Tell President Obama: Stop letting Big Oil destroy our lands and waters!

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Dear President Obama, I am writing to express my concern that your administration did not learn from the BP Deepwater Horizon oil disaster that oil and gas drilling can never be safe and your administration continues to expand offshore oil and gas development in the Gulf of Mexico, Arctic and Atlantic Oceans. April 20, 2015 marks the five-year anniversary of the BP Deepwater Horizon oil disaster, and there are five key lessons yet to be learned: First, Deepwater Horizon was not just a technological failure, but an institutional and organizational failure. The pervasive culture of limited oversight for offshore oil and gas activities perpetuated by the federal government and oil industry made Deepwater Horizon not a one-off accident, but a disaster waiting to happen. Second, full restoration and recovery after an oil spill is a fallacy. Despite BP’s claims that the Gulf is experiencing a “strong recovery,” many fishermen report that catches are still down by a third, and many wildlife species continue to suffer from deaths, low birth rates, and abnormal development due to residual oil and chemical dispersant compounds. Third, new safety regulations will not resolve the causes or mitigate the consequences of the oil disaster. Another similar disaster is inevitable if the federal government continues to operate under the false belief that its mandate to serve the public interest involves leasing every drop of oil until it’s gone. Fourth, there is no such thing as safe and responsible offshore oil and gas development. This disaster occurred in one of the world’s greatest concentrations of offshore oil and gas operations, with access to a lot of equipment and personnel; yet, oil gushed from the well for 87 days. Any thought of drilling in a more remote, difficult, and dangerous environment like the Arctic should give your administration pause. The fact that the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management gave Shell the green light to explore and drill for oil in the Chukchi Sea despite a 75 percent chance of a large oil spill is a dangerous gamble the American public cannot afford. Fifth, to keep oil out of the environment and avoid serious, irreversible climate disruption, offshore oil and gas must be kept in the ground. More fossil fuels exist than we can burn, and the more we lease, the greater the risk of irreversible climate catastrophe. Thank you for your consideration of my comments. Sincerely,

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