BP Tar Balls in Texas

Tar Balls landed on a Texas beach Monday, confirming that the BP Oil Spill has officially affected all of the U.S. Gulf states.

Officials are wondering whether the tar balls arrived on the beach naturally or were carried along with boats moving from the area. Either way, the BP Oil Spill has now reached every Gulf state in the U.S.

If the publicly built-up relief wells do not do their part in stopping the oil gushing from the riser of the Deepwater Horizon rig, this spill could continue for up to 2 years.

We should remember that the natural well of oil we are working with contains 2.1 billion gallons of oil.

BP has made itself famous for a lack of backup preparation, and they continue to do so. If the first relief well fails and second relief well fails, what’s next? What if a hurricane enters the situation? It seems like BP sees the relief well as some kind of last and definite solution, but it isn’t. Scientists say that the second relief well may be needed to help the first relief well counter the flow of oil.

If we could get closer to BP and find out what they are doing on a day-to-day basis, the American public might be more patient with them. However, journalists reporting on the BP Oil Spill have been turned away, threatened, and even fined for their work.

BP Avoids the Media

The National Incident Commander of the United States, Thad Allen, gave “uninhibited access” to the media regarding the BP Oil Spill.  Even with that granted access, many journalists covering the BP Oil Spill are facing fines of $40,000 and up to 5 years in jail.

The Coast Guard announced that reporters must remain at least 20 meters from any oil spill response operations, contrary to Allen’s announcement.

Whether journalists are in the right or the wrong, the BP and government response to media coverage clearly shows ongoing efforts to hide the details of the oil spill.

Should researching the spill be considered a “willful violation” when Thad Allen himself gave the media unrestricted access?

Update:

The Huffington Post

Another Huffington Post Article