Lucas,
Public Citizen applauds the reforms recommended by the oil spill commission!
Unfortunately, the recommendations are not worth the paper they are written on if Congress doesn't embrace and enact the reforms.
Urge Congress to act on the oil spill commission's recommendations.
On January 11, the oil spill commission released its final report. The report offers a sweep of reforms that would protect taxpayers and make offshore drilling safer for workers, while also protecting the environment and Gulf Coast businesses from future oil spills that damage wetlands and hurt the region's fishing and tourism industries.
A gross failure of management and an industry culture that puts profits over safety were among the key findings from the commission's report. Further, the commission concluded that absent rigorous reform of offshore drilling practices and culture an accident like the Deepwater Horizon -- that killed 11 workers and resulted in the dumping of more than 200 million gallons of oil into the Gulf of Mexico -- is likely to occur again.
Tell Congress: Don't let another oil spill disaster happen again.
Public Citizen activists were instrumental in getting Gulf Coast Regional Citizens' Advisory Councils included in the commission's final recommendations. The next step to ensuring local citizens have input into the energy industry decisions that impact their lives, livelihoods and environment is to push Congress to implement the commission recommendations.
Urge Congress to support citizen participation in oil and gas activity oversight.
Other critical recommendations before Congress include a host of new safety and environment standards, changes to the Oil Spill Pollution Act aimed at making oil companies more financially accountable in the event of an accident, and dedication of the bulk of Clean Water Act penalties to Gulf ecological restoration.
As devastating as the BP oil spill is, opportunities have emerged from the crisis that could allow for increased rig worker safety, stronger environmental protections, and allocation of resources to assist with ecological recovery and restore the fragile Gulf region. These opportunities must be seized to avoid adding more insult to injury to the victims of the spill.
Thank you for all of your activism aimed at supporting the Gulf Coast communities,
Allison Fisher
Outreach Director, Energy Program