Blog - BPs Oil Drilling Disaster in the Gulf of Mexico
Tuesday, 25 May 2010 11:11
Video Release – Gulf Tides: Monitoring BP’s Oil Drilling Disaster
“Episode 1: Fearing the Future” narrated by actor Tim Robbins
New Orleans, LA – BP’s oil drilling disaster continues to wreak havoc on the environment and people of the Gulf of Mexico. Gulf Restoration Network, a 16-year old environmental organization dedicated exclusively to the health of the Gulf, debuts a weekly series focused on the impacts to our coast and communities as this slow-motion disaster unfolds, Gulf Tides: Monitoring BP’s Oil Drilling Disaster.
“A couple days ago we flew over what looked to be a ribbon of oil threatening a large bird rookery full of pelicans, bright pink spoonbills, and other wildlife. BP’s oil drilling disaster is also threatening coastal communities that harvest 30% of the nation’s seafood and provide the shrimp, oysters, and crabs New Orleans is famous for,” states video narrator Tim Robbins, an Academy Award-winning actor and activist.
As residents of the coast, like Danny Phillips from Grand Bayou, LA, fear for their health and livelihoods, BP has been misleading the public. From withholding video footage documenting the source of the oil geyser for weeks to asserting control over air and water quality sampling data, BP has worked to hide the truth about their oil drilling disaster.
“We need the truth. Our very lives depend on it, our very livelihoods, our entire culture depends on getting the truth . . . on knowing what we have to deal with,” says Rosina Phillip, a community elder of the Atapaka Tribe.
Impacts continue to expand as an estimated 3 million gallons of oil a day gushes from BP’s well, so far totaling 8 times the Exxon Valdez. Large portions of Louisiana’s fishing grounds have been closed and oil has reportedly landed on 65 miles of Louisiana’s coast.
“Gulf Restoration Network and our friends are calling on BP to make coastal communities whole once again, provide honest and transparent assessments of the disaster, and fully pay for clean up and damage mitigation without standing in the way of an effective response,” states Aaron Viles, Campaign Director for Gulf Restoration Network, “The debut of our weekly series, Gulf Tides: Monitoring BP’s Oil Drilling Disaster, is one of many steps we’re taking to make sure BP cleans up its act.”
“As Gulf Restoration Network monitors and responds to this crisis, they’ll need your support. Visit www.bpdrillingdisaster.org to take action, stay informed, and donate to these efforts,” Tim Robbins concludes in Episode 1.
