A Citizen's Perspective
By Kaye Kiker
RE: OBSTRUCTION OF INDEPENDENT SCIENCE TESTING, PUBLIC KNOWLEDGE AND PRESS REPORTS IN RELATION TO THE BP OIL DISASTER ON THE GULF COAST
For those of you who do not live on the Gulf Coast nor have access to Concerned Citizens working on the BP oil disaster, I want to share with you my perspective on certain important aspects of the crisis, i.e. the obstruction by authoritative agencies to inhibit and prevent citizen’s efforts to discover the facts for themselves. What you are about to read and view will shock you.
On April 20, 2010, eleven workers lost their lives when the British Petroleum Deep Water Horizon oil rig caught on fire and collapsed in the Gulf of Mexico. From the beginning, Americans were not told the truth about what happened to cause the disaster or how much oil was gushing into the Gulf of Mexico.
You have been told through Newspapers and Magazines Articles, Television and Radio News and on the internet that the oil is no longer an issue; the oil has disappeared and the beaches are clean and the seafood is safe to eat. Come on down and enjoy the Gulf Coast. The Government assured us they were monitoring BP closely and everything was going as planned. BP ads started showing up everywhere promising us BP would make things right and they would be on the Gulf Coast as long as it took.
What you may not know, BP spent a Million Dollars every day for three months for a total of $93 Million for advertising. BP admitted this to a Congressional Committee in DC. BP also provided 89.5 million dollars in grants to aid tourism promotion efforts in Florida, Alabama, Mississippi, and Louisiana, states most at risk for losing tourism revenue because of the catastrophe.
Ref. 1 9-1-10 Yahoo article. BP Ad Spending Tripled After Spill: US Lawmakers
http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20100901/ts_alt_afp/usoilenvironmentpollutionadvertisingpolitics
Ref. 2 August 4, 2010: U.S. Finds Most Oil From Spill Poses Little Additional Risk
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/08/04/science/earth/04oil.html?_r=1
Concerned Citizens could hardly complete with that kind of news blitz, but why should they when they believed the Federal, State and local authorities were on the job? Soon, it became clear that something was wrong and unethical. The sea life and coastal birds and other animal were dying in masses. Oil was invading the outer islands and then the beaches as one method after another failed to stop the gushing oil. BP, against USEPA advice, began using Corexit, a dispersant, so the crude would sink to the seafloor and out of sight. The public was told over 2 million gallons of Corexit was applied, but reports keep surfacing that it is still being sprayed in the Gulf and near the beaches, even though Central Commander, Thad Allen said it had been discontinued in mid July.
With dead and dying sea life and birds everywhere, the public became alarmed and the press moved in to cover the daily struggles of the fishing community, the cleanup operation, the Vessels of Opportunity Program, the closing of fishing areas, etc. <span>Then something peculiar happened.</span>
The US Coast Guard announced new rules that all press would go through them. No one could approach closer than 65 feet from oil booms, no photos could be taken of oiled or dead and dying sea life or land creatures under a penalty of a felony charge and a $40,000.00 penalty.
Thus the First Amendment Rights had been suspended on the Gulf Coast.
Ref. 3 July 2010: 1st Amendment Rights Suspended.
http://www.nola.com/news/gulf-oil-spill/index.ssf/2010/07/media_boaters_could_face_crimi.html
Ref. 4 July 2010 CNN’s Anderson Cooper: New Rules
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uXsmLMV1CrM
In August, NPR reported where two separate teams of independent scientists studying Gulf water and sea life were stopped by Federal Agencies. One was the US Fish and Wildlife Agency and the other was Homeland Security. All samples, test vials, notes and other items were confiscated. The Scientists, one team from the University Of Texas A&M and the other from the Louisiana State University, were questioned, had to show ID and credentials and were told they must have a Permit or authority to do independent tests. Of course, the scientists were shocked and dismayed.
Ref. 5 August 20, 2010 NPR article and audio: Should Science Take Sides In The Gulf?
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=129324775
In September, another independent science team working for Louisiana Environmental Action Network received a disturbing call from Washington DC. They had been testing the Gulf waters and investigating sea life contamination. All preliminary results were posted on the LEAN website for the public to see. They were told to come to DC to be questioned by a Federal Commission. In response, a Louisiana Congressman is calling for an investigation of the Federal action.
Ref. 6 9-16-10: Scientists investigating oil spill unsettled by calls from federal commission
Ref. 7 9-17-10 NEW ORLEANS TV STATION FINDS OIL SPILL COVERUP; CONGRESSMAN CALLS FOR INVESTIGATION
On September 17, a news reporter with Channel WEAR was filming the oil cleanup process on the Pensacola public beach and was digging in the sand when a US Fish & Wildlife Official warned him he had no permit to dig in the sand. You have to see this video to believe it. The reporter moved down to another section of the public beach when a law officer stopped him again.
Ref. 8 9-17-10 Channel WEAR, reporter Dan Thomas told he could not dig in Beach Sand without a permit by a US Fish & Wildlife Official. No digging more than 6 inches deep.
http://www.weartv.com/newsroom/raw_news/videos/vid_156.shtml?sms_ss=facebook
Ref. 9 9-17-10 Dan moved farther down the beach and a Law Officer stopped him.
http://www.weartv.com/newsroom/top_stories/videos/wear_vid_10939.shtml?sms_ss=facebook
These are but a handful of examples. Citizen’s believe their rights and public knowledge have been denied and controlled by authorities in order to protect BP from adverse publicity, and that it is an attempt to mask the severity of the toxic oil/corexit contamination of public and private beaches and Gulf waters. The BP disaster has had an undeniable impact to sea life and birds, and more importantly, to human life. Tourism and seafood is one of the biggest industries on the Gulf Coast and is almost at a standstill. No entity should deny the public the right to know the truth.
Our 1st Amendment Rights are too precious and valuable. Independent science must be allowed to go forward in a free society. The press is our beacon of enlightenment and must not be deterred. This is America after all.
Please share this perspective. It is my hope that truth will pierce the veil of secrecy and denial that is being proliferated on the Gulf Coast.
Sincerely,
Kaye Kiker
Kaye is a founding member of Alabamians for a Clean Environment (ACE). Over the years, the work ACE accomplished was used across the nation by other environmental groups and to educate communities fighting dumps and incinerators. Years of struggle taught Kaye the value of empowering American citizens with skills and knowledge to have effective input in decision making processes.