Sen. Bill Nelson: Did Big Oil quash safety regulations?

[babylonsister]

Nelson: Did Big Oil quash safety regulations?
By Mark Benjamin

*

In response to the massive oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico, Sen. Bill Nelson, D-Fla., is asking the Interior Department's inspector general to review “the extent to which the oil and natural gas industry exercised influence” over the development of drilling safety regulations.

In particular, Nelson wants to know if the industry has resisted fitting underwater wells with a device that remotely activates “blowout preventers" -- shut-off valves that, in the event of an emergency, seal a wellhead and prevent oil gushers. At least two other countries require that underwater wells be equipped with an audio signal that remotely activates the preventer, but not the United States.

Nelson wants the inspector general to look into possible oil industry influence into that and “all other regulations relevant to blowout preventers and well controls.”

BP says it is unclear if the device would have prevented this spill, which is dumping over 200,000 gallons of oil into the Gulf every day. The acoustic switches cost about $500,000 each, which is decimal dust compared to what the oil spill will cost.

Nelson's letter at link~

http://www.salon.com/news/louisiana_oil_spill/index.html?story=/politics/war_room/2010/05/03/nelson_inspector_general_oil

[BrklynLiberal]

1. NO!!!! Big oil, natural gas, coal industry...try to quash safety standards in order to maximize

profits? I am shocked, I tell you...Just shocked.

I would also like to see some investigation into how well Halliburton did the job of cementing the wells....

[PDJane]

2. Cleanup first.

If there is no cleanup, there won't be any reason to investigate, because we won't be around long.

And if the justice department can walk and talk at the same time, get them on the investigation. It's long past time. The whole damn BFEE should be hauled into court and made to atone for the damage they have caused the whole world. While we're at it, re-investigate 9/11.

[SammyWinstonJack]

6. +1. nt.

[damntexdem]

3. Is the Pope Catholic?

And just where does a bear defecate.

We already know that an oil company shits in the Gulf. ;-)

[katandmoon]

4. Betcha anything Nelson gets the ol' runaround.

[laughingliberal]

5. Good for him! We have a great opportunity to FINALLY show the damage 'deregulation' does

and how not everything which is good for 'bidness' is good for the rest of us.

[rudy23]

7. The Repub argument is that regulations caused BP to drill so deep they couldn't shut off the rig

What a shock!

[Dappleganger]

8. Old Bill has finally discovered what the 'D' after his name means.

Keep it up!

[AtomicKitten]

9. Does the pope shit in the woods?