Report: 27,000 Abandoned Wells Pose Threat to Gulf Coast
Concerns are being raised about the hazards posed by thousands of abandoned oil and gas wells throughout the Gulf Coast. An Associated Press investigation found more than 27,000 abandoned sites are in danger of leaking, with about 13 percent said to be particularly worrisome. Regulations forcing companies to plug the wells have been routinely ignored with no government intervention.


Media Clampdown in the Gulf Coast: Government and BP Place More Restrictions on Journalists Covering the Oil Spill
Covering BP’s massive oil spill disaster has been a challenge for journalists given the numerous restrictions placed by BP and in many cases, local law enforcement and federal officials. But reporting on the spill and the clean-up efforts just got even harder. Last week the Coast Guard put new restrictions in place across the Gulf Coast that prevent the public–including photographers and reporters covering the BP oil spill–from coming within 65 feet of any response vessels or booms on the water or on beaches.


Report: BP Pays Out Half of Claims Filed By Gulf Residents
The Biloxi Sun Herald of Mississippi reports BP has paid fewer than half of the claims filed by residents in the Gulf states who have been impacted by the massive oil spill. As of Saturday, BP had received about 103,000 claims but had paid out less than 49,000. Meanwhile officials in Louisiana have accused BP of reducing payments to tens of thousands of people whose claim files are incomplete. Much of the claim process is being done by the private company ESIS which was hired by BP. ESIS describes the goal of its services as "reducing our client’s loss dollar pay-outs." BP says the total cost of dealing with the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico has risen to $3.5 billion. In an effort to raise more funds, BP has reportedly discussed selling off its stake Alaska’s Prudhoe Bay field. Meanwhile officials with ExxonMobil have approached U.S. government officials asking if they would object to a takeover bid for BP.


Environmental Groups Announce Settlement to Prevent Burning of Sea Turtles

A sea turtle in clean water

In other oil spill news, two environmental groups have announced a settlement in their lawsuit to prevent BP from burning alive endangered sea turtles in the cleanup of the Gulf Coast. The Center for Biological Diversity and Turtle Island Restoration Network say BP and the US Coast Guard have agreed to develop safeguards to ensure no turtles are burned alive during attempts to contain the oil.


Oil From BP Spill Reaches Texas
Oil from the BP Deepwater Horizon spill has reached Texas for the first time, more than 75 days after the oil spill began. Tar balls were spotted at a pair of Texas beaches. Nearly 500 miles of coastline in the Gulf of Mexico, from Texas to Florida, have now been contaminated. Tar balls and oil sheen have also been spotted in Louisiana’s Lake Pontchartrain, the large body of water north of New Orleans that is connected to the Gulf of Mexico.


BP Still Has Nearly $1 Billion Pentagon Fuel Contract
The Washington Post reports the Pentagon is continuing to use BP as a major supplier of military fuel. The annual value of BP’s contracts with the Pentagn stand at nearly $1 billion. In fiscal 2009, BP was the Pentagon’s largest single supplier of fuel.


Former BP Contractor: BP’s "Bottom Line is Just About Money"
A former BP contractor has accused the oil company of focusing on its profits more than cleaning up the oil spill. Up until recently Adam Dillon, served as a liaison between the media and the BP security contractors. In that position Dillon reportedly rebuffed attempts by reporters to observe cleanup operations in Grand Isle, Louisiana. Dillon was fired after taking photos that he believes were related to the use of dispersants and to the cleanup of the oil. Adam Dillon spoke recently to the New Orleans station WDSU.

Adam Dillon: "There are some very great, hardworking individuals in there. But the bottom line is just about money. There are some very cutthroat individuals. They’re not worried about cleaning up that spill as it is... I will never have loyalty to this company. I will always have loyalty to my country. And my country comes first. What this company is doing to this country right now is just wrong."


ProPublica: BP Texas Refinery Had Huge Toxic Release Just Before Gulf Blowout
Just over three months ago, thousands of pounds of toxic chemicals began spewing into the skies from BP’s massive oil refinery in Texas City. The release began on April 6, two weeks before the explosion on the deepwater horizon oil rig, but it took BP weeks to even realize there was a problem. BP now estimates 538,000 pounds of chemicals and escaped from the refinery over 40-day period.

The journalist Ryan Knutson of ProPublica and Frontline recently traveled to Texas City to investigate what happened. He joins us here in New York. His reporting on the story appears on the website ProPublica.org.


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