U.S. Panel Urges Major Reforms in Aftermath of Gulf of Mexico Oil Spill

The U.S. presidential commission investigating last year’s oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico is calling for tougher regulation of offshore oil drilling, the creation of a new industry-run safety organization, and more funding for federal agencies that oversee drilling safety. The commission’s two co-chairs said it would be a mistake to focus only on BP and the two other drilling companies involved in the disaster, saying that the problems of lax oversight of offshore drilling are systemic and in need of a major overhaul. “I am sad to say that part of the answer is the fact that our government helped let it happen,” said former U.S. Sen. Bob Graham, one of the panel’s co-chairs. “Our regulators were consistently outmatched.” The panel said the liability cap on oil spills — currently $75 million for environmental and economic damage — should be increased, and recommended that 80 percent of the Clean Water Act penalties linked to the spill be spent on environmental restoration. The commission also recommended a significant strengthening of the agency that oversees offshore drilling, funded by fees paid by oil companies. The commission also recommended the creation of an industry-run organization modeled on the nuclear power institute that ensures that safe practices are followed at the nation’s nuclear power plants.