Transocean Pleads Guilty to Violating CWA and Will Pay $1.4 Billion

January 3 - The Department of Justice announced today that Transocean will plead guilty to violating the Clean Water Act and other statutes and pay $1 billion in civil penalties and $400 million in criminal penalties for its role in the 2010 Gulf oil disaster.

“This is an important step to get money flowing into the Gulf of Mexico,” said John Kostyack, vice president for wildlife conservation at the National Wildlife Federation. “Environmental restoration is critical to the well-being of the communities and ecosystems of the Gulf. In passing the bipartisan RESTORE Act, Congress recognized that a healthy ecosystem supports a healthy economy, both regionally and nationally. These are the first funds that will be directed under that historic statute, potentially beginning the largest ecosystem restoration project in U.S. history.”

Farm Bill Extension Falls Short

January 2 - After failing to pass a five year Farm Bill this past year, Congress has extended the 2008 Farm Bill for nine months as part of the fiscal crisis deal. In addition to preventing new farmers from enrolling in the Conservation Stewardship Program, the extension lacks funding for critical renewable energy programs and delays the implementation of sodsaver, a policy that would reduce federal subsidies for farmers who convert native grassland into cropland.

“It is disappointing that Congress was unable to pass a five year Farm Bill in time,” said Julie Sibbing, Director of Agriculture and Forestry Programs for the National Wildlife Federation. “Passing a nine month extension delays much needed reforms and cuts a key incentive program for farmers wanting to implement conservation measures on their land. America’s farmers, taxpayers and wildlife deserve more than this Band-Aid fix.”

• Related: What the Fiscal Cliff Deal Means for Wildlife

TIME OUT: A New Year’s Resolution for the Whole Family

December 31 - One of the most popular New Year’s Resolutions is to “spend more time with my family”. National Wildlife Federation says one of the best ways to keep that resolution all year long is to head outdoors where families can enjoy time together while improving the physical and mental health of their children.

In 2013 resolve to Be Out There and spend more time in the company of Mother Nature. By doing this, families can recapture an essential part of childhood that is being lost; the part that makes outdoors the favorite play space. It’s easier than you think to work into a family routine and National Wildlife Federation’s Be Out There program will be there throughout the year with activities, ideas and inspirations to get more green time into kid’s lives.

And here are highlights from NWF in the News:

• Reuters: Nebraska environment report favors revised Keystone XL pipe plan
• PNS: Fiscal Cliff Deal Includes a Reprieve for Wind Tax Credits
• PNS: ‘Be Outside’ Pledges in MT Aim for Outdoor Fun Every Week
• The News Star: Birds of a feather
• Reuters:  EPA faces legal battles, might take easy confirmation road

For more, visit www.nwf.org/news

As reported in the Wall Street Journal:

The payout contrasts with that for 2009, when the company withheld all executive bonuses after incurring four fatalities that year “to underscore the company’s commitment to safety.”

In a filing on executive pay, Transocean said, “Notwithstanding the tragic loss of life in the Gulf of Mexico, we achieved an exemplary statistical safety record.” Based on the total rate of incidents and their severity, “we recorded the best year in safety performance in our company’s history.”

A Transocean rig in the Gulf of Mexico (photo: BP America)

Transocean, along with BP and Halliburton, is under investigation by the US Department of Justice for its role in the disaster.  The Hill‘s E2 blog reports that government officials are irate at the news.  Former EPA chief William K. Reilly, who helped lead the Obama Administration’s analysis of what went wrong, had harsh words for the company:

“I think Transocean just doesn’t get it [...]  It’s embarrassing to see a position taken like that by an industry leader.”

The SEC filing “ought to be evidence No. 1” of the culture of complacency within the oil industry identified in the oil spill commission’s final report, Reilly said.

Unbelievable.  Instead of giving themselves pats on the back, maybe Transocean should make good on its responsibilities to the people and wildlife in the Gulf, who are still waiting for money for restoration projects to rebuild their wetlands, fisheries, and coastlines.

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UPDATE: 4/5/2011 — Transocean is scrambling into damage-control mode, issuing a statement yesterday to apologize for their wording–but not for the bonuses themselves: “We acknowledge that some of the wording in our 2010 proxy statement may have been insensitive in light of the incident that claimed the lives of eleven exceptional men last year and we deeply regret any pain that it may have caused,” the company said in the release.  “Nothing in the [SEC filing] was intended to minimize this tragedy or diminish the impact it has had on those who lost loved ones. Everyone at Transocean continues to mourn the loss of these friends and colleagues.”

Transocean President/CEO Steven Newman received a combined bonus and salary increase of $574,062 for his sterling leadership.

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You can read about NWF’s efforts to help Gulf wildlife and communities at www.nwf.org/oilspill

Photo credit: Patrick Kelley, US Coast Guard

Let me pose a hypothetical situation:  Three corporations cause one of the biggest environmental disasters in recorded history, and an investigation shows it could have avoided it if they’d been focused on safety. Not only that, but the government could have prevented the disaster if only they hadn’t rubber-stamped the project in the first place.

So, what would the next logical step be?

If you’re like me you probably thought, “Well, obviously we need to get better rules in place and make sure they’re followed.”

This is, of course, what’s going on with the Deepwater Horizon disaster, which will continue to impact the Gulf of Mexico for years to come.

BP, Transocean, and Halliburton were found grossly negligent by the federal Oil Spill Commission, which also criticized regulators for failing in their duty to the American public.  But it wasn’t all about pointing fingers: the commission’s report included some common sense recommendations.  Now they face the unenviable task of convincing Congress to act…and this can be like talking to a small child who happens to control your bank account and car keys.

William Reilly (Bush Sr.’s EPA chief) and former Senator Bob Graham are the Oil Spill Commission’s co-chairs, and they trekked up to Capitol Hill last week to make the case for stronger rules and safety first.  Drilling is an important part of our economy, they both said, but we need to do it responsibly, and the system failed us.

I won’t bore you with the details (there’s a reason they show these things on C-SPAN and not EPSN) but suffice to say: One group of Congressmen protested that “regulation” is just code for “job-killing” and generally accused Reilly and Graham of bias and skullduggery.  The other group said better safe than sorry, and vowed to learn the lessons of this disaster.

At one point, Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) took issue with the word “systemic,” which was how the commission described problems in the drilling industry.  Are they really systemic, she asked, and not just the fault of a couple of rogue companies?  Also, she added mockingly, are we supposed to believe that good luck was the only thing that prevented a big spill before now?  Reilly paused a moment and then responded. 

“Senator,” he said, “I would answer that question with just one word: Yes.”  We’ve had a lot of near misses, he explained, and it’s “inconceivable” that the problems are confined to one rig or one company.

This from a former Republican cabinet member.

Last year, a pretty good spill response bill was passed by the House but stalled in the Senate.  The elections created big challenges for environmental causes, and oil drilling was no different – BP and the other inmates are still running the asylum and the guards are working double shifts just to save the whole operation from total catastrophe.

“We’ve done what we can do,” Reilly said to the assembled Congressmen and women, “but now it’s over to you.”

Rep. Ed Markey (D-MA) has introduced legislation that would accomplish many of the goals set by the Commission.  It’s going to take a lot of work to make sure that these reforms are instituted, but you can make a difference by sending an email to your members of Congress, telling them not to buy into the false choice between jobs and safety.  After all, it’s your Gulf, too.