Here's this interesting news story from Politico about the anger within the White House towards BP:
The White House has become increasingly angry with BP, which initially assured administration officials the spill would be no greater than 1,000 barrels per day; estimates now range from 12,000 to 19,000 barrels a day.
And Obama’s team was incensed that the company kept them in the dark for a half-day last week after suspending their unsuccessful "Top Kill" efforts to plus the leak with mud and dross.
I didn't know that the government was kept in the dark by BP for a half-day after the Top Kill effort initially was suspended. This is confusing though, because it's been said that there are federal scientists and officials right there in the control room. How can the White House be kept in the dark for a half-day? How is that possible?
BP also has made it harderfor the National Flow Rate Task Force to come up with an upper boundary estimate of the oil spill, which is why the present estimate of 12,000 to 19,000 barrels per day is a lowball estimate at the moment. We don't know yet if BP has provided higher-quality video data to the scientific team in order for them to finish their estimate of the oil spill.
Let us remember, it is in the interests of BP to lie and to obfuscate the truth, so they work to reduce their culpability and liability risk in this oil spill. It is not in their interest to provide full data access to the public or to the government, unless so compelled. It's why this provision in the Clean Water Act should be enacted on quickly by the U.S. Coast Guard and the Incident Commander:
And by the way, the Incident Commander’s powers extend to forcing BP to make information public. Section 311(m) of the Clean Water Act, found at 33 U.S. Code Section 1321(m)(2), provides that:
A) Recordkeeping. Whenever required to carry out the purposes of this section, the Administrator or the Secretary of the Department in which the Coast Guard is operating shall require the owner or operator of a facility to which this section applies to establish and maintain such records, make such reports, install, use, and maintain such monitoring equipment and methods, and provide such other information as the Administrator or Secretary, as the case may be, may require to carry out the objectives of this section.
(B) Entry and inspection. Whenever required to carry out the purposes of this section, the Administrator or the Secretary of the Department in which the Coast Guard is operating or an authorized representative of the Administrator or Secretary, upon presentation of appropriate credentials, may-- (i) enter and inspect any facility to which this section applies, including any facility at which any records are required to be maintained under subparagraph (A); and
(ii) at reasonable times, have access to and copy any records, take samples, and inspect any monitoring equipment or methods required under subparagraph (A).
So, Admiral Allen can tell BP to "make such reports" as he sees fit, for example an analysis of the chemical composition of the leaking oil, and may have copies of those reports and of any samples that BP takes, for example of dispersant levels in the water.
It's time for the federal government to actually empower itself with the authority already granted to it by federal laws. There is no excuse for the government being kept in the dark (for a half-day) by such a stupid corporation like BP.
It's heart-breaking to think of the ramifications of the continuance of the oil spill until August, when the relief wells will finally come online. I am a South Texan, and I have fond memories of visiting the Gulf with my family---especially to South Padre Island, where we rode giant yellow banana floats on the water, played mini-golf, raced each other in bumper cars, and roasted marshmallows against the roar of the waves on the sand late at night.
This is something that I likely might never enjoy with the children in the Gulf that my husband and I are planning to have. We would have to look elsewhere for an ocean that's not plagued by our stupidity and corporate greed, and I don't know if such an ocean would exist five years from now if we continue with what we're currently doing.
It's horrifying to think about. We need a new change in our energy approach, bold leadership, and that calls for big steps, rather than small steps.
It's why we need to support great progressive legislation like the Clean Coasts and Effective Cars of 2010 by Senator Sanders. Here's how you can take action in supporting the permanent moratorium on offshore drilling, and focusing on increasing our fuel energy standards here in the U.S. to the equivalent of what is taking place in Europe.