What would happen to the ocean and the coastal communities along the Gulf of Mexico if 8.4 million gallons of oil and 180 million cubic feet of gas a day spilled? Picture the devastation that could dwarf the Exxon Valdez disaster.
Located in "hurricane alley" off the coast of New Orleans, "Atlantis" is the deepest oil and gas platform of its kind in the world. BP's own database shows that 85 percent of the project's required engineering diagrams are missing - if they were ever done to start with. BP has an ugly record of skirting the law, but this time the consequences could last for generations!
The U.S. Department of Interior's Mineral Management Services (MMS) is the primary federal agency responsible for ensuring that oil exploration and production activities are conducted safely. Since the start of the Bush Administration, MMS has held BP accountable for Atlantis - and even though safety concerns have been directly raised for several years, MMS has still not responded.
Tell Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar and Congress to launch an immediate investigation regarding the regulation of the Atlantis, to immediately suspend production at the Atlantis and to call for oversight hearings on the MMS.
Dear [Decisionmaker Name],
I was shocked to learn about the deplorable safety conditions of the Atlantis, the deepest moored semi-submersible oil and gas platform in the world.
Located in "hurricane alley" off the coast of New Orleans at a water depth of more than 7,000 feet, the Atlantis weighs 58,700 metric tons and has a production capacity of 8.4 million gallons of oil and 180 million cubic feet of gas a day. The project came on line during the Bush Administration's tenure and began operating in October 2007.
According to their own internal documents, BP characterizes the situation as having the potential for "catastrophic operator errors." The Atlantis poses a serious, immediate and potentially irreparable threat to the Gulf of Mexico's marine environment, oil workers and communities. Yet despite this fact, the U.S. Department of Interior's Mineral Management Services (MMS) has not been responsive to concerns about the Atlantis.
I am calling for the following actions in order to prevent a catastrophic oil accident in the Gulf of Mexico:
- Congress should launch an immediate investigation regarding the regulation of the Atlantis
- MSS should immediately suspend production at the Atlantis
- Congress should launch oversight hearings on MMS regarding the regulation of the Atlantis
[Your comments will be inserted here]
Thank you for your time and for your immediate attention to this important matter.
