US Authorities May Push BP Out of the Way

Officials in the United States said recently that the federal government might push British oil company BP out of the way, and assume command of the clean-up efforts in the Gulf of Mexico. Even though British Petroleum is the only company involved in the efforts that has the know-how to seal a spill taking place at such a high depth (about 1,500 meters below the surface), authorities feel like the corporation has constantly failed to perform its duty in cleaning up the mess and in stopping the oil slick from expanding further, the BBC News reports.

The announcement was made by US Interior Secretary Ken Salazar, in what was qualified as the harshest attack on BP since the crisis began more than a month ago. The official blasted BP for missing “deadline after deadline” in its efforts to seal the oil leaks. Currently, more than 5,000 barrels of crude are spewing into the Gulf every day, but these are only estimative numbers. The actual figure may be several times as high, given that researchers have still not identified the underwater plumes that were formed. These formations could be anywhere, and detecting them is very difficult without proper scientific studies of areas adjacent to the initial site of the accident.

“If we find they're not doing what they're supposed to be doing, we'll push them out of the way appropriately,” Salazar told the media after a visit he made to BP's US Headquarters. He added that the company had already agreed to pay more for the clean up efforts than the $75 million liability limit the current US laws state. The Secretary added that the government had already sent a number of leading scientists to BP, to aid in the efforts of coming up with plans to limit the extent of the damage. “They have pushed BP in every way that they can to kill the well and they have pushed BP in every way that they can to stop the pollution. If there is a way to kill this well, they will find it. If there is a way to stop this pollution from spreading, they will find it,” he added.

Salazar also said that there was no question in his mind that the company was doing everything in its power to stop the oil leak, but added that he was not as confident when it came to establishing whether BP's course of action was the correct one. “Do I have confidence that they know exactly what they're doing? No, not completely,” he told reporters. Even President Barack Obama blaster the company, saying that the accident and its repercussions were a consequence of “a breakdown of responsibility” at BP.