Ian Urbina at The New York Times writes:
In the days since President Obama announced a moratorium on permits for drilling new offshore oil wells and a halt to a controversial type of environmental waiver that was given to the Deepwater Horizon rig, at least seven new permits for various types of drilling and five environmental waivers have been granted, according to records.
The records also indicate that since the April 20 explosion on the rig, federal regulators have granted at least 19 environmental waivers for gulf drilling projects and at least 17 drilling permits, most of which were for types of work like that on the Deepwater Horizon shortly before it exploded, pouring a ceaseless current of oil into the Gulf of Mexico.
Asked about the permits and waivers, officials at the Department of the Interior and the Minerals Management Service, which regulates drilling, pointed to public statements by Interior Secretary Ken Salazar, reiterating that the agency had no intention of stopping all new oil and gas production in the gulf.
Department of the Interior officials said in a statement that the moratorium was meant only to halt permits for the drilling of new wells. It was not meant to stop permits for new work on existing drilling projects like the Deepwater Horizon.
= = =
[The green diary rescue begins below and continues in the jump. Inclusion of a particular diary does not necessarily indicate my agreement with it. The GDR appears on Thursdays and Sundays.]
Above is one of the photos with which Eddie C beautified the site in his Friday Evening Photo Blogging: Wave Hill Edition.
Gangster Octopus was delighted to learn that Tesla, Toyota Team Up to Create 1,000 Jobs: "'In a stunning deal, Tesla Motors announced late Thursday that it is teaming up with Toyota to build its all-electric Model S sedan at the recently shuttered NUMMI plant in Fremont, creating more than 1,000 new jobs.'"
Food, Agriculture & Gardening
gravlax told us about a White House plan to Feed the Future: "On Thursday, the Obama administration made an announcement outlining the best ways to maximize the effectiveness of the $22 billion that the U.S. government and other G8 countries pledged at the G8 Summit in L'Aquila, Italy, in July 2009 to "increase food production, improve access to food and empower smallholder farmers to gain access to enhanced inputs, technologies, credit and markets." The first objective is to meet the Millenium Development Goal of reducing global hunger and poverty in half by 2015. The plan targets 20 countries in Africa, Asia, South and Central America for aid."
S/he also wrote about how Avoiding Deforestation There Helps Farmers Here: "Illegal logging is often the partner and instigator of agriculture in causing deforestation. Loggers clear the forest without concern for the sustainability of their operations. There is no replanting and there is no attempt to clear only a section of trees."
wide eyed lib was out shaking the bushes in Free Food: Foraging Sometimes Means Waiting: "One of the frustrating things about foraging is how dependent it is on timing. You might notice blackberry blossoms (Rubus fruticosus) in May but then find the berries bug-eaten in August. The shorter the harvest period, the more likely you are to miss the window. Black locust blossoms (Robinia pseudoacacia) are at their peak for just about a week; a heavy rainfall at the wrong time can shorten that window by half. Then there's the heartache of happening upon a huge crop of mushrooms just a little too late.
indubitably alerted us future farmers to the Transitions Incentives Program: "The USDA's Transitions Incentives Program is a new program that might be of interest to you if you're seriously interested in farming."
Bcgntn urged us to think about what we're eating and what it does to us and the planet in Meet the Meatrix: "If you choose, to meet The Meatrix and Learn About the Issues, you may want to Take Action. What can you do? If you wish to, Spread the word. At least, consider what you eat, where it came from, and what sacrifices were made for your breakfast, lunch, snack(s), or dinner."
Frankenoid was up at the cool crack of dawn again with her Saturday Morning Garden Blogging Vol. 6.13: "I've buds on a bunch of iris in the back yard -- they're up for division this year, but I'm not sure what is where on most of them. A lot of them didn't bloom last year -- I hope those do bloom this year so I can figure out what to keep all of, and which divisions can be shared. The iris at the end of the diary is one I bought last year, too -- but I didn't get it off the sale rack."
Energy & Transportation
dansac reported that Obama Signs Significant Executive Order to Raise Fuel Standards: "A major event took place this morning on the White House lawn that should not be overlooked: President Obama signed an important executive order that will, for the very first time, create national emission and fuel standards for large trucks."
RLMiller warned about Shell: A Less Bad Polluter, or SHell on Earth?: "Shell has offered new reassurances that its Chukchi Sea drilling will be safer. It'll have a cofferdam, with special methane-hydrate protections, onsite. And Shell would be ready to apply dispersal agents below water "at the source of any oil flow" after "all necessary permits are acquired." Read Shell's letter (5 page pdf) promising "a program that meets the highest operational and environmental standards." After all, what could go wrong with exploratory drilling in turbulent waters, heavy fog and shifting ice hundreds of miles from deep-water ports?"
That was the same subject that hester discussed in TIME OUT for Arctic Drilling: Action Diary: "The plans to drill in the Arctic, specifically Beaufort and Chukchi seas in early July are still in place. Those areas are the habitats of: eiders, bowhead whales, walruses, polar bears. Although the administration stopped oil and gas leasing in Bristol Bay until further study, it didn't change the Bush-era oil and gas leases in the northern Alaskan coast's Chukchi Sea. Further study is needed before such exploration should continue."
Villagejonesy would like to see government-owned General Motors up the ante by Using the Oil Spill to Push Hybrids and Electric Cars: "'m right in thinking that the US Government still owns 61% of General Motors, right? ... Can we now overhaul our entire conception of oil use? Can we push for electric cars in all our cities yet? Can we use our stewardship of GM to push them to bring back the electric car they killed? Or to make more hybrids, such as those that Toyota has eaten some niche lunch with?"
But superflat said wait-a-minute in the diary, Cars Suck: "People can't think outside the box when it comes to cars. Somehow cars have become necessary, even when there are obvious alternatives. Or, Americans find cars romantic and/or nostalgic. But our fascination with these absurdly inefficient devices has got to stop."
worldforallpeopleorg was anything but delighted to learn about Coal Plants in Paradise: ""The newest proposal will build the coal plant...on an undeveloped beach overlooking the Coral Triangle, one of the world's most biodiverse marine environments, with transmission lines likely running through nearby pristine rainforest that are home to several endangered species, including orangutans and Bornean rhinos."
Sarah Laskow for The Media Consortium wrote Weekly Mulch: BP Oil Hits Louisiana—But How Far Away is the Next Disaster?: "But a new report, which combs over the oil industry as a whole, shows that 'BP can’t be singled out,' writes Public News Service. The report 'found that operating errors and incidents around the globe are more common than the public likely realizes because most events don't make the news.'"
In the Sunday Train series, BruceMcF gave us the inside skinny on Getting Ohio's 3C Line Into Cincinnati: "Cincinnati has a bit of a reputation as a place that local transit project proposals go to die. Indeed, Cincinnati has the distinction of the longest subway system that was build but never used.However, that may be changing, with a recent local ballot initiative designed to kill the proposed Cincinnati Streetcar project going down to defeat, and then more recently an announcement that Cincinnati has assembled $86.5m for the project, with about another $40m to go."
gmoke posed a Thought Experiment: Fastfood Containers Recycled into Solar Devices: "With a little imagination, instead of becoming trash, fast food containers could recycle into solar devices."
KAMuston offered some background on how coal got started as a big energy source in CLEANING UP ON COAL: "Humans adapted the best word they already had to describe the burning stone; that word was charcoal. And since the rock was first recognized washed up on beaches near Durham along the Scottish border, they called it sea-coal. It was so rare that it was a prized New Years' gift long before there was a Christmas amongst the Saxon savages. Its fire was so smoky that thieves carried chunks of it with them to conceal their crimes and escapes. Other than as a smoke screen, it had little practical use. But as the forests of England were chopped down for palaces and fleets, and wood became expensive, the peasants turned to heating their miserable huts with sea-coal. And that is when things started to heat up."
Horace Boothroyd III had some stats on bird kill in Wildlife Wind and Oil: "According to some statistics automobiles cause 60 to 80 million bird deaths a year. Compare that to the estimated 10,000 to 40,000 killed by turbines and the argument against the relative ecological safety of wind power is quite weak."
terryhallinan praised the expansion of his favorite energy source in Colossal Growth of Geothermal Power: "Even the usual laggard, America, is beginning to move mostly with foreign funding. The U.S. is the leading geothermal power producer but only because of a single storied pioneer from half a century ago. B.C. McCabe brought in The Geysers and had it stolen from him by vultures who neglected and abused it for decades. At half its peak power production, The Geysers yet remains the world's largest geothermal power producer."
Waxing a bit snarky, dpwks explained about Solar linear clothes dryer technology: "This is a technology banned by restrictive covenants in much of the U.S. Why? Because it's considered 'unsightly.'"
Animals
lineatus was up early for some photos in the Dawn Chorus Birdblog: "Anyway, Dawn Chorus will be a bit sporadic over the next few months, more off than on. I need a bit of downtime and will be stepping away from the rest of DKos altogether for a month or two. My inclination is to just disappear away for a while, but there's such a nice group of people hanging out here on Sunday mornings that it wouldn't feel right to just vanish."
Politicians
wade norris announced an endorsement in The Next Dem. Primary Senate Candidate You Should Know About: " I am proud to announce that Andrew Romanoff became the first candidate to be endorsed by the Daily Kos Greenroots community."
Eco-Philosophy, Eco-Policy & Eco-Action
Friday Night at the Movies discussed black gold in its supporting role in various films in Friday Night at the Movies: Oil: "Giant won a best director Oscar and James Dean and Rock Hudson (who was underestimated as an actor, I think) and Mercedes McCambridge were all nominated for acting Oscars. There Will Be Blood, of course, won two Oscars, including one for Daniel Day-Lewis (and one for Cinematography). To my taste, a more enjoyable film was 1983's Local Hero. It is full of moments of great lyrical beauty, as a Houston "wheeler and dealer" tries to buy a beach on which to build a refinery."
DWG had not much good to say about a certain Interior bureau in Baked Alaska: Minerals Management Stupidity: "The U.S. Inspector General issued a report in April that raised serious concerns about the continuing lack of objective standards for scientific conduct at the Department of Interior. These concerns come as reports have surfaced of scientists raising objections to drilling plans under review by the MMS only to be overruled by managers."
CheeseMoose saw the BP spill as slamming the door on future offshore drilling in the diary, Sh*t Happens. Does It Have To Happen In Our Oceans?: "But in denying blame, these oil executives inadvertently make the case that offshore drilling must be banned. If a fuck-up of these proportions can happen without it being anyone's fault - then offshore drilling is simply too risky to be allowed. Case closed."
michlawa2 spread the blame in The Problem is YOU: "his will be the most unpopular blog ever I am sure. But it is about time someone gave you some tough love. It is You that awakens daily and consumes the world. It is You that drives your SUV around town complaining about the cost of gas. It is You that orders lobster and crab and tuna and insert exotic fish here that helps deplete our oceans. It is You that consumes all this fast food that plagues America, increasing obesity, heart diseases, and global warming! Methane gas from cows, clear-cutting of the rain-forests....this is not they or them but YOU! [It is] You that uses plastic for everything. It is You that loves your plasma tv sets, your internet, your smartphone, your Iphone and Ipad... It doesn't take an oil spill. You do it daily, have done it daily since you were conceived you destroyer of Nature."
mark louis did some of the same in Let's Get Real About the Oil Spill: "Sure, you can criticize the feds for a lack of oversight, and you can blame BP for cutting corners and not taking the steps necessary to ensure safety. But they are not the only ones complicit in this disaster. The fact is, we are all complicit."
And so did disrael in Its the Oil Stupid (not just the leaking oil): "Bottleneck analysis. If you are on fire your only concern is to put the fire out. If you are dying of thirst your only concern is finding water. And if you are an American during a global sovereign debt crisis, all of economics suddenly boils down to one fact: America consumes 19 million barrels of oil a day and produces around 8 (including ethanol). 71% of this consumption is for transportation so there is, for now, no quick substitute. The need to each and every day convince the rest of the world to give us 11 million barrels of oil drives our entire economy. And now our main tool for securing other people's oil, debt, is globally in jeopardy."
From the point of view of RhymesWithUrple, coverage of oilmageddon put another story on the back pages, as he wrote in Under Cover of Darkness: How BP Gusher Covers Much More Than the Gulf: "But the BP gusher is not just blanketing the Gulf in oil and coating the headlines in the MSM with sweet crude. This catastrophe has also given the House Armed Forces Committee a "Cover of Darkness," an all-expenses-paid, media-blackout-pass on the bill that just cleared committee on Wednesday - UNANIMOUSLY. Yup, not a word of dissent - the bill passed by a 59-0 vote. The bill which prohibits the President from moving forward on closing Guantanamo Bay Naval Base."
Union leader Leo W Gerard explained how some Safety Awards Endanger Workers’ Lives: "BP, Massey Energy and Tessoro are all using their safety award plaques like shields to deflect accusations of recklessness. The disconnect between safety prizes and dead workers has enabled these corporations to characterize the three explosions at their facilities in April that killed 47 workers as accidents, random events for which no one really is to blame. That’s why these pseudo-safety awards are so destructive."
cherbear explained how a certain Senate candidate has a different view of accidents in Rand Paul on Miner deaths: "accidents happen".
Round-ups, Wrap-ups & Digests
eKos: Greenroots Candidates Selection Thread, eKos Saturday: "I present to you the newly created DK Greenroots ActBlue page!"
eKos: eKos Earthship Friday: "WarrenS made a New Year's Resolution to write a letter advocating climate action every day. The result is over one hundred letters to congresspeople, newspapers, President Obama, and more. Warren has even been published in the New York Times and the Boston Globe."
Patriot Daily News Clearinghouse: Cheney's BP Energy Extremes Must End: " Extreme sports are known for activities that have a high level of inherent dangers. Cheney and Bush adopted this extreme philosophy into our energy policy in 2001 because the U.S. is 'running out of conventional, easily tapped reservoirs of oil and natural gas located on land or in shallow coastal waters.' Cheney's solution was to increase drilling in what BP has called the new 'energy frontiers.'"
mark louis: Alternative Energy Round-Up: "A big solar investment is coming to the southwestern U.S."
Climate Change
A Siegel wondered aloud What happens when we run out of canaries?: "Yet more evidence of the cascading impacts of climate change on eco-systems around the world and the global eco-system's ability to sustain modern human civilization, scientists have laid out how Lake Tanganyika is heating at an unprecedented rate (at least of 1500 years of scientific analysis) and that this heating is driving down productivity."
Dixiedemocrat repeated what we all know even when we whistle in the dark
in the diary, Climate Change: THE game changer: " How do you have global cooperation in something that REQUIRES fundamental changes to everyones' lives? How do you do that globally and in what political perspective? This is why I am scared."
hold tight talked about what's happening up north in I didn't run today: "I am here to tell you that Global Climate Change is occurring. In spite of our non-existent spring this year in Montana, last month (April) was the warmest global average temperature on record, and January-April temperatures were the warmest, on average, ever. In spite of unusual snowfall in the Northeastern U.S. this past winter, snow cover in North America was the least ever recorded this past winter. The year 2010 is predicted to be the warmest year on record."
shpilk talked about ice, or the lack of it in While we look at the Gulf, the Arctic does its thing: "Record low area of ocean with at least 15% ice recorded for May 19th."
The Gulf Gusher
innereye: Drill Baby Drill - The Most Disturbing Video on the Internet:
FishOutofWater: 9 Scariest Words "I'm From BP and I'm Here to Help": "New Orleans drowning while George Bush played air guitar was the culmination of 25 years of Reaganism and Chicago school economics. People pleaded for government help as the waters rose. Help did not come. Local heroes saved thousands then were called looters when they salvaged food and water to save themselves. We came to know Reagan-Bush Republicanism by its strange fruits as maggots crawled on bloated black bodies. Now we witness the fruits of Reaganism in the natural environment as the northern Gulf of Mexico suffocates under a witches brew of oil, gas and chemical dispersants."
Verbalpaintball: The Best Green Solution for Mopping Up the Oil Disaster: "Above is a link I received that, the more you think about it, is a pretty sharp solution. Now, do we have enough hay to cover the miles of oil that are currently out there? I don't know. But in addition to Costner's machine (which may take some time to mass produce) these two guys might be on to something."
rockfish: Gulf Oil Spill: Parallel vs. Serial: "Given the magnitude of the this spill, a better approach would be to say "Give me your 5 best ideas. Here's a suitcase full of money to build all of these right now and get them out to the site ASAP. Now, give me your next 5 best ideas and let's get started on those." That is what I mean by parallel. Have multiple lines of attack being worked on at the same time."
Fishgrease: Fishgrease: Booming the Top Kill: "BP is going to try to END this leak, probably this weekend. They're going to use a procedure called Top Kill. I'm writing this diary to explain that procedure so you know what to watch for in the next few days. But there's a problem. I DON'T UNDERSTAND IT! GAH! But let's face it. That's not that big of a problem. In terms of whether it will work or not -- whether or not it will stop this horrid leak, Comrade Fishgrease understanding this procedure is of zero consequence. None. It's not going to matter. There is, however, another problem: NO ONE ELSE UNDERSTANDS IT!!! INCLUDING BP!!! BIGGER GAH!"
yuriwho: Saving the Gulf: Forget the Top Kill: "BP is in a race against time vs. the well and erosion. If they just wait for the relief wells they may be able to shut it off in 2-4 months. As they wait, the leak gets worse due to abrasion at the BOP and the leak directly above the BOP & riser package where the riser tubing is kinked at >90'. The well is flowing under high pressure with sand from the formation that is going to make the leak(volcano) worse over time."
Vetwife: A way to handle the oil and unemployed: "My idea is this. Put respirators, environmental protective gear on people needing jobs and take over the BP mess. Get people on the job to do this work and make BP pay and pay well."
Shocko from Seattle: Exxon, BP, and my personal boycott: "For better and mostly worse, I'm a guy who can hold a grudge. A hair over 50 (or hairless and over 50), and I've never once had a McDonald's hamburger. Not once. Now, in fairness, I have eaten their fake chicken nuggets a couple times in hours of need, and sometimes on long trips we get our daughter soft serve ice cream (only it's not ice cream, is it?) cones there, or, occasionally, yogurt parfaits. But never a hamburger."
Kristina40: Sorry Sarah, money can't fix this. Updated: Sarah and WH trade jabs: "I live on the Gulf Coast. I'm angry and I'm sad and I simply don't want to hear anymore from these stupid, stupid people. This morning it finally occurred to me what is wrong with people like Sarah - They think money can fix everything. It cannot."
caerbannog: Worthless lowlife GOP congressperson smears climate scientists at a House hearing.: Clip of Rep. Marsha Blackburn.
inforet: Its NOT the Carville, Stupid! its the GULF!: "Let me be clear, I can't stand windbags like Carville. I couldn't stand him when he was in the Clinton administration and I cant stand him now."
The Apathetic Militant: Mr President, It's time to own the Gulf Crisis: "I actually understand not taking the lead on the Gulf Oil spill initially. It made political sense. BP fucked it up, BP should take responsibility for it. If the administration had put its face on the disaster to early the press and a large part of America would likely have made Obama the scapegoat. But now it's time to put his hands in the muck."
davidseth: Is This Obama's Katrina? Nice Work, Kenny.: "Exactly how far does BP have to go, how many times does it have to blunder and fail and make excuses while it tries to preserve its investment in the leaking well, before the US pushes BP out of the way and stops the leak that is now destroying the Gulf of Mexico? Apparently, pretty damn far."
MediaFreeze: Man, Get Your Act Together!: A photo editorial.
NedSparks: With All Due Respect, James Carville Is No Expert On Oil Spills: "...no one has ever described this effective Democratic advocate as an oceanographer or an expert on catastrophic oil spills. Though we value his opinion as we value the opinion of many in a society that venerates the concept of freedom of speech; his opinion, nevertheless, as it relates to the devastating oil spill, which is currently swirling in the Gulf of Mexico, is simply conjecture."
windje: "...reality must take precedence over public relations, for nature cannot be fooled.": "So closes the appendix authored by Richard Feynman in the report of the commission on the Challenger disaster, and like BP, NASA was criticized for its lack of openness with the press. ...Ronald Reagan appointed Richard Feynman to the Challenger Commission. His televised experiment dunking a section of O-Ring into ice water led to the truth of what caused that accident. Less well known is his criticism of the engineering process at NASA. President Obama - Who on the BP Commission will be your Richard Feynman?"
spinors: Cleanup the Oil if you have to Bankrupt BP: "They are just some oil company. The effect of their loss in the free market couldn't nearly bring down our global financial system like what almost happened in September of '08 following the downfall of Lehman. What's dragging Obama's feet in putting every frick'n responsibility on the company that is devastating not only environmental habitats, but whole economies?!"
dov12348: Obama Snaps Into High Gear on Oil Crisis: "And I bet that report will be five hundred -- nay -- a thousand pages! The most massive tome ever published by the government."
jovie131: Chris Matthews and Carville really want that Katrina Moment!: "The MSM have gotten there orders! Make no mistake, Carville and Matthews coming out in the same week, slamming the Obama adminsistration for not doing enough with the oil spill! WTF!? Really? Well, according to these Media experts, we should put a submarine down there and FIX this Leak! HA! Nice one Matthews!"
inforet: Obama's true concern about the Gulf: "You really have to have spent time in the gulf region, Florida keys, marshlands and wetlands to experience the uniqueness of the vegetation and wildlife, and how its one of the few regions truly rich in fauna and birdlife left in the US, in order to realize what a tragedy this is."
Badabing: Carville Slams Obama on BP - 'Naive and Lackadaisical': "James Carville, rightfully has slammed President Obama for his 'lackadaisical' response the the endless catastrophic oil spill that continues day after day, with no 'answers in sight.' Good for you James, because I think that is exactly what most Americans are feeling too. How long is this going to allowed to go on, before President Obama plays some hardball with BP?"
KingofSpades: Bob Graham, William Reilly to Lead Oil Spill Investigation Commissio: "Former Senator, Governor Bob Graham (D-FL) and former EPA Administrator William Reilly have been chosen to lead a presidential commission to investigate the Gulf of Mexico oil spill."
DM4: Month after oil spill, why is BP still in charge?.
Vtdblue: Perceptions: "It a long way to the 2010 and 2012 elections, but this is a disaster that will keep on giving for the next 10 years or more. In a volatile, dangerous context of anti-incumbent resentment and continued joblessness, it is time for far more urgent action by the White House, both to better inoculate it and the Democratic Party from the growing political fallout, and to actually improve the inadequate disaster response up to now."
JenV: Oil Volcano: What I Expect from the Administration: "I don't expect, and I don't think anyone else who is as royally, epically pissed off as I am expects, Obama to have a magical solution to stopping the oil flood and making everything perfect again. Here is what I do expect."
Crashing Vor: They Want a Liberal: "So the mechanic and I are talking about BP and drilling mud and blowout preventers and booms and he says something that surprised me a little. 'I was kind of hoping Obama'd be a little harder on the companies in this. He's a liberal, after all.'"
ThisIsMyTime: Obama Wants The Oil Spill Crisis!: "Remember the Ex-FEMA chief, Michael Brown? Yep that is what he said a couple of weeks ago on Anderson cooper 360. How appalling is that coming from someone that wrote in an email 'Can I quit now?' as Katrina raged? ... Yes, Obama for a political reason and to stop an off-shore drilling will allow this oil spill to spread all the way to the wetlands on the expense of many hard working Americans to kill the economies of Southern States. What a strategy!!"
Benintn: What Obama is doing about the BP oil spill: " Just as an example of the coordinated federal response and how extensive it is, and how many branches of the federal government are coordinating at once, look at the last 24 hours of tweets from the JIC. (This is in chronological order from earliest to latest, unlike the way the Twitter feed typically displays."
stevelungrin: My Problem w/ Obama's Response, w/ Poll...: "First of all, I want to make it clear that I am aware of the fact that no apparent solution to the oil crisis exists as of yet, and therefore I can’t expect the President to be able to snap his fingers or push a button and fix the leak and clean up the mess. This diary isn’t really about that. No, this diary is about my perception of the administration’s response to be."
Crashing Vor: : The Difference: "And that is the difference: the power to make some tiny part of this massive horror a little better with our feeble but willing paws doesn't apply here. None of us has a five-thousand-foot shovel we can pull out of our flooded sheds. No bobcat using a mattress in its jaws is going to sweep up this mess. It's just going to keep getting messier for months. Or years."
Dartagnan: : For BP to Survive, The Gulf Must Die: "If BP were able to stop the flow of oil through either its "top hat," "junk shot," or any of the other creative methods being bandied about, the line of attack at trial would be "Why weren't you able to do this sooner?" That's an argument that BP, with all of its hired experts, can never win. The sole question the plaintiff's lawyers will rely on (in addition to their case on causation of the explosion itself) will be "Was the technology available to stop this a month earlier?" The answer is obvious--yes, it was. Of course it was."
MFL: : "Today is over ONE month since the explosion.The oil is now in the Barataria Bay. WE ARE FUCKED."
akmk: About Corexit and Warm Water Oil Spills--More Questions Than Answers: "While the U.S. government is waiting for BP to hand over information to them, perhaps it's time for us to do a little investigation on our own. What do we know about Corexit the toxic dispersant being used by BP? And why isn't the entire industrial/oil/political complex behind bars already?"
magic3400: EPA Could Have Banned British Petroleum (BP) Before Deepwater Horizon Exploded: "The EPA said in a statement that, according to its regulations, it can consider banning BP from future contracts after weighing 'the frequency and pattern of the incidents, corporate attitude both before and after the incidents, changes in policies, procedures, and practices.' ...The term is called debarment and there are several options at their (EPA) disposal."
DWG: : Rumors of debarment for BP: "In what would be the most fitting punishment for BP's many crimes, there are rumors that the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is considering debarment for the company. Debarment is somewhere between corporal and capital punishment for scofflaw companies. The most severe form is "discretionary debarment," which would cancel all government contracts and leases on federal lands, a move that would cost BP at least 16 billion dollars a year."
Dartagnan: Above the Oil--The Threat of "Black Rain.": " There is no record of a hurricane ever encountering a large oil spill. One of the unresolved questions posed by the Gulf disaster is the impact of seasonal Hurricanes on the oil mass, and vice versa. Beyond the debate of whether the slick would weaken, or possibly strengthen the hurricane, and beyond the issue of dispersal or non-dispersal of the oil within the mass, several sources have raised the possibility of an "oil rain" spreading inland through sea spray caught up in the Hurricane, while others have ridiculed the idea, contending that oil is heavier than water and could not be "evaporated" or otherwise transported into clouds."
potatohead: Is it cheaper to just subsidise BP profit?: " Wouldn't it actually be cheaper to just calculate the potential profit from the well, cap the damn thing quick to avoid the real environmental impact costs over time? I hate the idea of that, subsidized losses like that, but I like the idea that we won't have to live with the oil for the rest of our lives too."
factchecker: : A modest proposal for dealing with BP, seriously: " What would serious government action look like? Here's my sketch of the basics."
colorado bob 1: Tampa's 28 Million Gallon Question: "Been looking into that question that came to me yesterday about the desalination plant at Tampa, Fla., has 130 of these plants.What happens when Light La. Crude, and the Corexit 9500 reach the intake pipes? Down at the Keys: The FKAA has existing desalination plants that convert seawater to drinking water on Stock Island and in Marathon. Together, those plants can produce up to three million gallons each day."
Ellinorianne: Sylvia Earle Speaks for the Ocean and She Speaks for Me - Congressional Testimony: "Sylvia Earle made these remarks to Congress and I believe on OUR behalf. ... 'Stress on the nation's valuable wetlands, 40 percent of such areas in the lower 48 states in Louisiana alone. Stress for the Florida west coast and the extensive seagrass meadows and marshes--nursery areas for fish, shrimp and other organisms and, given the intricate flow of the Loop Current and its many spinoffs, threats to the wetland and offshore areas of Mississippi, Alabama ,Texas, Mexico, the Florida Keys, Cuba and via the Gulfstream, the eastern seaboard of the United States--and beyond. Use of subsea dispersants injected at great depths, making it possible for deeper currents to move the oil's potential reach even further, and enhancing the toxic effect of oil with the toxic effect of the chemicals used to break oil into smaller droplets. Economic impacts, such as those assessed by scientists and economists at the Harte Research Institute --a conservative figure of U.S.$1.6 Billion, taking into account losses including the production of ocean wildlife taken for food. That does not measure threats to the billions of dollars in so-called free services provided by healthy reefs, marshes and seagrass meadows as natural filtration and shoreline protection systems. Nor does it account for impacts to the other priceless 'free' services the living ocean renders to the nation's overall economy, to health, to security and ultimately, to the existence of life itself."
6stringtruth: the music of an oil slick: "Not always, but I've long preferred my music to be angry. I come from the era of rock, punk, metal, and grunge. As Rage Against The Machine said, 'Anger is a gift.' ... I caught a seriously original band last night called The Dunes, who I believe are from the East Coast. They did a song called 'Blame Someone Else' and dedicated it to the BP bastards."
jamess: It may be time to Turn to the Scientists -- They get it: "When your pipes are busted, you don't call a Bureaucrat, or a Lobbyist, or a CEO, now do you? NO. you call an Expert. So maybe, NOAA Administrators, may actually want to consider, adding some ACTUAL Oceanographers, and Fluid Engineers, to "their Team" ??? -- that they are 'just starting' to put together."
Crashing Vor: Don't Worry, I'm Pretty Sure It's N.O.R.M.al: "Like the rest of us, he's worried about the crude, and the dispersants, and the toluene and hydrogen sulfide. But, being a physics junkie, he's wondering a lot about N.O.R.M., or naturally occurring radioactive materials. 'Anytime you go poking around a couple thousand feet into the earth, you'll be bringing up radionuclides. Cleaning them out of drilling tools and pipes is a regular part of the maintenance. We haven't heard anything about measurements for N.O.R.M. in this.'"
8ackgr0und N015e: : Where are the populist patriots who protect our borders?: "If the Mexicans had blown out a well and fouled our shores, I think we'd be hearing calls for annexation from Arizona to Maine. We sure as hell wouldn't leave the clean up to them."
ericd1112: BP: Best thing to happen to the earth: "The BP disaster has wiped out the Gulf. Not just the coastal ecosystems but also every industry dependent upon the Gulf as it was pre-BP. Fisheries? Done. Shrimping? Done. Plus, every ship headed to harbor for transit up the Big Muddy just got significantly more expensive (cleanup costs). Plus, every other rig in the Gulf now has to retool its operations to comply with new (and completely justifiable) additional Federal regulations, driving down their cost-competitiveness as well."
Armadillious: The Truth about BP - Take it or Leave it: "Don't get me wrong - I am not writing this diary to exonerate British Petroleum nor to get them off the hook, but a little insight into what kind of company they actually are, how they operate on a daily basis, and the dangers of offshore drilling in general can't hurt at this point."
jamess: Scientists outraged over the LACK of Science ...: "The Scientists continue their critique on the LACK OF Science being used to measure, monitor, and mitigate those Gushers in the Gulf .."
Rei: The Spill, the Flares, the Oil CEO, and M: "Where, then, does the buck stop? Only with the people who make the bad decisions and cut the corners? While that would be the easy way out, and I'm sure the people at the top of BP would everyone to accept that... no. Yes, the head of a company cannot manage all employees or all operations at once. The heads of BP probably knew not much more of this well than its name and general state of operations. They probably couldn't tell you the names of the people who made the idiotic decisions like pulling the mud before cementing was done or continuing operations after drilling through the BOP."
Hayate Yagami: Deepwater Horizon: The first 30 days: "Now that we've reached and passed the 1-month mark since the start of this disaster, maybe it's a good time to look back and try to account for when events occured. I'll be going more or less day-by-day since April 20, when the explosion crippled the Deepwater Horizon platform, and started this mess. I'm not going to get into "why" things happened, just saying that they happened."
gchaucer2: EPA, British Petroleum and Debarment: " One of the most intelligent investigative journalists I have read is Abrahm Lustgarten of ProPublica. His area of expertise is the oil and gas industry. I discovered him while researching the issue of NORM (naturally occuring radioactive materials) in the exploration of oil in shale. His articles and sources were more valuable than state and federal government sites."
atheistben: BP Estimates Wrong Again.
LaughingPlanet: 'tis neither 'leak' nor 'spill': "I can fully understand why corporate whores like Faux News would mislead its audience by using such verbiage. We in the reality-based community should know better, however." A Blowout; A Wild Well; A volcano of oil; Oil Volcano; A Gush or Gusher; A River of Oil; Oilpocalypse.
Colorado is the Shiznit: : "There is no excuse. There is no motherfucking excuse for letting BP run the show for a solid month, while the oceans scream and the ecosystems die. There is no motherfucking excuse to put money before living things, to put power and corporations before Mother Earth. There is no motherfucking excuse to cede power of a national (and now global, thanks much) disaster clean-up effort to the very people who caused it.
Julie Gulden: New Orleans: Let them eat cake: "Living in Arizona, if we had a disaster like New Orleans, people would probably grab their guns...In Minnesota Sven and Ole would grab a pail and start to empty the ocean. In Wisconsin people would probably question what impact the event would have on the Green Bay Packers. In New Orleans.....well, considering their penchant for food...."
Edger: Top Eleven BP Excuses: "David Letterman – No. 10: The Gulf of Mexico was overdue for its 3,000-mile oil change."
Edger: Beneath the Oil: Deepwater Horizon: "Casualties of the Gulf of Mexico Disaster."
tedM: BP Dispersant Lie?: "If some quantitatively skilled analysts could check my numbers I would be appreciative. My calculations of the dispersant usage suggests there is almost as much "missing" dispersant as there is reported applied dispersant, ie 642,773 gallons missing versus 655,000 gallons reported applied."
robcat2075: Rand... BP is "British" Petroleum: "As far as I can tell, after Rand Paul claimed Obama was 'unamerican' for criticizing BP, no one in the media has caught the fact that BP is not American company 'British Petroleum'."
dov12348: Oil Plume Nears Sarasota.
Audri: Spread the Outrage: "But I'm starting to believe that overwhelming outrage might actually succeed in making a difference in this case, at least for the future of oil, off shore drilling, and BP. If we can ratchet up the outrage through the spread of legitimate information, then we are doing something."
PrometheusUnbound: The River...The Body of the Nation: "Mark Twain called the basin of the Mississippi River, "The Body of the Nation." It gathers slowly in the upper midwest. It is fed from a remarkable number of rivers and a remarkable number of states. It winds its way though the center, through the very soul of our country. There are countless stories and mythologies and poems written in homage to this beautiful languid body of water. There are lives who live and breathe because the river flows. There are whole ecosystems depending on the great artery to bring them life."
Verbalpaintball: BP threatens arrest to reporters who investigate.: "'Perhaps BP Oil has decided that their reputation is already so shot to shreds why even bother pretending to be nice. Last night CBS Evening News aired a segment on the oil spill and included a clip of BP contractors turning the CBS crew away from investigating part of the oil-drenched Louisiana shoreline under threat of being arrested if they proceeded. The contractor, or a Coast Guard...it’s not quite clear, told CBS that they were merely enforcing BP’s rules.'"
8ackgr0und N015e: Here's how conniving those Bastard Polluters really are...: "BP's lack of interest in measuring the amount of oil spilled doesn't make sense... if you are trying to define the scope of the problem. So why isn't BP following its own procedures? Turns out the answer to this riddle is very simple. BP is more interested in avoiding a legal problem than solving an engineering problem."
DFutureIsNow: Nationalize BP: "What better way to tear into the GOP and their extremists views than to put the Civil Rights Act of 1964 front and center during SCOTUS nominee Elena Kagan's confirmation hearings by the Senate Judicial Committee."
JnLouisville: BP: "OK, Jindal, here's the deal. $25M for the coast.": "No doubt about it! BP's got it covered. The best news is that I searched all the video I could find on their site and I didn't see a drop of oil! Yep, I think they've pretty much got it wrapped up."
geodemographics: Gulf Gusher Information Resources: "I have scoured the MMS website for publicly available information about offshore drilling in the Gulf of Mexico, and what follows is the fruit of my labor, provided to you, dear Kossacks, as a public service. So without further ado, here we go..."
slinkerwink: BP Won't Change Dispersants In Oil Spill Despite EPA: "'BP spokesman Scott Dean said Friday that BP had replied with a letter "that outlines our findings that none of the alternative products on the EPA's National Contingency Plan Product Schedule list meets all three criteria specified in yesterday's directive for availability, toxicity and effectiveness.'"
slinkerwink: Why I Don't Give A D*mn About Rand Paul!: "Conflict of Interest Worries Raised in Spill Tests. Hundreds of millions of dollars are at stake, since those readings will be used by the federal government and courts to establish liability claims against BP. But the laboratory that officials have chosen to process virtually all of the samples is part of an oil and gas services company in Texas that counts oil firms, including BP, among its biggest clients."
textus: Armed EPA Troopers: A plan: " There's a front-page article on Rand Paul warning Montana Republicans I think about the danger that if cap-and-trade passes, polluters will be vulnerable to armed enforcement officers from the Environmental Protection Agency.We need to bring this about. It seems to me that these are the prerequisites.
Zydekos: BP Donates Fuel for Rio de Janeiro Olympic Flame: " Looking beyond their current mishap in the Gulf of Mexico, BP executives have developed a plan to deal with public discontent when global ocean currents bring floating tar balls and dead fish to white, sandy, Copacabana Beach in Rio de Janeiro--as predicted to occur, just before the Olympic Games."
LaFeminista: Breaking: BP Hires Prophet: "Lucy 4, a pittbull terrier, was unavailable for comment."