Offshore Drilling Topics

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Years of Internal BP Probes Warned that Neglect Could Lead to Accidents

The investigative news organization ProPublica is reporting a series of internal BP investigations over the past decade warned senior BP managers that the oil company repeatedly disregarded safety and environmental rules and risked a serious accident if it did not change its ways. The reports described instances in which management flouted safety by neglecting aging equipment, pressured employees not to report problems, and cut short or delayed...
Jun 09, 2010 | Story
Nearly 5 Years After Katrina, African American Fishing Community in Louisiana's Plaquemines Parish Faces New Struggle in Oil Spill Devastation and BP Obstruction

Democracy Now!’s Anjali Kamat visits the town of Phoenix, Louisiana on the east bank of Plaquemines Parish, an area that was devastated by Hurricane Katrina in 2005. She speaks to Reverend Tyronne Edwards, a pastor and longtime community activist who spearheaded efforts to rebuild the largely African American fishing community after Katrina. In the aftermath of the BP oil spill disaster, Rev. Edwards is at the forefront of getting Washington,...
Jun 04, 2010 | Story
On Front Lines of BP Oil Spill: Democracy Now! Travels Across Coastal Louisiana

The Justice Department has confirmed it’s opened a criminal and civil investigation into the BP oil spill in the Gulf Coast, now believed to be the worst environmental disaster in US history. For residents of southern Louisiana, the spill is impacting the ecology, the economy and entire ways of life. Over the past several days, Democracy Now! traveled across the bayous and towns of coastal Louisiana meeting the people on the front lines...
Jun 02, 2010 | Story
BPA? As BP Says No To The EPA, Who Is In Charge of the Oil Cleanup?

The oil giant BP has admitted it proceeded with work on the underwater oil well in the Gulf of Mexico shortly before last month’s explosion despite warning signs of a major problem. Dogged by delays, BP faces a pivotal day today as it attempts a so-called "top kill" maneuver to choke off the gushing oil by pumping heavy drilling mud and cement into the mile-deep well. The procedure risks making the leak worse. A weak spot in the...
May 26, 2010 | Story
BP Played Central Role in Botched Containment of 1989 Exxon Valdez Disaster

The BP oil spill is the worst to hit the United States since the Exxon Valdez disaster of 1989. The devastation in the Gulf Coast has renewed attention on BP’s key role in the botched containment of Exxon Valdez. We speak to Zygmunt Plater, an environmental law professor at Boston College who headed the legal team for the state-appointed Alaska Oil Spill Commission that investigated the 1989 Exxon Valdez spill. [includes rush transcript]
May 26, 2010 | Story
Disasters in Gulf Coast, West Virginia Spur Calls for Criminal Prosecutions of Corporate Execs

From the Gulf of Mexico to the Massey mine of West Virginia, scores of workers have died. We speak to Corporate Crime Reporter editor Russell Mokhiber, who says corporate executives should be held criminally accountable for the disasters under their watch. Mokhber is involved with a group of citizen activists who have just launched a campaign calling on the state of West Virginia to prosecute Massey Energy for manslaughter in connection with the...
May 26, 2010 | Story
BP Acknowledges Oil Spill Is Larger Than Previous Estimates

The British oil company BP has been forced to admit the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico is far larger than the company initially said. On Thursday, BP said it’s now capturing 5,000 barrels of oil a day from the leaking pipe — the same amount it had previously said was leaking every day. BP has declined to estimate how much oil is still escaping, but scientists say BP is siphoning just a fraction of the total leak. Independent scientists...
May 21, 2010 | Story
Fmr. EPA Investigator Scott West: US Has Told BP "It Can Do Whatever It Wants and Won't Be Held Accountable"

One month after the BP oil spill, we speak to Scott West, a former top investigator at the Environmental Protection Agency who led an investigation of BP following a major oil pipeline leak in Alaska’s North Slope that spilled 250,000 gallons of oil on the Alaskan tundra. Before West finished his investigation, the Bush Justice Department reached a settlement with BP, and the oil company agreed to pay $20 million. At the same time, BP managed...
May 20, 2010 | Story
Government Exempted BP from Environmental Review

Newly released documents show government regulators exempted BP from a comprehensive environmental review of the project that resulted in the spill. The Minerals Management Service granted BP a “categorical exclusion” from a full review before approving the project just over a year ago. We speak with Kieran Suckling, executive director of the Center for Biological Diversity. [includes rush transcript]
May 07, 2010 | Story
History of BP Includes Role in 1953 Iran Coup After Nationalization of Oil

As tens of thousands of gallons of oil continue to spew into the Gulf of Mexico from the BP oil spill, we continue our series on BP. Sixty years ago, BP was called the Anglo-Iranian Oil Company. We look at the story of the company’s role in the 1953 CIA coup against Iran’s popular progressive prime minister, Mohammad Mosaddegh. [includes rush transcript]
May 06, 2010 | Story