Long rant on the Gulf Oil Spill (part 1)

[gwynhefar]

Ok, so I haven't said a lot about this other than a few links and random comments, mainly because I was too busy working on helping out and stewing in my own juices.

However, since I *have* been working practically non-stop on this issue since the beginning of May, I know a decent amount about it, and the more I find out the angrier I get.

Let me get one misconception out of the way first. There have been a lot of folks out there calling this Obama's Katrina, criticising his response, and demanding that the federal government take over the cleanup operation from BP. Now, unlike Katrina, in which the federal government knew for days ahead of time what was going to happen and didn't prepare for it, and knew for days afterward what had happened and didn't respond, in this case, the government had no idea this was coming, and yet when it did, they responded immediately.

Of course, *BP* knew that this was coming, or at least that there was a decent chance of it, but that's a different issue entirely.

As for taking over, the federal government *can't* take over without extreme provocation in the form of a complete failure to respond by BP. Let me quote you some relevant passages from the US Code of Federal Regulations (Title 40, Chapter 1, Subchapter J, Part 300 - Appendix):

"Cleanup responsibility for an oil discharge immediately falls on the responsible party, unless the discharge poses a substantial threat to public health or welfare." Now, as devastating as this is, it doesn't quite pose a substantial threat to public health or welfare. To the environment, yes. To the economy, definitely. But people aren't getting sick from this, yet. Moving on:

"If effective actions are not being taken to eliminate the threat, or if removal is not being properly done, the OSC [On-Site Coordinator -- in this case US Coast Guard Rear Admiral Mary Landry] should, to the extent practicable under the circumstances, so advise the responsible party."

The government has done this. They've been riding BP hard. The EPA has demanded that BP change to a less toxic dispersant. BP is being constantly hounded by the federal government. They're on top of it - really. I've been listening in on the press briefings. And finally:

"If the responsible party does not respond properly, the OSC shall take appropriate response actions and should notify the responsible party of the potential liability for federal response costs incurred by the OSC pursuant to the OPA [Oil Pollution Act of 1990] and CWA [Clean Water Act]. Where practicable, continuing efforts should be made to encourage response by responsible parties."

All emphases mine.

Now, has BP "responded properly"? Well that's a matter of opinion. They *are* making an effort, however. But there's a very large reason Obama hasn't taken this final step: notice the word "potential"? Right now, BP is in charge of the cleanup, so BP is paying the bill. If Obama takes over, the federal government (read, the taxpayers) will be paying the bill, at which point the federal government will have the opportunity to sue BP for reimbursement. I don't think I have to tell you how long that will take or how likely it is that all the money spent will be recovered from BP.

Moreover, BP is British Petroleum. They're a UK-based company. This makes it an international incident, and if the US were to completely take over what is essentially a private operation, you can bet they will kick up a fuss, and probably get their government to kick up a fuss as well.

There needs to be some truly *extreme* levels of non-cooperation and incompetence on BP's part documented to justify a government takeover, and we're just not there yet. Could the government do a better job than BP is doing right now? Maybe. But the difference isn't enough to justify usurping BP's property. There are laws in place.