05.19.10

Durbin, Senate Leadership Demand Immediate Inspection of all Offshore Oil Rigs

[WASHINGTON, D.C.] – Assistant Senate Majority Leader Dick Durbin (D-IL) and other Senate leaders sent a letter to President Obama today, calling for an “immediate and enhanced” inspection of all offshore drilling rigs and production platforms in the United States.

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV), Democratic Conference Vice Chair Chuck Schumer (D-NY), Democratic Conference Secretary Patty Murray (D-WA) and Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee Chairman Robert Menendez (D-NJ) joined Durbin on the letter.

“We request that you order an immediate top-to-bottom review of all inspection and testing procedures used to evaluate all offshore drilling equipment on offshore drilling rigs and production platforms.  We need foolproof testing procedures to guarantee equipment integrity. Until we can ensure the safety of our offshore platforms, our nation’s coastlines will be threatened by the possibility of more man-made catastrophes,” the Senators wrote.

The Senators said that the inspections should not be conducted using taxpayer dollars and that the Department of the Interior should also undertake a full review of its inspection and testing process. Fears of additional leaks from other oil rigs in the Gulf surfaced following news reports that similar problems may exist on other drilling platforms.

[The full text of the letter can be found below.]


May 19, 2010
 
President Barack Obama
The White House
1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW
Washington, DC 20500
 
Dear Mr. President:
 
As the Gulf Coast continues to be threatened by the lasting effects of the Deepwater Horizon oil spill disaster, we are deeply concerned that this accident could be repeated elsewhere.   While we commend you for taking quick action to inspect deepwater rigs and production platforms in the Gulf of Mexico, we request that you order immediate and enhanced inspections of every offshore oil drilling rig and offshore oil production platform in United States waters that could pose a significant threat to the environment or the economy, no matter its location or depth.  In addition, such inspections should not be performed at taxpayer expense.

The previous inspections of the Deepwater Horizon oil rig appear to have failed to reveal multiple, critical problems with the blow-out preventer (“BOP”).  As a result, we also request that you order an immediate top-to-bottom review of all inspection and testing procedures used to evaluate all offshore drilling equipment on offshore drilling rigs and production platforms.  We need foolproof testing procedures to guarantee equipment integrity, particularly when it comes to equipment like a BOP that must act as the last line of defense against disaster.

Thank you for your continued leadership in this time of crisis.  Together, we can help transform what you have termed a “cozy” relationship between regulators and the oil industry into one in which the American people can feel confident that their safety comes first, before the oil industry’s profits.  We believe that the first step in reestablishing this trust is an immediate inspection of offshore rigs and an overhaul of all equipment testing procedures.  Until we can ensure the safety of our offshore platforms, our nation’s coastlines will be threatened by the possibility of more man-made catastrophes.  

Sincerely,

Harry Reid
Richard Durbin
Charles Schumer
Patty Murray
Robert Menendez
United States Senators