British Petroleum and the Gulf disaster
ABC has been delving into British Petroleum's past safety record, and the findings are devastating.
Over the last three years, OSHA has issued citations for "egregious, willful" safety violations to other oil companies between one and eight times each -- and to BP 760 times. All other oil companies combined accounted for 3% of such citations, while BP accounted for 97%. BP's violations of environmental and safety laws reached the level of "outright fraud" and the company paid $373 million in fines to avoid prosecution.
During the current Gulf disaster, there have been several reports of efforts by BP to hide evidence. Think Progress has been keeping track; see for example here and here, and most damningly here.
Meanwhile, government scientists are confirming that the Gulf's "loop current" is likely to carry the oil through the gap between Florida and Cuba and into the Atlantic, where it will be caught up by the Gulf stream and spread up the east coast as far as North Carolina, then northeast out into the ocean toward Europe. In the animation video at the link, note how the oil suddenly speeds up as it passes Florida and hits the Gulf Stream; note also that it projects that other parts of the slick will come dangerously close to Havana and Yucatan, making the disaster an international one.
Over the last three years, OSHA has issued citations for "egregious, willful" safety violations to other oil companies between one and eight times each -- and to BP 760 times. All other oil companies combined accounted for 3% of such citations, while BP accounted for 97%. BP's violations of environmental and safety laws reached the level of "outright fraud" and the company paid $373 million in fines to avoid prosecution.
During the current Gulf disaster, there have been several reports of efforts by BP to hide evidence. Think Progress has been keeping track; see for example here and here, and most damningly here.
Meanwhile, government scientists are confirming that the Gulf's "loop current" is likely to carry the oil through the gap between Florida and Cuba and into the Atlantic, where it will be caught up by the Gulf stream and spread up the east coast as far as North Carolina, then northeast out into the ocean toward Europe. In the animation video at the link, note how the oil suddenly speeds up as it passes Florida and hits the Gulf Stream; note also that it projects that other parts of the slick will come dangerously close to Havana and Yucatan, making the disaster an international one.
posted by Infidel753 at 4:00 PM
7 Comments:
And yet the righties still cry, Drill Baby Drill. They have no clue, or if they do they just don't give a damn. Afterall Jesus is coming to take them to a better place. Just wait til they find out they aren't going because they polluted God's earth and He does not appreciate that!
I guess BP figures $373 million is just the cost of doing business...and earning over $5,000 million in the first quarter of this year. In other words, these fines are LESS THAN 10% of one quarters profit for BP.
BP now stands for Big Polluter.
Sue: It's a difficult response for them to sell, but they've got to try -- they are, after all, being paid well by companies like BP to do so.
JC: Obviously fines are not adequate where safety violations are concerned. Decision-makers need to be identified and prosecuted.
Good Morning Mr.Infidel!
This is a well compiled posting. I have actually seen alot of this in various places, here and there. When I first seen the "violation" figure's I almost busted laughing, because how BP's violation's stood out like a turd in a punchbowl, sorry, I know this isnt a laughing matter. But we all should have at least suspected much of this, even their action's "post" accident, from the refusal to let folk
's take photo's to photo prop's of folk's lined up to say they were working hard, etc. They were of course intimidating worker's as well .... little people are easily intimidated when rumor has it in the local grapevine, that be grateful you have a job, because alot dont, keep your mouth shut and ear's open, and you may be allowed to continue to work basically, folk's need to eat, and they know it. I know their game too well. Why should we have suspected this? because they are in a heap o' trouble, and they know it, and are going to do everything they can to survive what's about to come down. These are the kind of folk's that go scouting for "rent-a- scientist's" .... find some scientist who had financial problem's or other, then come in and offer some help, most scientist's wouldnt do this, but they find a few who may have some problem and try to capitalize off that. Then you have the pay- off's, those involved with inspection's who have a lil roll of money put casually in their top shirt pocket while their inspecting, then turn their head .... or just happen to find an envelope on the desk in their room with a stack of hundred's in it (hint), the list of their game's is almost endless. They have even been paying for tourism commercial's for Florida as well, it's the nature of business. Their excuse for not allowing filming of dead animal's was .... because it is too graphic for the public to see. That is so compassionate of them, heh? Mr.Critter also hit's the nail's head as far as percentage's it cost's verses profit's. I will shut up now, thanx Guy ........
Yes, people on the spot can be easily intimidated -- which is why it's up to those of us who are out of BP's sphere of influence to talk about this as much as possible so that the company's machinations become more widely known.
As for the animal pictures, they are pretty bad, but people need to see the truth.
Whooooa! Thanx for the photo link, I havent seen none of this, that is some sad, but excellent photo work, if I didnt know it was a result of this catastrophy and just seen them photo's, I would have thought they were some excellent sculpture's (not actual animal's) Actually I feel kind of sorry for all those animal's who have that place as home, having to experience this, just imagine what it would be for us if somnething like oil rained down on us when we were out taking a walk.
I was listening to a radio talk show the other day on the freeway about this oil scene, and some old school oil guy called in, who said he's been drilling for 40 year's, and him and a couple oil associate's think something is "fishy" about all this, because he said ... the way this accident happened, is not very common or likely ... sounded like he was refering to foul play, or sabotage or conspiracy, even though he wouldnt directly say that. I just think for now myself, that it may be rare yes, considering how much drilling is done, but nonetheless, an accident that is a reality that we should damn well be better prepared for, I'm not trying to shut down drilling at all, but you must have some guideline's, you cant just ignore every damn thing and focus on profit only, it's not balanced and wont work in the longrun. I mean if any of these ole boy's had to get heart bypass surgery or somethin alike, they sure as Hell wouldnt want the ole Doc cutting corner's to see better profit's using them as a specimen. But yes Sir .... those were one Hell of a photo shoot group!
Later Guy .........
There is a saying that any sufficiently-advanced technology could easily be indistinguishable from magic.
I would say also that a sufficiently-extreme level of incompetence and sloppiness can easily be indistinguishable from sabotage.
Given all the things that were screwed up by BP here, I'm not sure it's morally different from sabotage.
And yes, those pictures are a horror. Animals in that condition need special treatment from humans to survive -- and most of them probably won't get it. I imagine most of the affected animals die without any human ever seeing them.
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