Latest news: September 19, 2011

Gulf champion Nancy Rabalais gets her due: An editorial

By Editorial page staff, The Times-Picayune (New Orleans, La.). September 19, 2011.

“Marine ecologist Nancy Rabalais has been mapping the dead zone that forms off Louisiana’s coast for 27 years, work that has been critical in understanding and focusing attention on this important environmental issue. The Heinz Family Foundation has named her a 2011 recipient of a $100,000 Heinz award…”

Holding BP accountable for bad decisions that led to oil spill disaster: An editorial

By Editorial page staff, The Times-Picayune (New Orleans, La.). September 18, 2011.

“The federal government’s most conclusive report on the Deepwater Horizon disaster reaffirms the crucial finding shared by some of the other probes into the tragedy: that BP’s failure to assess the well’s risks and the company’s relentless drive to cut corners at the expense of safety were the main catalysts for the catastrophe. That unequivocal conclusion should demolish BP’s efforts to deflect blame for the blowout and the subsequent oil spill, especially when it comes to determining payment of the massive fines related to the incident…”

Oil still reported leaking in Barataria Bay, Coast Guard says

By Dennis Persica, The Times-Picayune (New Orleans, La.). September 18, 2011.

“More oil was reported leaking in Bayou Dupont and north Barataria Bay on Sunday, the Coast Guard reported…”