Today’s story in the New York Times regarding collusion and corruption between the Mineral Management Service and the oil industry in the Gulf of Mexico is stunning. But, “stunning” is less than surprising when it comes to the many ways in which MMS and the Department of Interior has allowed the oil industry to dictate the terms of oil operations.

The BP oil disaster is well into its fifth week and the grumbling is growing that the government should move BP aside in order to shut down the oil geyser and get on with the clean-up. The tragic irony is that the federal government cannot stop the oil geyser but has had the chance to stop the collusion and corruption which results in oil spills, fraud, environmental damage and the erosion of professional conduct. Because MMS broke down years ago we are now at the mercy of BP’s last minute inventions.

The “Culture of Ethical Failure” was well described by the DOI Inspector General in this report in Sept. of 2008. Read the first two pages. Chuckle about the part where the IG details illicit sex, alcohol and drug abuse. Now, go back to the first paragraph and re-read the mention that one person pled guilty to a criminal charge but others ”escaped potential administrative action by departing from federal service, with the usual celebratory send-offs that allegedly highlighted the impeccable service that these individuals had given the Federal Government.” As far as the other employees that were referred to the Department of Justice for possible prosecution? “That office declined to prosecute.”

Tony Hayward of BP

The BP oil disaster has now reached its one month anniversary. No viable solutions are at hand for shutting down the underwater geyser, cleaning up the soiled marshes or restoring the damaged economies of coastal communities. The “outhouse” failed and the “top hat,” “top kill” and “junk shot” are still theories. What’s the performance assessment from the BP CEO? “Extraordinarily successful.” In fact, if BP continues on their chosen strategy, says Man at the Helm Tony Hayward, it just might be an improvement for their reputation!  Bravo Tony. Shirley Temple‘s sunny outlook pales in comparison.

The arrogance seen on display is not new. It’s the same gall we have seen in the Congress with Sen. Lisa Murkowski’s incredible response that the solution to the BP oil disaster is to drill in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. It’s the same predicted blindness we have seen from the industry spokesmodels who were scolded by President Obama last week. This is the same greed that has other oil companies rushing to seek 20 new waivers from environmental analysis for offshore drilling in the Gulf of Mexico SINCE the Deepwater Horizon erupted.

The Obama Administration has taken some much needed action to establish an independent investigation commission and to – finally – address the rat’s nest of collusion and corruption at Minerals Management Service. We are thankful to have New England’s Rep. Ed Markey and Sen. Bernie Sanders helping to lead reform. Other areas of the country which are faced with new oil drilling such as the coast of Virginia are seeing the real face of oil, not the shiny industry portrayal. But, why wait any longer? We need real action. We need President Obama to reinstate the 20 year moratorium on oil drilling.

In probably the most honest headline published since the start of the BP oil disaster, today’s Miami Herald writes “With no clear plan, experts brace for worst.” US Coast Guard Commandant Thad Allen is contemplating an attempt at plugging the gushing well with a collection of shredded tires, golf balls and other assorted technologically advanced clogging materials. Meanwhile, the BP spokesperson on the scene says, “I have every confidence we’ll find a good temporary solution.” When asked for particulars he revised his confidence to say he has every “hope and prayer.” Another step towards honesty. “Sometimes we are not prepared for adversity,” as Cannonball Adderley once said. Why not approach adversity with honesty?

Oil booms, chemical dispersant, skimmer boats and prep to wash oily wildlife are the basic tenets of oil spill response. For all the creativity and commitment to get oil out of the ground, into your tank and the money in the bank we sure have not made much progress in disaster preparedness or oil clean-up. Every oil spill from the 1969 Santa Barbara oil spill, the Exxon Valdez and the smaller spill of fuel oil in Buzzard’s Bay in April of 2003 employed the same four components. What is being employed in the Gulf Coast today is the same approach on a larger scale. It’s no mystery why this is the case. Unless the oil industry feels the pain through fines, regulations and criminal responsibility there will always be an incentive to cut corners, cross fingers and place confidence in “hope and prayer.”

Philosphers and theologians can weigh hope and prayer, but most of us use the standard yardsticks of oil disaster measurement. The BP oil disaster, although likely low-balled, now has its own ticker. The US Coast Guard estimates there have been 250,000 gallons of Corexit, the chemical dispersant of choice, sprayed on or in the ocean so far. The Gulf of Mexico dead zone was over 7000 square miles before the BP oil disaster. There are about 77,000 miles of coastline in Louisiana alone. And then we have about 900,000 feet of plastic oil containment boom placed along Gulf Coast shores. There are still 5280 feet in one mile.

The political landscape seems to be shifting in response to BP’s oil disaster in the Gulf of Mexico. An overnight poll of Florida residents shows a remarkable shift in public opinion on the value of oil drilling off of their coast. Are these results at all surprising since Floridians are seeing the approaching slick to their heralded beaches? Let’s put it in the context of the previous Florida oil storm, which came in the manner of a multi-million dollar lobbying onslaught by a secret group of out-of-state oil companies in late 2008 and through 2009. This secret cabal was so careful about hiding their indentities that their names are still unknown to Florida citizens despite creating a debate that was on the front pages for months. What a difference an exploding oil platform makes.  Now, the Democrats in the state legislature are urging a vote for a state constitutional amendment to ban offshore oil drilling.  Gov. Crist is leaning their way.

On the Left Coast, the Governator had a more direct conversion and made one of the more prescient observations since the Great BP Gulf Eruption. “Why would we want to take on that kind of risk?,” he asks. “Why indeed?,” responds Rep. John Garamendi who wasted no time in putting his money where his mouth is by introducing federal legislation to permanently ban new oil and gas drilling along the entire west coast. Garamendi won a special election this spring and may be a freshman, but he’s been around the block and knows his oil. He served as deputy secretary of the Department of Interior during the Clinton administration and as Lieutenant Governor of California where he nixed the silly drilling for cash ploy by Plains Exploration and Production oil company.

Back on the Jersey Shore long-time drilling opponents Sens. Frank Lautenberg and Robert Menendez, along with Congressman Frank Pallone, are looking at similar legislation to ban drilling in the mid-Atlantic region. Our own New England environmental champions Rep. Ed Markey and Sen. John Kerry were never shy about protecting our beloved Georges Bank and Stellwagen Bank from drilling even at the peak of the Bush era clamor to eliminate the 20 year moratorium.  Unfortunately, the final legislation was never passed and New England’s ocean is still one bad administrative decision away from a return to the failed drilling proposals of the past. The politics of drilling flow like the motion of the ocean itself with the fate of the K-(G)-L climate legislation. Drilling, billions for nukes, a legislated override of a Supreme Court decision to allow regulation of climate pollution and promises, promises to herd in a stray Republican vote are all now up in the air. Sen. Kerry says the proposed legislation will be unveiled on Wednesday. Here’s hoping the proposed oil drilling provisions in that bill have been subject to the same moment of clarity that have awakened millions of Americans. We need climate protection legislation without adding to the oil-carbon disaster.

As the BP oil spill heads east the US Coast Guard, BP and the Florida Dept. of Environmental Protection are planning a coordinated response in the event that oil reaches the western coast of Florida, reports Offshore Magazine, a publication dedicated to issues related to the offshore oil drilling industry. (The ability to plan is certainly a good thing because, as we all know, an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.) Late yesterday NOAA predicted that impacts will not reach the western coast of FL for at least 72 hours at current rates. However, the reports are coming in of the oil slick now moving within a few miles of the Mississippi and Alabama coasts.

Preparing for a catastrophic oil spill on Florida’s famously white sand beaches reminds me of a House of Representatives Natural Resources Committee hearing in early 2009 where one rather certain freshman Louisiana Congressman gave a stern lecture to the Executive Director of the St. Petersburg Convention and Visitor’s Center about the fallacy of not embracing oil drilling a few miles from the Florida coast. D.T. Minich was testifying that the tourism industry drives in $300 million dollars in tax revenue to Pinellas County, Florida alone and tourism delivers $7 billion a year to just that portion of the state. Why would they risk a truly sustainable golden goose? Yet, the point was lost on the oily faithful.

The insistent reliance that Big Oil and their Congressional cheerleaders place on the worth of oil receipts seems to carry a different kind of value, almost a higher moral value than an equal dollar generated by tourism, recreation or the ecological services that are the basis for commercial and recreational fishing. Is it possible that the real value of an oil buck might carry a little more if it boosts an electoral campaign rather than just pay some short order cook’s light bill? Where does all that Big Oil money go? The Washington Post reports this morning that British Petroleum has already “mobilized a massive Washington lobbying campaign” and that BP has spent $20 million on Washington lobbying since that February 2009 hearing where Rep. Freshman tried to proselytize the Florida tourist industry. We know that Congressional campaigns get more expensive each cycle and there are always open checkbooks willing to help finance them, but somehow there is still a well dressed emperor strutting down New Orleans’ Canal Street who has no shame about defending an industry that puts ocean wildlife, coastal workers and their communities, and the health of the planet at grave risk.

As the Great Oil Gush of 2010 continues we look to our elected leaders for solutions, consolation, inspiration and really good sound bites. Right there on the ol’ Gulf Coast, down around Mississippi way there’s a man by the name of Gene Taylor, Democrat, Member of the House of Representatives. Congressman Taylor hustled up a Coast Guard plane ride to get a good look at the millions of gallons of oil headed into the shores, estuaries and highly profitable fishing grounds. After investigation he offered these soon-to-be-regretted words: “It’s not as bad as I thought it’d be.” Expounding on the fruits of his research Rep. Taylor concluded, “A lot of people are scared and I don’t think they should be.” The oil, you see, will break up naturally and even looks like a rainbow on the water with patches of “chocolate milk.”

I don’t think the fishermen of Prince William Sound, among others, would give the “break down naturally” theory a positive response. They still have to deal with oil on the beach after 20 years.

Not to be outdone, right there on the ol’ Long Island Sound, down around Connecticut way there’s another man of the people who goes by the name of Joe Lieberman, U.S. Senator. Being an expert in political matters he informs us that there are larger concerns to be heeded in the halls of democracy than a complete disaster that killed 11 people, will destroy millions of animals and leave coastal communities in poverty. As reported in the May 4 edition of Congress Daily Joe the Senator waves us on in “nothing to see here” fashion when he insists that a bill to save the climate needs to have pro-drilling language that would codify oil development 75 miles off the Atlantic coast. “There were good reasons for us to put in offshore drilling, and this terrible accident is very rare in drilling,” Lieberman said. “I mean, accidents happen. You learn from them and you try to make sure they don’t happen again.” This from a man who fought for years to permanently ban oil drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. 

It appears the Senate vote counting will need to be re-visited as Sen. Bill Nelson (FL-former astronaut) has vowed to filibuster any legislation that allows new offshore oil drilling.

Increased wind speed late yesterday started putting oil on Gulf Coast beaches about 10:00pm last night. Our colleagues at the Gulf Restoration Network are working hard to deal with the oil onslaught. The federal government is stepping up their response and making sure we all know they are. White House political chief David Axelrod announced this morning that they are putting off any new drilling until the administration conducts an “adequate review.” Let’s hope that means at least an immediate moratorium for the Atlantic coast and the Arctic, where drilling could go forward this summer. (Could you imagine a similar spill scenario that occurs under Arctic sheet ice? With no oil booms, skimmer boats, 100-ton steel caps or airplanes dumping “dispersants” in sight?) Sen. Bill Nelson of Florida has already announced he will introduce legislation to ban drilling off the coast of Florida, and Senate Dems are becoming more vocal against the starkly illustrated threats of drilling. It seems like the political currents might be shifting.

Ocean currents are themselves fascinating forces of nature. The currents and internal waves in the Gulf of Maine and Georges Bank are what help to make New England’s ocean so incredibly productive. The currents are corridors of life for all ocean wildlife from migrating whales to free-floating larvae. They also connect the kelp on the coasts to the deepwater corals in far offshore canyons. CLF has fought hard in the past and again in recent years to make sure Georges Bank was protected from oil drilling, but really Georges Bank is just as threatened by oil drilling that occurs off the coast of Maryland, not to mention across the Canadian border.  So, when you are looking south to the unfolding disaster in the Gulf of Mexico don’t forget to look to the north to see what our Canadian neighbors are proposing.

What is there to say about the latest oil spill disaster? My first few attempts at writing would have had to been translated into cartoon epithets  – “^%*) BP oil $#(*^~ %&#*!!”

What we did predict and now know is that: A) the impacts will continue to get worse, B) the experts who promised time and again that they could handle a spill of this type clearly have no clue how to stop the mess or clean it up, and, C) the government that was supposed to provide adult supervision oversight has largely left it to the industry experts. However, the oil industry safety awards program was cancelled this week so they could focus on the tragedy at hand.

As best we know around 5000 barrels of oil a day are flowing out now. Recent predictions are that it could wash across the Gulf of Mexico, into the Florida Keys and up the Atlantic coast of Florida. Over 30% of the “chemical dispersant” that exists in the world is being used in the Gulf of Mexico right now. The Coast Guard is experimenting with open sea burning of several hundred gallons of oil at a time. BP Oil says they are spending $6 million a day on the spill. Wow. Six million a day. That’s a lot of money. I wonder if it includes this week’s American Petroleum Industry lobby week?

An hour ago in the White House Rose Garden President Obama promised the full effort of the US Government to help clean up the spill. Pay now or pay later, friends. The cost of oil is very predictable and always going up.

Who would have thought that Wearing Blue would turn out to be such a huge national event?  The interest in today’s Wear Blue for Oceans events is proliferating like so many amphipods. There are 13 “formal” events including the CLF and Ocean River Institute event in Cambridge. I’ll be with a hundred or so blue attired folks at Lafayette Park (in front of the White House) in Washington, DC. The public interest is coming from all over the country in about as many ways as people can express their love and desire for a healthy living ocean. One of my fave’s is the Beach Chair Scientist’s rendition of ”Love me Blue.” Meanwhile, friend and colleague Sarah Chasis of NRDC has this to say in the HuffingtonPost. And, the Wear Blue Facebook friends group is now over 1500 and Sherman’s Lagoon is Wearing Blue in about 200 papers nation-wide. This all came about in the last six weeks, which, I think, we can all admit is a pretty awesome effort.

What’s all the excitement about? The Obama Administration is leading on a issue that should have been addressed about, let’s say, 100 years ago by developing the country’s first ever national policy for how we protect and manage our coasts, oceans and Great Lakes. It is about time we address the stunning impacts of polluting, developing, overfishing, and drilling of our oceans in a more comprehensive fashion and stop pretending that the piecemeal approach is workable. The foundation of a strong National Ocean Policy needs to be the protection, restoration and maintenance of ocean and coastal ecosystems. We need real habitat protection for those special places in New England’s oceans. We need to give declining ocean wildlife species a better leg to stand on so they aren’t just treated as an afterthought. We are moving ahead in Massachusetts with better planning, ecosystem protection and facilitating clean, renewable energy. We can do that in the other coastal states. Wear your blue today, show you care and don’t stop there. Help use this opportunity of a lifetime to create the change we need for the next 100 years.