Obama Administration, BP Need to Answer Tough Questions

May 3, 2010

Neither the Obama administration nor British Petroleum should be allowed to dodge tough questions about the Deepwater Horizon blowout and oil spill by claiming that such an accident was unprecedented, Republicans for Environmental Protection (REP) said today.

"An offshore oil well blowout last August that spewed oil into the Timor Sea unabated for more than two months not only provided ample warning that such a blowout could occur, it exposed serious vulnerabilities in the oil industry's ability to respond," David Jenkins, REP vice president for government and political affairs, said.

"Have the administration or BP implemented any new safeguards with respect to offshore drilling operations or oil spill response as a result of the Timor Sea blowout? If so, what were they? If not, why not? These questions deserve answers," Jenkins said.

"It took five attempts to finally plug the Timor Sea leak, where the wellhead was in only about 260 feet of water. That difficult and time consuming operation should have set off loud alarm bells with respect to deepwater wells in the Gulf that sit 5,000 feet below the surface," Jim DiPeso, REP vice president for policy and communications, said.

At a November 19, 2009 hearing before the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee, Minerals Management Service Deputy Director Walter Cruickshank expressed confidence in U.S. oil industry spill response protocols and capabilities when asked about the Timor Sea incident.

"One must really question the quality of federal oversight when we are faced with an oil spill that is so clearly overwhelming the ability to respond," DiPeso said. "The people and ecology of the Gulf Coast should never be presented with such a calamitous fait accompli."

"Hurricane Katrina was an act of God that we could only respond to. This oil spill is a man-made catastrophe that should have been prevented—and accountability ultimately lies with BP and the current administration," Jenkins said.