BP, Chevron Accused Of Illegally Dumping Toxic Radioactive Drilling
Waste Into Louisiana Water


The Louisiana parish of Plaquemines is taking on a group of oil and gas
giants including BP and Chevron for allegedly dumping toxic waste — some
of it radioactive — from their drilling operations into its coastal
waters, according to a lawsuit removed to federal court on Thursday.

Plaquemines Parish is claiming the companies violated the Louisiana
State and Local Coastal Resources Management Act of 1978 by discharging
oil field waste directly into the water “without limitation.” Worse, the
companies allegedly failed to clear, revegetate, detoxify or restore any
of the areas they polluted, as required by state law. The oil and gas
companies’ pollution, along with their alleged failure to adequately
maintain their oilfields, has caused significant coastal erosion and
contaminated groundwater, the lawsuit said.

“I think the oil companies have an obligation to self-report, I think
the oil companies are to blame and I think the oil companies took
advantage of the state,” John Carmouche, on of the lead attorneys for
the parish, said in November when the suit originally came out in state
court. The lawsuit is just one of nearly 30 that were filed in November
by both Plaquemines and Jefferson parishes, targeting dozens of energy
companies and their contractors they claim helped destroy and pollute
coastal areas.

Plaquemines’ suit says BP and Chevron should have known that the
oilfield wastes, referred to as “brine,” contained “unacceptable and
inherently dangerous” levels of radioactive materials called Radium 226
and Radium 228. According to the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, small
amounts of Radium 226 were once used as an additive in toothpaste, hair
creams, and even food items due to supposed beneficial health
properties. Those products soon “fell out of vogue,” however, after it
was discovered that the health effects were exactly the opposite of
beneficial.

Long-term exposure to radium also increases the risk of developing
several diseases, including lymphoma, bone cancer, leukemia and aplastic
anemia, according to the EPA.

Radium emits both alpha and gamma radiation, the former of which is
detrimental if taken into the body through inhalation or ingestion — a
real concern considering the alleged water contamination. According to
the Environmental Protection Agency, about 80 percent of the radium that
is swallowed will promptly leave the body through feces, while the other
20 percent enters the bloodstream and accumulates preferentially in the
bones. Some of that radium will remain in the bones throughout the
person’s lifetime, the EPA said.

Another aspect of the lawsuit against BP and Chevron targets their
construction of “unlined earthen waste pits,” which the lawsuit
describes as “simply holes, ponds or excavations” that are dug into
either the ground or a marsh. Many of those pits were never properly
closed, the suit says, adding that BP and Chevron did not even attempt
to obtain permits to close them. The lawsuit also alleges that BP has
been illegally dredging canals throughout the region for their oil and
gas activities, without the necessary permits.

“These suits are more of the same,” Louisiana Oil and Gas Association
President Don Briggs said in an email to The Advocate in November.
“Extort as much money from the oil and gas industry as possible, thus
lining the pockets of a small group of trial lawyers.”

http://tinyurl.com/lg3bkrz
--

Perhaps BP or Chevron will hire Mr. Duck to handle PR...