When HBO's "Treme" comes back next year for it's second season, the damage to the region caused by Hurricane Katrina will be passe', a thing of the past. They can talk about the fishing industry, how it has been effected by this oil spill, and how tourism to the region in general has effected the livlihood and everything else. If "Treme" is nearly as topical as the producer's other show "The Wire" was, I'm sure these topics will be dealt with.
That poor region has had it's share of bad luck, but what is worse is the lies and distortions that BP, the ones responsible for this disaster, are telling people. In the 77 or 78 days since oil from the ruptured deep water horizon began to gush into the waters of the Gulf of Mexico, BP has skimmed or burned about 60% of the amount it promised regulators it could remove in a single day.
The disparity between what BP promised in its March 24th filing with federal regulators and the amount of oil recovered since the April 20th explosion underscores what some officials and environmental groups call a misleading numbers game that has led to widespread confusion about the extent of the spill and the progress of the recovery, or let's just call it what it really is... a lie!
"It's clear they overreached," said John F. Young, Jr., Council Chairman in Louisiana's Jefferson Parish. "I think the federal government should have, at the very least, picked up a phone and started asking some questions and challenged them about the accuracy of that number and tested the veracity of that claim."
Perhaps, but the Feds could only go by the information they were given. It's obvious the Federal and State governments gave BP the benefit of the doubt about this and it should be a lesson to the de-regulation crowd that feels as though "less to no government regulation of certain businesses is the best way to go", to quote a certain TV pundit on a certain network that I will not name here. In a March report that was not questioned by federal officials, BP said it had the capacity to skim and remove 491,721 barrels of oil each day in the event of a major spill.
As of Monday, with about 2 million barrels released into the gulf, the skimming operations that were touted as key to preventing environmental disaster have averaged less than 900 barrels a day. Skimming has captured only 67,143 barrels and BP has relied on burning to remove 238,095 barrels. Most of the oil recovered, about 632,410 barrels, was captured directly at the site of the leaking well. BP officials declined to comment on the validity of early skimming projections, stressing instead the company's commitment to building relief wells intended to shut down the still-gushing well.
Yes, the writers of HBO's "Treme" will have a lot of material for next year's season... and at the rate of this disaster, for the next two seasons too!
That poor region has had it's share of bad luck, but what is worse is the lies and distortions that BP, the ones responsible for this disaster, are telling people. In the 77 or 78 days since oil from the ruptured deep water horizon began to gush into the waters of the Gulf of Mexico, BP has skimmed or burned about 60% of the amount it promised regulators it could remove in a single day.
The disparity between what BP promised in its March 24th filing with federal regulators and the amount of oil recovered since the April 20th explosion underscores what some officials and environmental groups call a misleading numbers game that has led to widespread confusion about the extent of the spill and the progress of the recovery, or let's just call it what it really is... a lie!
"It's clear they overreached," said John F. Young, Jr., Council Chairman in Louisiana's Jefferson Parish. "I think the federal government should have, at the very least, picked up a phone and started asking some questions and challenged them about the accuracy of that number and tested the veracity of that claim."
Perhaps, but the Feds could only go by the information they were given. It's obvious the Federal and State governments gave BP the benefit of the doubt about this and it should be a lesson to the de-regulation crowd that feels as though "less to no government regulation of certain businesses is the best way to go", to quote a certain TV pundit on a certain network that I will not name here. In a March report that was not questioned by federal officials, BP said it had the capacity to skim and remove 491,721 barrels of oil each day in the event of a major spill.
As of Monday, with about 2 million barrels released into the gulf, the skimming operations that were touted as key to preventing environmental disaster have averaged less than 900 barrels a day. Skimming has captured only 67,143 barrels and BP has relied on burning to remove 238,095 barrels. Most of the oil recovered, about 632,410 barrels, was captured directly at the site of the leaking well. BP officials declined to comment on the validity of early skimming projections, stressing instead the company's commitment to building relief wells intended to shut down the still-gushing well.
Yes, the writers of HBO's "Treme" will have a lot of material for next year's season... and at the rate of this disaster, for the next two seasons too!
2 comments:
We are all just holding our breath during this hurricane season. Lord only knows what's going to happen when one goes through the Gulf.
I agree
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