UPDATE: Burning Sea Turtles

07/05/2010

Just a quick update to share a rare bit of good news in the ongoing BP oil spill disaster.  Last week I posted a video of boat captain Mike Ellis, who reported BP was burning endangered sea turtles alive in their efforts to get rid of oil by corralling it on the surface and setting it on fire, and that they were preventing rescuers from attempting to save the turtles caught in the oil.

In response to this horrific report, BP and the Coast Guard, under threat of a lawsuit from several conservation organizations, agreed to put measures in place to rescue turtles before the corralled oil is burned.

From the Center for Biological Diversity's statement:

"The agreement came moments before the start of a legal hearing sought by conservation groups to resolve the threats to turtles posed by intentionally set fires intended to burn off spilled oil in the Gulf. BP and the Coast Guard agreed to develop a protocol ensuring no endangered sea turtles will be killed during burn containment practices. Conservation groups also want more assurances that qualified scientists and observers will be present at every burn to ensure that all turtles will be identified and removed before burns take place. The lawsuit, filed earlier this week, sought a temporary restraining order against BP to prevent the killing and harming of sea turtles."

Let's all savor this victory in a disaster where good news is almost non-existent.

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David Mizejewski is a naturalist with the National Wildlife Federation.

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Comments

[Jim Bob Shorewood Flannagen]

I think they should have done the same thing that they did in Alaska in the Gulf with those little absorbing bead things.

[Jim Bob Shorewood Flannagen]

That's horrible bp should be boycotted! The oil spilll should not have even happened. And also even though this has created jobs, it only creates jobs for those who can work at an oil tank place. You must have a special profession to do that stuff. EVIL!!!!