What BP Was Hiding

Two years ago come April reckless shortcutting by BP and its partners in the Gulf of Mexico triggered a blowout of one of its deepwater wells killing eleven of those working on the platform and injuring 17 others. For roughly three months the well spewed crude oil into the Gulf. It was five months before it was capped once and for all.

Monday (02.27.12) the people of the United States will finally begin to get their day in court. The U.S. District Court in New Orleans begins what will be years of responsibility dodging and finger pointing by BP, Halliburton, Transocean, and some of the other players in this tragedy. Among the +/- 600 claimants there will be one more class of the ethically challenged, those who make false claims in an attempt to cash in on this awful event.

An event that we do not as yet know its full impact. Some environmental damage could play out for years. Some facts up to now hidden will come out in court. One shocker was disclosed as a part of the run-up to the trial. In the early hours of the first day BP managers estimated that the spill could dump 3.4 million gallons of crude oil into the Gulf every day. A number higher than the final US estimate by about a million gallons a day.

But instead of following the tried and true “Prepare for the worst and hope for the best” path, BP instead buried this estimate. Internal memos and emails released last week show that BP engaged in a frantic effort to keep secret their estimates of the potential damage of the spill and to browbeat the US Coast Guard into down playing it as well; despicable.

It will be years, two or three at least, perhaps another twenty before the claims are all settled. BP is trying to settle as many as possible before they get into court. They are looking to settle much as $20 billion in federal fines before the trial gets underway. There’s the much of the touted $20 billion that BP set aside early on to pay those (especially the little folks) who suffered financially from the spill and they could face more. All of these big numbers need to be viewed in light of the windfall BP and others enjoyed when the blowout triggered a spike in oil prices.

Keep in mind that this court date is just to determine financial responsibility. Yet to come –we can only hope– are the criminal charges that may be leveled at some of the entities and individuals involved. It is important to remember the horrific deaths and injuries sustained in the explosion, the fireball, and the crash into the Gulf that day in April are of much greater significance than any other part of this tragedy. The environment will heal. Financial loss will be recovered - or not. But those left in physical and mental pain, along with the families left without their sons and brothers, and fathers, and husbands, they will live with their loss for the remainder of their lives.