Justine Jablonska/MEDILL
National commission co-chairs, former Florida Sen. and Gov. Robert Graham and former EPA administrator William K. Reilly, met with Pres. Obama Tuesday to discuss the BP oil spill and the commission’s investigation.
WASHINGTON – President Barack Obama Tuesday made his strongest statement to date that those responsible for the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico will be held legally accountable if a new commission investigating the disaster finds wrongdoing.
Speaking from the White House Rose Garden after his first meeting with national commission co-chairs Robert Graham, former Florida senator and governor, and former EPA administrator William K. Reilly, the president said the probe will fully examine the spill and its causes, as well as provide options for the prevention and mitigation of any future spills resulting from offshore drilling.
President Obama delivers remarks on the BP oil spill and the ensuing national commission investigation. (John Lund/MNS)
“In doing this work, they have my full support to follow the facts wherever they may lead – without fear or favor,” the president said, and pledged to bring justice on behalf of the catastrophe’s victims and the people of the Gulf region if the investigation reveals that laws were broken.
The oil spill, now in its 43rd day, stems from the explosion of the Deepwater Horizon offshore oil-drilling platform. That explosion killed 11 platform workers and injured 17 others. While the exact amount of oil being discharged is disputed, the Flow Rate Technical Group estimates that up to four million gallons of oil are being discharged daily – and that that oil now covers thousands of square miles in the Gulf.
The president outlined the efforts taken thus far in the largest cleanup effort in U.S. history: More than 20,000 men and women are working in the Gulf region to contain and clean up the oil. They’re joined by more than 1,700 vessels and more than 17,000 National Guard members from four states, the president said. Obama also said the U.S. will “ triple the manpower in those places where oil has hit shore or is within 24 hours of impact.”
Justine Jablonska/MEDILL
The president delivered his remarks in the White House Rose Garden.
The president said that an investigation into the disaster is imperative – as is a comprehensive look at how the oil and gas industry operates and government insight of the industry.
“If the laws on our books are insufficient to prevent such a spill, the laws must change,” the president said. “If oversight was inadequate to enforce these laws, oversight has to be reformed.”
Five more members of the commission will soon be appointed, the president said, and will include scientists and engineers. Obama said he has authorized the commission to hold public hearings as well as request information from the government, not-for-profit organizations, national and foreign oil and gas industry experts, and such relevant companies as BP and Halliburton. The commission will work alongside other reviews, including an independent one by the National Academy of Engineers.
The president said he’s ordered BP to pay economic injury claims, and will continue to hold BP and any other responsible parties accountable for the financial losses borne by Gulf region residents. BP’s costs of dealing with the spill thus far are estimated at $990 million; BP shares have plummeted.
Long-term environmental damage could last for decades, the president said. Experts say short-term damage will continue in the coming weeks and months: Beaches coated in slick oil are closed. Doctors and scientists are stationed across the region to monitor the health of cleanup workers and residents. Experts aren’t sure of how many animals have died as a result of the spill because some bodies sank or were eaten, but at least hundreds of animals – including birds, sea turtles and dolphins – have died as a direct result of the spill.
The president said that a six-month moratorium is in effect on drilling new deepwater oil and gas wells along the U.S coastline.
A recently completed 30-day safety and environmental review has recommended new operating standards and requirements for offshore energy companies – those will be put into place, the president said. The president has also called on Congress to pass a bill that will provide any needed resources to respond to the spill.
“What’s being threatened – what’s being lost,” Obama said, “isn’t just the source of income, but a way of life; not just fishable waters, but a national treasure.”
The spill has eclipsed the 1989 Exxon Valdez disaster as the largest of its kind in U.S. history. Reilly served as EPA administrator during that disaster.