Quote :

"With Neighbors Unaware, Toxic Spill at a BP Plant TEXAS CITY, Tex. — While the world was focused on the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico, a BP refinery here released huge amounts of toxic chemicals into the air that went unnoticed by residents until many saw their children come down with respiratory problems. Enlarge This Image For 40 days after a piece of equipment critical to the refinery’s operation broke down, a total of 538,000 pounds of toxic chemicals, including the carcinogen benzene, poured out of the refinery. Rather than taking the costly step of shutting down the refinery to make repairs, the engineers at the plant diverted gases to a smokestack and tried to burn them off, but hundreds of thousands of pounds still escaped into the air, according to state environmental officials. Neither the state nor the oil company informed neighbors or local officials about the pollutants until two weeks after the release ended, and angry residents of Texas City have signed up in droves to join a $10 billion class-action lawsuit against BP. The state attorney general, Greg Abbott, has also sued the company, seeking fines of about $600,000."

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/08/30/us/30bprefinery.html?_r=1

Both BP and the state of Texas knew about this and didn't tell anybody. Also, the measurement of toxins expelled by the plant, 538,000 pounds, is based on BP's assessment that 98% of the gas was never released into the air thanks to their containment procedures. And that has to be true, right? Because we all know how accurate BP's estimates of their own containment procedures are.

BP claims they've followed the law, and therefore nothing they have done is wrong.

Can we start arresting people now?

9/1/2010 12:14:22 PM