BP Oil Spill Waivers Capped Liability Payments To Coastal Residents At $5,000

[Joanne98]

VENICE, La. -- BP PLC said Monday that it will pay for all the cleanup costs from a massive oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico that could continue spewing crude for at least another week.

Meanwhile, chief executive Tony Hayward said Monday that chemical dispersants have worked to some degree to keep oil from flowing to the surface, though he did not elaborate. He said on ABC's "Good Morning America" that the new approach seemed to be having a significant impact.

The company posted a fact sheet on its Web site saying it took responsibility for the response to the Deepwater Horizon spill and would pay compensation for legitimate claims for property damage, personal injury and commercial losses.

"We are responsible, not for the accident, but we are responsible for the oil and for dealing with it and cleaning the situation up," Hayward said. He said the equipment that failed on the rig and led to the spill belonged to owner Transocean Ltd., not BP, which operated the rig.

Over the weekend, news emerged that BP was circulating settlement agreements among coastal residents of Alabama and possibly other states, essentially requiring that "people give up the right to sue in exchange for payment of up to $5,000," the Alabama Press-Register reported. Alabama's Attorney General Troy King protested and asked BP to stop distribution of the letters.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/05/03/bp-oil-spill-waivers_n_560814.html

[spanone]

1. dear friends on the coast...sign nothing.

[gov for sale]

4. +1 net present value for human habitat? ...much much more than $5K

People keep comparing this to Katrina... important distinction, you can't file suit against the weather.

Also, not to be totally depressing or alarmist, you probably want to get the hell out of there. Particularly if you have kids, are pregnant, risk complications to other conditions, or rely on ground water... This is really really bad stuff. Highly highly carcinogenic.

Joe Berlinger did a good job in his documentary "Crude" about effects this stuff has on human populations... and also provides a glimpse into the process in terms of a winning lawsuit and legal precedent.

Please don't allow yourself to get sick... this is going to be a serious mess. And unfortunately there will be no way to successfully "clean-up". If you are in the path of this spill; you are, in all likelyhood, sitting in the countries next and worst superfund site. If any of this strikes you as foreign or alarmist, please take some time and research... it certainly cant hurt.

[workinclasszero]

2. What a joke!

So a shrimper who stands to lose his whole livelihood for oh 15 or 20 years get 5000 dollars from these earth destroying fucking assholes!! :grr:

That is some MASSIVE BS there! BP can and should be TOTALLY destroyed, broken up with all their fuckin assets sold to the highest bidder and the monies split between the various victim's!

Of course that wont do anything for the untold thousands upon thousands of animals that will be killed off by this disaster. In twenty years the effects of this spill will still be seen!

If they dont cap that damn well in the next couple of day I think this will go down as the worst ecological distater in fuckin history! Right up there with Chernobyl. This shit is going to spread, its not going to just stay in the gulf.

Get ready east coast...your oily hell slick is on the way!

[blindpig]

3. Bastards

Fuckers still looking at their bottom line....

Expropriate all of their US assets, sue for the rest.

Expropriate Expropriate Expropriate Expropriate Expropriate Expropriate

[lonestarnot]

5. "could continue for another week."

:wtf:

[Bonhomme Richard]

6. The CEO said this morning that they have dumped that policy n/t