part of measures President Barack Obama plans to order in response to the runaway oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico.
He is also expected to announce tougher safety requirements for offshore oil drilling and strengthened inspections of oil rigs.
The Arctic decision will suspend plans by Shell Oil to drill exploratory wells off Alaska this summer.
Shell's plans to drill in the Arctic have faced increasing controversy in recent weeks as the government tries to contain the massive oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico.
"I am frustrated that this decision by the Obama administration to halt offshore development for a year will cause more delays and higher costs for domestic oil and gas production to meet the nation's energy needs," Begich said in a statement
Military IN-Charge?
I think the president doesn't have any choice and he better go in, completely take over, perhaps with the military in charge," Nelson said.
"You've got to have BP's cooperation because they've got the technical instruments, but we've got to have somebody take charge. I think the U.S. military is best suited to do that," he said.
A CBS News poll found that 35 percent of Americans surveyed approved of the Obama administration's handling of the oil spill, 45 percent disapproved and 20 percent were undecided.
Republicans eager to make gains on Democrats' majorities in Congress in November have begun to raise questions about whether oversight was lacking.
"The Obama administration approved drilling at this site, approved the oil spill response plan and says it was paying attention," said Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell.
The most immediate concern is stopping the leak. The problem for the White House is that it has no real alternative except to rely on BP's technology and expertise to do it.
That means Obama is forced into an uneasy alliance with BP -- outraged that the leak took place but hopeful that the energy giant can stop it.
A mixed message of sorts has resulted. Interior Secretary Ken Salazar has railed publicly about BP: "Deadline after deadline has been missed ... If we find they're not doing what they're supposed to be doing, we'll push them out of the way appropriately."
However, Coast Guard Admiral Thad Allen, the U.S. disaster response chief, has softened his punches to avoid alienating the company. "They're exhausting every technical means possible to deal with that leak," Allen said.
Presidential historian Thomas Schwartz, a Vanderbilt University professor, said presidencies are often defined by the crises encountered.
He said the oil spill could prove to be a defining crisis but he cautioned against comparing the leak to Katrina, for instance.
"This one has been slowly developing and could have those qualities, but if BP were to suddenly get it capped, things could be defused very quickly. The air could go out of the balloon," Schwartz said.
"You've got to have BP's cooperation because they've got the technical instruments, but we've got to have somebody take charge. I think the U.S. military is best suited to do that," he said.
A CBS News poll found that 35 percent of Americans surveyed approved of the Obama administration's handling of the oil spill, 45 percent disapproved and 20 percent were undecided.
Republicans eager to make gains on Democrats' majorities in Congress in November have begun to raise questions about whether oversight was lacking.
"The Obama administration approved drilling at this site, approved the oil spill response plan and says it was paying attention," said Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell.
The most immediate concern is stopping the leak. The problem for the White House is that it has no real alternative except to rely on BP's technology and expertise to do it.
That means Obama is forced into an uneasy alliance with BP -- outraged that the leak took place but hopeful that the energy giant can stop it.
A mixed message of sorts has resulted. Interior Secretary Ken Salazar has railed publicly about BP: "Deadline after deadline has been missed ... If we find they're not doing what they're supposed to be doing, we'll push them out of the way appropriately."
However, Coast Guard Admiral Thad Allen, the U.S. disaster response chief, has softened his punches to avoid alienating the company. "They're exhausting every technical means possible to deal with that leak," Allen said.
Presidential historian Thomas Schwartz, a Vanderbilt University professor, said presidencies are often defined by the crises encountered.
He said the oil spill could prove to be a defining crisis but he cautioned against comparing the leak to Katrina, for instance.
"This one has been slowly developing and could have those qualities, but if BP were to suddenly get it capped, things could be defused very quickly. The air could go out of the balloon," Schwartz said.
A Nightmare for Obama.
Unlike Hurricane Katrina and its immediate, frightful images of people in crisis, the gushing BP oil well has been a slow-moving behemoth that is now taking a political toll on the president.
Obama was already immersed in a long list of problems -- pushing a financial regulation overhaul, prodding Europe to stem a financial crisis, pressuring Iran and North Korea.
And don't forget the 9.9 percent U.S. jobless rate, two wars and Obama's hopes for immigration and energy legislation before Washington stops for November 2 congressional elections.
Now the greatest environmental calamity since the Exxon Valdez spill in 1989 has fallen into his lap. He declared it "heartbreaking."
"We will not rest until this well is shut, the environment is repaired and the cleanup is complete," Obama said on Wednesday. He makes his second visit to the Gulf on Friday.
The word at the White House is that Obama is frustrated at the delays BP Plc has encountered in stopping the leak. "Plug the damn hole," he has told senior government officials.
And he is feeling heat from some of his own allies to get something done.
James Carville, the Louisiana native and Democratic consultant who helped Bill Clinton get elected in 1992, is known as the "Ragin' Cajun" and here is why:
"Man, you (Obama) got to get down here and take control of this! Put somebody in charge of this thing and get this moving! We're about to die down here!" he told ABC's "Good Morning America."
Florida Democratic Senator Bill Nelson, fearful for his state's coastline, was less bellicose, but just as worried.
He told CNN if a BP "top kill" procedure to stem the leak does not work, then Obama has to order the federal government to take over the operations
Obama was already immersed in a long list of problems -- pushing a financial regulation overhaul, prodding Europe to stem a financial crisis, pressuring Iran and North Korea.
And don't forget the 9.9 percent U.S. jobless rate, two wars and Obama's hopes for immigration and energy legislation before Washington stops for November 2 congressional elections.
Now the greatest environmental calamity since the Exxon Valdez spill in 1989 has fallen into his lap. He declared it "heartbreaking."
"We will not rest until this well is shut, the environment is repaired and the cleanup is complete," Obama said on Wednesday. He makes his second visit to the Gulf on Friday.
The word at the White House is that Obama is frustrated at the delays BP Plc has encountered in stopping the leak. "Plug the damn hole," he has told senior government officials.
And he is feeling heat from some of his own allies to get something done.
James Carville, the Louisiana native and Democratic consultant who helped Bill Clinton get elected in 1992, is known as the "Ragin' Cajun" and here is why:
"Man, you (Obama) got to get down here and take control of this! Put somebody in charge of this thing and get this moving! We're about to die down here!" he told ABC's "Good Morning America."
Florida Democratic Senator Bill Nelson, fearful for his state's coastline, was less bellicose, but just as worried.
He told CNN if a BP "top kill" procedure to stem the leak does not work, then Obama has to order the federal government to take over the operations
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