Oil Industry Organizes "Astroturf" Rallies to Fight Stronger Regulation

Interview with Tyson Slocum, director of Public Citizen's Energy Program, conducted by Scott Harris

British Petroleum's blown-out Deepwater Horizon oil well that killed 11 workers and leaked over 200 million gallons of oil into the Gulf of Mexico is close to being pronounced dead, according to the government's incident commander, retired Coast Guard Admiral Thad Allen. While the oil well may soon be permanently plugged with cement through a long awaited relief well, the effects of the worst oil spill in U.S. history won't soon disappear. Hundreds of thousands of people who live along the Gulf coastline have seen their jobs and businesses destroyed by the spill, which damaged the seafood industry and drove away tourists. The full extent of damage to the environment may not be known for years.

In contrast to the many years of lax government enforcement of safety standards on offshore oil drilling, widely seen as one of the causes of the Gulf spill disaster, Congress has recently attempted to strengthen regulations on the oil and gas industry. But now the American Petroleum Institute is organizing rallies nationwide opposing federal legislation that would increase safety standards on oil rigs, remove the monetary cap on liability for future spills, increase royalties paid to taxpayers and protect oil industry whistleblowers.

Between The Lines' Scott Harris spoke with Tyson Slocum, director of Public Citizen's Energy Program who comments on the imminent death of BP's disastrous Gulf oil well, and explains how API is employing what he calls "astroturf" protests in hopes of turning around public opinion, which widely supports stricter regulation of the oil and gas industry.

Contact Public Citizen at (202) 588-1000 or visit their website at www.citizen.org

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