Oil Spill News Clippings 4/20/12

Oil Spill
BP quotes sets off state official
Sun Herald

Trudy Fisher, head of the Mississippi Department of Environmental Quality and a trustee in the BP oil-spill assessment, disagreed with BP’s statement this week that the state’s beaches are 98 percent clean.
http://www.sunherald.com/2012/04/19/3894433/bp-quotes-sets-off-state-official.html

Questions linger
Sun Herald
By KAREN NELSON
GULFPORT -- Two years after the BP Deepwater Horizon explosion, people on the Coast still don’t know the lasting effects of the resulting oil spill on the Gulf of Mexico.
http://www.sunherald.com/2012/04/19/v-print/3894445/questions-linger.html

The BP money
BP has pledged or given to Mississippi:
n $34 million for tourism
n $5 million for seafood testing and marketing
n $515 million in claims to people and businesses
n $5 million in government claims
n $75 million to the state, which also distributed it to cities and counties.
n $100 million for early restoration projects
n $12 million for behavioral-health initiative
The company estimates is has spent a total of $14 billion across the northern Gulf for spill response and pledged $500 million to scientific research of the Gulf and funded additional ad campaigns to attract tourism.
If the Restore Act passes, 80 percent of the Clean Water Act violations the company pays, estimated to be $20 billion, will go to the four states of the northern Gulf.
http://www.sunherald.com/2012/04/19/v-print/3894448/the-bp-money.html

The spill’s scope
n 4,374: Total miles surveyed by responders
n 1,097: Miles affected by oil
n 635: miles of shoreline that required cleaning
n 19.3 million: Gallons of oily liquid collected
n 96,300 tons: Amount of oily solid waste collected
-- BP
http://www.sunherald.com/2012/04/19/v-print/3894465/the-spills-scope.html

Two Years After the Oil Spill, Gulf Coast Residents Dealing with Legal and Health Issues
MPB
Published by Rhonda Miller on 19 Apr 2012 08:45pm
It was two years ago today the Deepwater Horizon exploded, killing 11 people and spewing more than 200 million gallons of oil into the Gulf of Mexico. Now, a federal judge in New Orleans is considering a proposed settlement that will require BP to pay nearly eight-Billion-dollars. MPB’s Rhonda Miller reports thousands of Mississippi residents are eligible for the settlement that will cover loss of income and medical claims.
http://mpbonline.org/News/article/two_years_after_the_bp_oil_spill_gulf_coast_residents_dealing_with_legal_an

Gulf states coalition will lobby for BP money
Sun Herald
By MELISSA M. SCALLAN
BILOXI -- Elected officials from states along the Gulf have formed a group to lobby Congress for money from the BP oil disaster.
http://www.sunherald.com/2012/04/19/v-print/3894452/gulf-states-coalition-will-lobby.html

2 years later, fish sick near BP oil spill site
AP
By CAIN BURDEAU
Open sores. Parasitic infections. Chewed-up-looking fins. Gashes. Mysterious black streaks. Two years after the drilling-rig explosion that touched off the biggest offshore oil spill in U.S. history, scientists are beginning to suspect that fish in the Gulf of Mexico are suffering the effects of the petroleum.
http://www.sunherald.com/2012/04/19/v-print/3891820/scientists-fish-are-sick-where.html

FDA: Gulf seafood safe despite oil spill concerns
AP
By LAURAN NEERGAARD
Photos of fish with sores may raise concern about long-term environmental effects of the massive BP oil spill - but federal health officials say the Gulf seafood that's on the market is safe to eat.
http://www.sunherald.com/2012/04/20/v-print/3894641/fda-gulf-seafood-safe-despite.html
AP photographer describes Gulf oil spill then, now
AP
By GERALD HERBERT
I had been taking pictures of the BP oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico for about a month before I made my first visit to Cat Island on May 22, 2010. I will never forget what I saw there.
http://www.sunherald.com/2012/04/20/v-print/3894727/ap-photographer-describes-gulf.html

2 year later: What’s the latest with the oil spill since 200 million gallons spewed into Gulf?
By Associated Press, Published: April 19
NEW ORLEANS — Two years have passed since the April 20, 2010, blowout of BP’s Macondo well triggered an explosion on the Deepwater Horizon drilling rig in the Gulf of Mexico, killing 11 workers and spawning the nation’s worst offshore oil spill.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/national/energy-environment/2-year-later-whats-the-latest-with-the-oil-spill-since-200-million-gallons-spewed-into-gulf/2012/04/19/gIQA5SB0TT_print.html

Groups sue EPA, Coast Guard over dispersants use
By DAN JOLING
Associated Press
ANCHORAGE, Alaska—Three environmental groups are taking aim at how federal agencies approve dispersants to break up oil spills in marine waters.
http://www.mercurynews.com/breaking-news/ci_20436066/groups-sue-epa-coast-guard-over-dispersants-use

Council moves to cover deep ditches, apply for oil spill losses
By Jeremy Pittari
The Picayune Item
PICAYUNE —The council also approved a motion to enter into an agreement with Scott M. Farve to represent the city in possibly filing a claim against British Petroleum for loss of revenue associated with the Gulf oil spill. City Operations Manager Harvey Miller said that based on what other cities have received after submitting similar claims, Picayune could be awarded between $545,814 to $710,899 for loss of revenue.
http://picayuneitem.com/local/x192351315/Council-moves-to-cover-deep-ditches-apply-for-oil-spill-losses

Mobile, Baldwin counties file lawsuits against BP over oil spill
Published: Thursday, April 19, 2012, 6:16 PM     Updated: Thursday, April 19, 2012, 6:27 PM
By Katherine Sayre, Press-Register
MOBILE, Alabama -- Mobile County, Baldwin County, Dauphin Island and Bayou La Batre filed lawsuits in federal court today against BP PLC over the 2010 oil spill, even though settlement negotiations are continuing, according to a lawyer for the local governments.
http://blog.al.com/live/2012/04/mobile_baldwin_counties_file_l.html

Gulf Coast dunes to be restored in aftermath of BP oil spill
Published: Friday, April 20, 2012, 5:25 AM     Updated: Friday, April 20, 2012, 7:29 AM
By Kathy Jumper, Press-Register
GULF SHORES, Alabama -- Early restoration of more than 55 acres of dune habitat on the Gulf Coast could start soon after the two-year anniversary of the BP oil spill, according to state and local officials on Thursday.
http://blog.al.com/live/2012/04/gulf_coast_dunes_to_be_restore.html

NWF: Impact of the Gulf oil disaster may be with us for decades
WWL
Don Ames Reporting

It was two years ago that the Deepwater Horizon explosion began the largest oil spill in U.S. history, releasing huge quantities of oil into the Gulf.http://www.wwl.com/pages/12896556.php?contentType=4&contentId=10444150

Experts at FSU have been conducting research on the BP oil spill's impact
Tallahassee Democrat
Scientists studying the Deepwater Horizon oil spill are convinced that it will be years until the full effects of the disaster are fully understood.
http://www.tallahassee.com/article/20120420/NEWS01/204200325/Experts-FSU-been-conducting-research-BP-oil-spill-s-impact?odyssey=tab|topnews|text|frontpage&nclick_check=1

Two Years after BP Rig Explosion, Florida Rebounds
By: Michael Peltier News Service of Florida
Posted: April 20, 2012 3:55 AM

Two years after an explosion killed 11 workers and sent oil spewing into the Gulf of Mexico, BP has paid nearly $2.7 billion in claims to Florida businesses and individuals for damages caused by the worst spill in U.S. history.http://www.sunshinestatenews.com/story/two-years-after-bp-rig-explosion-florida-rebounding

$64M more coming for spill claims
AP
By MICHAEL KUNZELMAN and CAIN BURDEAU
NEW ORLEANS -- Roughly 7,300 residents and businesses harmed by the 2010 oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico will get more than $64 million in additional payments because their claims with BP’s $20 billion compensation fund were shortchanged or wrongfully denied, the Justice Department announced Thursday.
http://www.sunherald.com/2012/04/19/v-print/3894449/64m-more-coming-for-spill-claims.html

Two years after BP oil spill, offshore drilling still poses risks
Washington Post
By Steven Mufson,
Two years after a blowout on BP’s Macondo well killed 11 men and triggered the largest oil spill in U.S. history, oil companies are again plying the waters of the Gulf of Mexico.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/business/economy/two-years-after-bp-oil-spill-offshore-drilling-still-poses-risks/2012/04/19/gIQAHOkDUT_print.html

2 Years After BP Oil Spill, Some Anxiety Remains
Video
http://www.washingtonpost.com/national/energy-environment/2-years-after-bp-oil-spill-some-anxiety-remains/2012/04/20/gIQA9xOuUT_video.html

Deepwater Horizon's fierce lessons
Op-Ed - Politico
By: Michael R. Bromwich
April 20, 2012 04:37 AM EDT
Two years ago Friday, the Deepwater Horizon offshore oil-drilling rig was the scene of a devastating accident that killed 11 people, injured scores of others and led to a massive oil spill that created the largest environmental disaster in U.S. history.
http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0412/75386.html

A Stain That Won’t Wash Away
Op-Ed – NY Times
By ABRAHM LUSTGARTEN
San Francisco
TWO years after a series of gambles and ill-advised decisions on a BP drilling project led to the largest accidental oil spill in United States history and the death of 11 workers on the Deepwater Horizon oil rig, no one has been held accountable.
http://www.nytimes.com/2012/04/20/opinion/a-stain-that-wont-wash-away.html?_r=1

The lessons we learned from Deepwater disaster
Op-Ed
By James A. Watson
Updated 06:54 p.m., Thursday, April 19, 2012
Two years ago, as the crew of the Deepwater Horizon drilled into a massive new oil find deep under the Gulf of Mexico, the seemingly unthinkable happened: One of the most technologically advanced drill rigs in the world, valued at $560 million and commanded by professionals and engineers with decades of training, exploded and sunk after a series of catastrophic failures.
http://www.chron.com/opinion/outlook/article/The-lessons-we-learned-from-Deepwater-disaster-3495909.php

The Gulf Spill: BP Still Doesn't Get It
Op-Ed – Forbes
This is a guest post by John Bell, the former CEO of Jacobs Suchard, which is now part of Kraft Foods. He keeps a blog called “In the CEO Afterlife.”
Two years have now passed since the explosion at BP’s deep-water rig in the Gulf of Mexico, on April 20, 2010. In the aftershock, the world watched BP and its chief executive, Tony Hayward, make blunder after blunder while their crude continued to gush, literally and figuratively. BP’s talk about caring for the environment was for naught, as its actions failed to match its message.
http://www.forbes.com/sites/frederickallen/2012/04/20/the-gulf-spill-bp-still-doesnt-get-it/