The US Coast Guard has opened a new war of words with BP over the Deepwater Horizon tragedy after the British super major claimed clear-up work from the 2010 disaster was complete.
BP said last night that the final stage of shoreline clean-up had been finished, bringing to an end more than £8billion of work, as coast guard officials ended patrols on the final three mile stretch of Louisiana shoreline affected by the disaster.
But on the eve of the fourth anniversary of the fatal disaster, the Coast Guard said today that the response was not complete and it continued to hold BP accountable for ongoing work along the coastline impacted by the massive oil spill.
“BP has spent more than $14 billion and more than 70 million personnel hours on response and cleanup activities,” said the oil giant’s vice president for environmental restoration, Laura Folse.
“Even though active cleanup has ended, we will keep resources in place to respond quickly at the Coast Guard’s direction if potential Macondo oil is identified and requires removal.”
Eleven people died when the well exploded on April 20 2010, releasing almost five million barrels of oil into the Gulf of Mexico and causing environmental damage and pollution along the coastline.
The company said it had cleared almost 780miles, expending 70 million man-hours to clear up the 210million gallons that spilled into the water.
The spill could yet cost the company billions in court fines on top of the clear-up and damages payouts made over the last four years.
“Reaching this milestone is the result of the extraordinary efforts of thousands of people from BP, local communities, government agencies, and academic institutions working together,” said BP America chairman John Mingé.
“Immediately following the Deepwater Horizon accident, BP committed to cleaning the shoreline and supporting the Gulf’s economic and environmental recovery. Completing active cleanup is further indication that we are keeping that commitment.”
But the Coast Guard disagreed with BP, saying that while its response status to the disaster had been changed it did not regard the process of repairing the Louisiana coastline as being complete.
“Our response posture has evolved to target re-oiling events on coastline segments that were previously cleaned,” said the Coast Guard’s Thomas Sparks
“But let me be absolutely clear: This response is not over—not by a long shot. The transition to the Middle Response process does not end clean-up operations, and we continue to hold the responsible party accountable for Deepwater Horizon cleanup costs.”
The Coast Guard said it was now at a middle response status, which would use more focused response equipment and staff to react to possible accidents or further oil spill information.
More than 5,500 pounds of oil-affected material had been cleared up in the last nine months, it said.
“We are absolutely committed to continuing the clean-up of Deepwater Horizon oil along the Gulf – for as long as it takes, and to surge as necessary and as the situation dictates,” added Captain Sparks.
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