On Sixth Month Anniversary of BP’s Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill, Environment Texas Calls For Permanent Protection of Coast

Environment Texas

AUSTIN—Today, Environment Texas commemorated the sixth month anniversary of the explosion at the Deepwater Horizon oil rig on April 20th that tragically killed eleven men and led to the worst oil spill and environmental disaster in U.S. history.  Approximately 200 million gallons of oil were spilled into the Gulf of Mexico between April 20th and July 15th when the well was temporarily capped. The resulting spill coated more than 600 miles of coastline, hundreds of square miles of marsh, and killed thousands of birds and sea turtles. Recent scientific studies have indicated large amounts of oil remain in the Gulf, especially in deeper water, and oil continues to come up.

In response to the sixth month anniversary of the country’s worst environmental disaster Alejandro Savransky, Field Organizer for Environment Texas, aid the following.

“There are three primary lessons from the spill. First, no matter how big the oil company or how strong its promises; offshore drilling is still a risky business, especially in deep water. Second, we must protect our sensitive oceans, coasts and beaches from offshore drilling wherever the industry is not drilling today. Finally, we must end our dependence on oil, or Big Oil will continue to push to drill in sensitive places that should be protected instead.

“The Obama administration Ok’ed the resumption of drilling in deep water last week before they were sure of what went wrong six months ago. Unfortunately, that’s like putting a drunk back behind the wheel of the car with a different handbook on driving. Neither the authorities, nor the American people have a full understanding of what happened to cause the largest oil spill in U.S. history. The reports of the President’s Oil Spill Commission, the joint Coast Guard-BOEM investigation, the Chemical Safety Board and the National Academy of Engineering have not been finished yet. 

“The best way to protect our oceans and beaches from drilling accidents is to reject future expansions of offshore drilling. We urge the Department of Interior and the President to permanently ban drilling in places that are not currently being drilled.”