May 15, 2010 Obama assails oil industry’s ‘cozy relationship’ with government The president says he will ‘close the loophole that has allowed oil companies to bypass environmental reviews.’ A new effort is underway to stop the leak.

By Margot Roosevelt and Christi BP engineers, who have struggled for An earlier effort to lower a larger dome three weeks to control the gushing leak over the leak failed. Parsons from the company’s well, planned to President Obama on Friday assailed launch a new attempt Friday night. So far, the spill, which occurred 48 the “cozy relationship between the oil Remote-controlled robots were to miles off the Louisiana coast, has companies and the federal agency that insert a 6-inch-diameter vacuum tube remained largely offshore, although a permits them to drill” and declared that into the leaking, 21-inch pipe and scattering of tar balls up to 8 inches in diameter have washed up on the coasts permits would no longer be “issued funnel the oil to a tanker. of Louisiana and Mississippi. based on little more than assurances of The riser insertion, BP Chief Operating safety from the oil companies.” Despite calls from some Congress Officer acknowledged, members to halt new offshore drilling, He said his administration would “is a new idea. But the concept is Obama did not back off his earlier push “close the loophole that has allowed simple. You take a piece of pipe with to expand development. “Domestic oil oil companies to bypass environmental a rubber sealing device and push it in drilling continues to be one part of an reviews” and would launch a as far as possible to capture the oil, and overall energy strategy,” he said. But new inquiry into “environmental not the water.” it is essential, he added, that “every procedures” for oil and gas exploration necessary safeguard and protection” and development. The challenge, he added, is that the operation would be attempted at 5,000 be put in place. The announcement came amid reports feet below sea level, where humans are The administration plans to ask that the Minerals Management Service, an unable to function, so the company lawmakers to eliminate an industry- Interior Department agency, had exempted must use machines to perform the friendly deadline, enacted by Congress, hundreds of offshore drilling plans from delicate maneuver. that forces the Minerals Management filing environmental impact statements If that doesn’t work, which will be Service to act on exploration plans over the years, including the one for the submitted by oil companies within 30 rig that exploded known “in a day or two,” he said, BP will try using a “top hat,” a two- days. Changing it to 90 days would April 20 in the Gulf of Mexico. allow more time for environmental ton containment dome that has been analysis, administration officials say. In a brief Rose Garden statement, the lowered onto the seafloor and which is president reserved his harshest words designed to be placed over the leaking Obama’s forceful statements seem for the three companies involved in the pipe to contain the oil and funnel it to unlikely to assuage critics. Rep. Nick accident. Their testimony before Congress the ship. Rahall II (D-W.Va.) on Friday sent this week was “a ridiculous spectacle,” a letter to the President’s Council on U.S. Coast Guard Adm. Thad Allen, Obama said. “You had executives of BP, Environmental Quality asking for all the national incident commander, and falling over documents related to the “categorical each other to point the finger of blame at sought to dampen expectations. “This exclusion” that allowed the Deepwater somebody else. is a leak mitigation effort,” he said. Horizon to start drilling without a “It’s not intended to completely capture detailed environmental review. “The American people could not have all the oil that’s leaking out of there, been impressed with that display, and but it should substantially reduce it if And Rep. Edolphus Towns (D-N.Y.), I certainly wasn’t,” he said. it’s successful.” chairman of the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, Salazar’s department has approved asked BP to bring all video of the leak launched an investigation into three lease sales, more than 100 to a Senate Commerce Committee “potential lapses in oversight by the seismic surveys and 300 drilling hearing on the spill Tuesday. Minerals Management Service.” operations without permits required by the Marine Mammal Protection Act Obama acknowledged “the varying On Friday, the Center for Biological and the Endangered Species Act. reports” over the size of the leak, Diversity, a Tucson-based environmental adding, “Since no one can get down group, sent Interior Secretary Ken The Interior Department responded that there in person, we know there is a Salazar formal notice that it would file it was “reviewing” the issue of whether level of uncertainty.” But, he said, suit alleging that, in granting drilling the Marine Management Service allowed “scientists and engineers are currently permits, he ignored laws to protect BP and other oil companies to drill using the best, most advanced whales and other marine mammals and without the required permits. technology that exists to try to stop endangered species. the flow of oil.” Controversy also continued over the “Under Salazar’s watch, the size of the spill. Outside experts say that Times staff writers Richard Simon in Department of Interior has treated video images of the underwater leak the Washington bureau, Jim Tankersley the Gulf of Mexico as a sacrifice show that the flow probably far exceeds in Houston and Raja Abdulrahim in Louisiana contributed to this report. area,” said Miyoko Sakashita, oceans 210,000 gallons a day, BP’s estimate. director for the center. It alleged that Sen. Bill Nelson (D-Fla.) on Friday Copyright © 2010, The Los Angeles Times