GULF OIL DISASTER
Investigative Report: How the BP Oil Rig Blowout Happened
Forget the lumbering investigative panels - here's what happened and why.
Cap is off BP's ruptured well
"The cap removal was "an important step in the process to remove and preserve the damaged BOP [blowout preventer]," said retired Coast Guard Adm. Thad Allen, the government's point man on the oil disaster. He said work on removing the damaged blowout preventer was expected to commence Thursday night.
On Thursday evening, BP said that a vessel is "is preparing to remove the Horizon BOP" and that another vessel was in the area with a new blowout preventer."
Second Oil Rig Explosion Renews Debate on Offshore Drilling
"Following the explosion on the Vermillion oil rig off the coast of Louisiana, environmental groups renewed their calls for the federal government to maintain and possibly widen the ban, while advocates to remove it were more circumspect. Sensitivity over the deepwater drilling ban runs high, given it was only recently that the worst oil spill in U.S. history was capped after spewing nearly 5 million barrels of crude into the Gulf."
Blaze Shakes Oil Industry
An Oil Platform Burns, Blanketing the Gulf With Angst
BP Says Limits on Drilling Imperil Oil Spill Payouts
BP Says Limits on Drilling Imperil Oil Spill Payouts
Oil money blackmail?
WILDLIFE, HUMAN AND ECOSYSTEM IMPACTS
No Safe Harbor on Gulf Coast; Human Blood Tests Show Dangerous Levels of Toxic Exposure
"...for the first time blood tests on sickened humans have shown signs of exposure to high levels of toxic chemicals related to crude oil and dispersants. Some of the individuals tested have not been on the beaches, were not involved in any cleanup operations or in the Gulf water -- they simply live along the Gulf Coast."
NOAA Re-opens Federal Waters offshore the Florida Panhandle to Commercial and Recreational Fishing
"The area closed to all fishing now measures 39,885 sq mi (103,303 sq km) and covers about 17% of the Gulf of Mexico exclusive economic zone."
