The company responsible for an ongoing spill in the Gulf of Mexico is holding a public forum on Wednesday. Taylor Energy was mandated to share information about the spill and its cleanup efforts with the public.
The Waterkeeper Alliance, Apalachicola Riverkeeper and Louisiana Environmental Action Network sued the company for being too secretive. According to the Coast Guard, some of the company’s wells began leaking after Hurricane Ivan in 2004, but the oil sheen off the coast of Louisiana wasn’t detected until 2008. It has leaked up to 55 barrels a day since then.
After a court settlement in September the company was required to share the information.
Larissa Liebmann, staff attorney with the Waterkeeper Alliance, says oil is still leaking from the well and more needs to be done.
“Next we hope that the federal government will start to step up and really take action and give some insight into whether they think more should be done," she says, "and make sure that the public understands that this is a risk that offshore oil drilling has.”
Liebmann says scientists and engineers will have a chance to scrutinize and respond to the company’s findings at the public forum.
An Associated Press investigation last year showed that the leak was worse than the company or government said. Taylor Energy created a fund to clean up the spill, but a few weeks ago it filed a complaint against the federal government saying the spill can’t be stopped and it wants the money back. The government says the spill could last for 100 years if left unchecked.
Support for WWNO's Coastal Desk comes from the Greater New Orleans Foundation, the Coypu Foundation and the Walton Family Foundation.
