Latest news: December 19, 2011
By Times-Picayune Staff, the Times-Picayune. December 17, 2011.
“Is the Obama administration supporting legislation to direct 80 percent of Clean Water Act fines for the BP oil spill to the five Gulf states to help finance coastal restoration efforts? Administration officials aren’t answering that question directly…”
By K. A. Turner, The Press-Register (Mobile, AL). December 18, 2011.
“The central Gulf Coast got some good news last week as state and federal officials took another step in the oil spill recovery process…”
By Editorial page staff, The Houma Courier. December 17, 2011.
“The federal government took an important step last week in what is sure to be a long journey…”
By Editorial page staff, The Times-Picayune. December 17, 2011.
“The first projects covered by BP’s pledge to provide $1 billion for early restoration from the 2010 oil spill will include creating 104 acres of marsh, placing oyster cultch on six public seed beds and upgrading a Grand Isle oyster hatchery. That’s fitting, since wetlands and oyster beds are both important natural resources in Louisiana that took serious blows in the disaster…”
By Keith Magill, The Daily Comet (Lafourche Parish, LA). December 17, 2011.
“The weekly count of oil rigs operating in federal waters off Louisiana’s coast has reached its highest point since last year’s BP oil spill, state officials say…”
By Margaret Cronin Fisk and Allen Johnson, Jr., Bloomberg News. December 16, 2011.
“Transocean Ltd. (RIG)’s drilling contract with BP Plc (BP/) promised indemnification for damages from oil spilled below the surface of the Gulf of Mexico and should be enforced for claims over the Deepwater Horizon accident, the rig owner told a judge…”
By Mark Schleifstein, The Times-Picayune. December 16, 2011.
“The raising of levees along the west bank of the Mississippi River by as much as 2 1/2 feet will not put residents of St. Bernard Parish and the east bank of New Orleans at heightened risk from storm surge in a 100-year hurricane, a team of Army Corps of Engineers officials said Thursday. The briefing was aimed at allaying fears of members of the Southeast Louisiana Flood Protection Authority-East, who have raised concerns that the east bank levees are now too low…”