Archive
Another (Sigh) Increase in Estimate of Oil Flow
The estimated size of the oil spill in the Gulf rises yet again, to 25,000 to 30,000 barrels a day. BP says it’s hard to measure flow, but in 2008, it touted technology that it said was accurate at doing so.
Experts: Gulf Workers' Levels of Chemical Exposure May Be 'Perfectly Legal, but Not Safe'
Federal standards on what a safe exposure to toxic chemicals constitutes vary by agency. And the legal standard, applied to workers in the Gulf oil spill, may not necessarily be safe, some experts say.
Rise in Offshore Spills Raises Wider Questions on Drilling
The Deepwater Horizon oil spill is merely the biggest and most widely reported of oil spills in the Gulf this year. The number of spills nationwide also seems to be on the rise, raising questions about oversight.
Gov't and BP Unresponsive on Requests for Data on Sick Cleanup Workers
If you ask the CDC how many workers have been sickened while cleaning up the Gulf oil spill, CDC says to ask OSHA. OSHA says to ask BP. BP says to ask Unified Command, which hasn't yet responded to our requests.
Top Officer Says Military Takes Brain Injuries 'Extremely Seriously'
The Army's vice chief of staff says it takes the treatment of soldiers with mild traumatic brain injuries "very seriously." Gen. Peter Chiarelli said the military plans to evaluate soldiers exposed to nearby blasts by two separate tests before being returned to the battlefield. But our investigation has found problems with the tests now being used.
Scientists Criticize BP's Claims About How Much Oil It's Siphoning
More scientists are expressing skepticism about BP's claim on how much oil it's recapturing. One said that the estimate that BP is capturing most of the oil "is going to be proven wrong in short order."
Results of Our 2010 Reader Survey
ProPublica readers like our longer stories, are generally happy with what we’re doing, and are a demographic dream, our most recent survey found.
BP's Spill Plans Had Few Ways to Stop a Blowout
None of BP's documents and plans we've been able to find have details on how to deal with stopping a spill, and are limited to phrases like "Stop further pollution at the source," or "Identify and shut off the source as soon as possible, taking safety into account."
At Fort Bliss, Brain Injury Treatments Can Be as Elusive as Diagnosis
Even when traumatic brain injury is diagnosed in soldiers, treatment can be hard to come by. At Fort Bliss, Texas, a building to screen for such injuries remains closed nearly a year after its completion.
BP Refuses to Provide Oil Samples to Scientists Investigating Underwater Plumes
BP has refused to supply samples that would prove -- or disprove -- that underwater oil plumes are from the Deepwater Horizon site. The scientist who requested the sample called the refusal "a little unsettling."
After Our Investigation, Pentagon Puts Its Spin on Brain Injuries
The Pentagon sent out a talking points memo that makes it sound as if it's doing all it can to treat brain injuries, which our investigation says is not the case. Though it's not a direct response to our investigation, it says that the U.S. offers the "world's best TBI medical care for our service members."
As Oil Plumes Are Confirmed, Scientist Calculating Flow Rate Blasts BP
The U.S. has confirmed the existence of giant underwater oil plumes emanating from the BP spill, though at low concentrations, even as scientists remained frustrated at not being able to measure how much oil is still flowing.
Read Documents Showing BP's Pattern of Neglecting Its Own Safety Policies
Documents detailing BP's internal reports on safety problems show how pervasive the problems were in its operations in Alaska, California and Texas.
Years of Internal BP Probes Warned That Neglect Could Lead to Accidents
Internal investigations warned BP for years that the company had created a culture of disregard for safety and environmental rules and risked a serious accident if it did not change its ways. While the investigations focuses on BP's Alaska drilling operations, the lessons apply to the Gulf as well.
