In wake of Gulf disaster, Oberstar introduces oil spill bill

Rep. James Oberstar introduced the Oil Spill Accountability and Environmental Protection Act of 2010 today. The bill would remove liability caps for oil spills, add new safety regulations for oil operations, and beef up the federal government’s response to spills to mitigate environmental damage.

“This disaster has compelled us to reexamine the framework for Federal oversight and regulation of potentially-limitless sources of oil, deep beneath the surface of the ocean, and the difficulty in controlling and remediating potentially massive releases of oil beyond the reach of direct human control,” Oberstar said on the House floor on Wednesday. “In addition, this disaster requires that we reexamine the wisdom of oil exploration policies that push the envelope on drilling technologies without any assurance that these underwater resources can be shut down or adequately controlled and cleaned up if something goes wrong.”

He added, “Finally, this disaster has forced us to reexamine the safety standards for offshore oil exploration and production activities to minimize the potential for future losses of life.”