by Laura Allen of Animal Law Coalition
With a Vacant Stare and Deaf Ears Salazar has Destroyed Our Wilderness on Land and at Sea
"First I intend to kill off the wild horses, wolves and bison and then we will move offshore to the dolphins, whales and marine wildlife!" - (Comment inserted by R.T. Fitch)
The U.S. House of Representatives Natural Resources Committee chaired by Rep. Nick Rahall (D-W.VA.), a staunch supporter of protections for wild horses and burros, has launched an investigation into the Deepwater Horizon oil rig explosion that has resulted in the massive oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico and will also examine the administration’s offshore oil and gas policy.
The investigation will include 2 days of full committee hearings and then several subcommittee hearings that will focus, in part, on the effect of the oil spill on natural resources and the Mineral Management Service’s compliance with the laws. MMS is under Interior Secretary Ken Salazar’s supervision. Watch the hearings live or archived here. For the full schedule of hearings, go here.
It appears the Dept. of Interior was warned as long ago as May, 2009 that BP’s operations in the Gulf of Mexico presented an extreme and potentially catastrophic danger to wildlife. In a letter from attorney David L. Perry, Perry & Haas, DOI was warned BP was ill prepared for malfunctions and “major portions of the project do not have the required engineering certifications“, that “the number of crutical documents never receiving engineering approval is breathtaking“. Salazar was reminded of BP’s criminal history in regard to oil and gas exploration and drilling. Salazar was reminded of his own duty under the Submerged Lands Act to shut down oil and gas drilling operations when there is a “serious, irreparable, or immediate” threat to wildlife.
Salazar apparently ignored the letter.
The shocking oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico has prompted the Center for Biological Diversity to issue a notice of its intent to sue Ken Salazar, Secretary of the Interior, and the Minerals Management Service (MMS), which is under his jurisdiction.
CBD charges Salazar has violated the Marine Mammal Protection Act (“MMPA”) (16 U.S.C. § 1361 et seq.) and the Endangered Species Act (“ESA”)(16 U.S.C. § 1531 et seq.) in authorizing and managing, or mismanaging, oil and gas exploration and drilling in the Gulf. The oil, still gushing from a leak thousands of feet under the surface of the Gulf waters, is filling the Gulf and creeping into sensitive marshes, beaches and other coastal wildlife habitat. The oil has killed, injured or devastated marine mammals, birds, fish and other life. Dolphins have stranded on beaches, and birds and turtles have been found covered in the muck, struggling to breathe, to live. (The devastation from oil and gas exploration and drilling generally is discussed at length in the CBD’s Notice of Intent to Sue, attached below.)
CBD explains, “Specifically, the Secretary has taken and continues to take actions approving offshore oil and gas lease sales, exploration plans, drilling plans, and seismic exploration permits-which result in harm, harassments and other forms of take of marine mammals, including marine mammals listed as threatened or endangered under the ESA-without authorization pursuant to the MMPA and ESA.
“The MMPA and ESA prohibit the take of protected marine mammals unless authorized. It is undisputed that oil and gas activities such as exploratory drilling and seismic surveys harm, harass and otherwise take marine mammals, yet [Salazar]has never obtained the required authorizations for such actions in the Gulf of Mexico. Meanwhile, offshore oil and gas development …has accelerated in recent years. Since President Obama took office on January 20, 2009, [the following have been] approved for the Gulf of Mexico:
3 lease sales
103 Geological or Geophysical Exploration Permits (“G&G permits”)
299 Exploration Plans
185 Development Operations Coordination Documents
According to CBD, “there has not been a single authorization” for these activities as required by these laws. It turns out the well drilled by the Deepwater Horizon rig was one of those activities Salazar allowed to proceed without authorization.
In the case of the Gulf of Mexico, Salazar has promoted oil and gas exploration as if he is Energy Secretary. Had he truly acted as Interior Secretary, maybe he would have taken steps or at least followed the law, to try to protect what is “one of the most productive-and fragile-marine ecosystems in the nation.”
“The Gulf of Mexico is home to thousands of marine species, ranging from simple invertebrates such as gastropods and sponges to complex and highly evolved fish and marine mammals. It is estimated that there are thousands of species of invertebrates, at least 600 species of fish, and 29 species of cetaceans in the Gulf. In addition, five of the world’s eight species of sea turtles as well as tens of thousands of shore and coastal birds reside in or migrate to the Gulf of Mexico. More than 300 species of coral, combined with other hard-bottom communities, wetlands, seagrass beds, mangroves, and soft-bottom communities, provide the necessary habitat to support this rich assemblage of marine life. ….
“Many of the marine mammals living in the Gulf are listed as endangered under the ESA. Six endangered whale species are known to occur in the Gulf of Mexico-the sperm whale, blue whale, finback whale, sei whale, humpback whale and North Atlantic right whale-and the West Indian manatee inhabits the Gulf’s coastal waters. Other species of marine mammals that occur in the Gulf of Mexico, all of which are protected under the MMPA, include dwarf and pygmy sperm whales, Bryde’s whales, several species of beaked whales, Northern Gulf of Mexico stocks of bottlenose dolphins, Atlantic and pantropical spotted dolphins, striped dolphins, spinner dolphins, Clymene dolphins, Fraser’s dolphins, killer whales, pygmy killer whales, Risso’s dolphins, melon-headed whales, and short-finned pilot whales. In total, twenty-nine species of marine mammals occur in the Gulf of Mexico“. Gulf of Mexico OCS Oil and Gas Lease Sales: 2009-2012; Central Planning Area Sales 208, 213, 216, and 222; Western Planning Area Sales 210, 215, and 218; Final Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement at 4-84 (2009); Notice of Intent to Sue: Violations of the Marine Mammal Protection Act and Endangered Species Act: Unauthorized Take of Marine Mammals Related to the Offshore Oil and Gas Activities in the Gulf of Mexico (attached below)
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Straight from the Horse's Heart 
I adore Rep Grijalva! thank god for people like him, he restores my faith in DC govt.
I heard an ABC report that last year, BP had over 750 safety violations, as opposed to the next company that had 8! Evidently the fines mean nothing to them, when I see people getting gas at a BP station, I really have to sit on my temper, I can’t believe morons are still supporting this company, I really hope these investigations mean the end for Salazar, with the hope that his replacement is a REAL “WILD” person!
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I certainly hope Rahall puts his full weight behind this investigation. When BP was noted to have hundreds of violations opposed to just a handful of the other oil companies (altho I personally feel they just didn’t look that hard at the others), and for continuance of the SAME violations that caused explosions previously they should have been kicked to the curb. Salazar indeed seems intent on raping every marketable item that Mother Nature produces. Think of all the microorganisms that are essential for a healthy ocean and shore line that are being destroyed along with all those species that you can readily see. I would really hope that they will do a running “health scan” on the Gulf and the oceans to the north and south over a period of years. I don’t see how the ocean will be able to mend the constant onslaught of this oil that will not simply disappear or break up in a couple of years. It will be like a cancer, Salazar’s and those that went before him contribution to the death of a planet. Perhaps that’s why Obama ignores us, we’re nothing compared to the death and destruction that can be launched on an astronomical scale. I wonder do they have a 5 year plan when they will feel as if they have destroyed enough or will this continue ad infinitum?
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Fingers Crossed for Salaza’s Public Lynching and removal From Office!
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Isn’t kenny the same drip who signed off on the Ruby Pipeline? ‘Cause I’m thinkin’ maybe anything he’s signed off on or read or touched with his little paws might be suspect and should be immediately reviewed by someone not totally in love with his own reflection.
I’m also thinkin’ perhaps any appointments, suggestions, verbalizations, Hell – ANYTHING brushed by the nearness of kenny salazar should be immediately placed under the auspices of the Retroactive Moratoria (I made that up, but it’s pretty good, huh?)
President Obama may have appointed salazar but it took a larger governing body to approve him. Ignoring the Wild Equine Advocacy is disappointing but not surprising. But ignoring verified reports of criminal activity by a major corporation, and furthering that corporation’s ability to circumvent the law?
(Gotchyer boot on THAT??!)
Son, that’s gonna leave a big OL’ scar.
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What do we need to call in to the White House? Requests for Salazar’s removal or resignation?
The only thing that has the hint of encouragement, is the expression on OBama’s face!
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There have been reports that the chemical dispursant being used on the oil is banned in Britain because it’s harmful and/or toxic to sealife. Evidently it’s some “secret formula” that BP is keeping under wraps. It’s being referred to as “deoderized kerosene”, and there are reports it can actually make the oil MORE toxic. Double whammy!
There was a report of a dead dolphin that BP TESTED, and determined hadn’t been killed by the oil. Apparently they’ve expanded their business to include marine biology. Where are the people from Woods Hole?
The 4-mile barrier being built to protect one part of the coastline is constructed of baskets filled with powdered synthetic polymer (manufactured by another good ol’ boy petrochemical company) that is supposed to soak up the oil and become a kind of jelly. What if a storm surge deposits that oil-soaked, gelatinous mess on the wetlands? The good news for BP is the jelly that’s collected can be re-used to make asphalt and other petroleum-based products.
I think BP’s original and on-going intent is to capture as much oil as possible for re-use, and also save the well-head … damage to the environment, sea life, and human health be damned!
Ken Salazar is slowly sinking in his own mire. He should resign, but he and Obama will probably choose to fight this out in court. That’s what’s so great about being a FOO (Friend of Obama) … job security and no worries!
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There was an excellent 60min? interview of several employees on the rig(right after the accident) who said, the people who pump mud down and back the previous week before the accident had “chunks of rubber, ‘handfulls’ show up in with the recycled? drilling mud. Another statement said that was pieces of” the main seal on the well.” They had by accident couple weeks before did some kind of incorrect test of the seal and closed it with a ‘clutch engaged?’ and damaged the seal at that time. They did nothing about that incorrect test. And the man who found the chunks of rubber in the drilling mud, went to the main man and he asked about it and was told no big deal we need to move fast and finish. Everyone was focused on getting the well finished as fast as possible and not being safe AT ALL.
so many times they could have stopped and fixed those terrible problems and mistakes yet they did not!
That 60 mins was good, they also spoke about halliburton doing the final concrete seals for the well and the 4th seal wasn’t in yet. at the same time suits were gathering on the deck of the well for the big party and back patting show they do when the well is finished. And that’s when first gas escaped a fishing boat saw and got away in time. Then the well blew-up!
watch that 60 mins it was awesome and the truth of Salazars and BPs SLOPPY and criminal! WORK.
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Oh yes – there’s that magic Halliburton name again. They DO get around.
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Remember; Halliburton=Cheney
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There is no forgiveness in the hearts of Americans for this disaster. Something else to add–had anyone listened to the alarm sounded by the wild horse and burro advocated, this disaster might have been averted.
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It is time for a thorough house cleaning–starting at the top. Investigations need to go back into past dealings–not just the most recent. Dig up all of the bodies.
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I agree. There are federal employees who accepted gifts, trips and other under the table bonus-kickbacks. Some may have made a lot of money taking loads of wild horses to slaughterhouses or allowing family or friends perks.
These criminals need to be sought out using perhaps the FBI and removed from office and charged with crimes.
Who knows how deep the graft/kickbacks can go. We have a huge problem with guns and drug money moving into mexico and drugs back into the usa. Anyone who could deal under the table with selling wild horses as meat could just as easy be transporting guns into mexico or even worse criminal activity.
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