deepwater horizon
Oceana Joins Senators in Opposition to New Drilling
Oceana CEO Andy Sharpless joined three Senators at a press conference on the oil spill yesterday, and he called on President Obama and Congress to ban new offshore drilling.
"I will make it short and to the point," said Senator Bill Nelson (D-Florida). "The president's proposal for offshore drilling is dead on arrival.” Senator Nelson was joined by New Jersey Democratic Senators Frank Lautenberg and Robert Menendez.
The Senators also vowed to keep new oil drilling provisions out of any climate change legislation that comes out of the Senate, and Senator Menendez has introduced new legislation to raise the limit on the amount of money oil companies could be forced to pay for economic damages from catastrophic oil spills.
The Spill: What You Can Do
As the first reports of wildlife covered in oil come in, several of you have contacted or commented asking how you can help with the recovery efforts in the Gulf.
Here’s a list of places you can volunteer, let us know in the comments if you have heard of other organizations accepting/needing volunteers.
- You can register through OilSpillVolunteers.com to volunteer or join a cleanup organization.
- The Coalition to Restore Coastal Louisiana (CRCL) is accepting volunteers. Register on their website.
- The Mobile Baykeeper is asking for volunteers. Call 251-433-4229.
- The Audubon Society is looking for help. You can report oiled wildlife at 1-866-557-1401. To report areas with oil ashore or to leave contact information to volunteer in the affected areas, call 1-866-448-5816.
- The BP Volunteer Hotline has set up numbers if you need to report injured wildlife or damage related to the spill. You can also request volunteer information at 866-448-5816.
Offshore Drilling at Any Cost?
The latest accident on the Deepwater Horizon offshore drilling rig couldn't have come at a more significant time for the efforts to pass comprehensive climate change and energy legislation. With Senate plans to expand and even incentivize offshore drilling, this accident serves as a reminder of how costly offshore drilling truly is.
Despite advances in drilling technology and all of the precautions made, drilling is a high risk business and even the newest technology cannot prevent all spills. Fires, explosions and accidents are more common than they would like you to believe. New technology advances have pushed the envelope for drilling efforts. Expanding drilling activities into these “frontier” areas only increases the risk.
Take away for the moment the immediate danger to personnel on the rigs and look at the potential environmental and economic costs to coastal towns relying on fishing and tourism. Oceana's federal policy director, Beth Lowell discussed the dangers last night on NBC Nightly News:
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