In the Gulf of Mexico, the disaster continues to expand unabated as BP fiddles with ways of plugging the wild well. If BP continues to fail to take effective immediate action, the oil spill will easily be double in size of the Exxon Valdez spill, assuming the relief well works. It will take another 75 days according to the company for one of two relief wells to be finished. The oil company behemoth, which takes in $93 billion a day in revenue, again demonstrated its warped priorities when it greeted rescued platform workers in their lifeboats with affidavits to sign saying they had "no personal knowledge" of what happened on board Deepwater Horizon. Federal officials are already finding that there were a series of defects in equipment and procedures that contributed to the blowout. The effects of the worst case scenario spill will be felt for decades according to a spokesman from the Scripps Oceanographic Institute. The Gulf Coast contains 40% of the United State's wetlands. The porous coast will act as a sponge as the gooey, toxic oil-seawater sludge is driven inland by wind, waves and storms. Hurricane season begins June 1st.
British Petroleum, as the offshore lessee, is ultimately responsible for what happened on Mississippi Canyon Block 252. No amount of public finger pointing can alter that fact. However, its civil liability is currently capped at $75m. The administration is asking Congress to increase the cap to $10b. However, if evidence mounts that BP's drilling contractor, Transocean, Inc. continued operations despite failed pressure testing of the well, a federal criminal prosecution of both companies is warranted. The deaths of federally protected migratory birds caused by the spill can also be criminally prosecuted without evidence of willful intent or negligence. There are no monetary caps on criminal fines and penalties.