The Ongoing Administration-Wide Response to the Deepwater BP Oil Spill

The Ongoing Administration-Wide Response to the Deepwater BP Oil Spill

Prepared by the Joint Information Center

UPDATED August 18, 2010 7 PM

* For a full timeline of the Administration-wide response, visit the White House Blog.
PAST 24 HOURS
Scientists Release the First Rescued, Rehabilitated Sea Turtles Back into the Gulf
NOAA administrator Dr. Jane Lubchenco and National Incident Commander Admiral Thad Allen joined state, federal, and partner biologists as they released 23 Kemp’s ridley sea turtles back into the Gulf of Mexico near Cedar Key, Fla., after the turtles were successfully rescued and rehabilitated from the effects of the Deepwater Horizon/BP oil spill.
Scientists selected the area on Florida’s Gulf Coast for release because it is an important foraging area for the species, the water was never oiled, and the habitat provides everything these turtles need for survival. The full press release can be viewed here.
“I'm pleased that Admiral Allen and I were able to assist with the release of these turtles. And we thank all of our partners in this rescue and rehabilitation effort,” said Dr. Lubchenco. “This is a wonderful day for all involved—but especially for the turtles.”

Admiral Allen and Dr. Jane Lubchenco Provides an Update on the BP Oil Spill Response
National Incident Commander Admiral Thad Allen and NOAA Administrator Dr. Jane Lubchenco provided a briefing to inform the American public and answer questions on the administration-wide response to the BP oil spill. A full transcript is available here.
“We continue to assess the condition of the well. The science team continues to meet with the BP engineers. There are a couple of things we are doing to reduce the timeline for what will occur after decisions are made. One is the direction I provided, to take the blowout preventer from Development Driller II, the second relief well, and make preparations to bring that to the scene.  Whether we put a new blowout preventer before or after the bottom kill will be needed, so this is an effort that will have to be expended anyway,” said Admiral Allen.

“In addition to that, we are bringing the Discoverer Enterprise in over the well. And over the next day, we will use the Q4000 and the Discoverer Enterprise to actually circulate any extraneous materials and liquids that are in the blowout preventer, the area of the well above the cement plug, and the capping stack to purge that system completely. And when we are done, we will fill it with seawater, and then we will do an ambient pressure test with the same type of liquid that's inside the blowout preventer that is outside the blowout preventer to ascertain if there are any issues regarding well integrity with the annulus and any types of leakage,” he said.
FWS Personnel Continue Wildlife Rescue and Recovery Missions Across the Region
From the Mobile, Ala., Incident Command Post, 23 two-person teams, 19 vessels and one helicopter continued the search for oil impacts and injured or oiled wildlife. To report oiled wildlife, call (866) 557-1401.
Approved SBA Economic Injury Assistance Loans Surpass $22.2 Million
SBA has approved 250 economic injury assistance loans to date, totaling more than $22 million for small businesses in the Gulf Coast impacted by the BP oil spill. Additionally, the agency has granted deferments on 837 existing SBA disaster loans in the region, totaling more than $4.5 million per month in payments. For information on assistance loans for affected businesses, visit the SBA’s Web site at www.sba.gov/services/disasterassistance, call (800) 659-2955 (800-877-8339 for the hearing impaired), or email disastercustomerservice@sba.gov.
Administration Continues to Oversee BP’s Claims Process
The administration will continue to hold the responsible parties accountable for repairing the damage, and repaying Americans who have suffered a financial loss as a result of the BP oil spill. To date, 152,194 claims have been opened, from which nearly $376 million have been disbursed. No claims have been denied to date. There are 1,245 claims adjusters on the ground. To file a claim, visit www.bp.com/claims or call BP’s helpline at 1-800-440-0858. Those who have already pursued the BP claims process and are not satisfied with BP’s resolution can call the Coast Guard at (800) 280-7118. Additional information about the BP claims process and all available avenues of assistance can be found at www.disasterassistance.gov.


By the Numbers to Date:

• The administration has authorized the deployment of 17,500 National Guard troops from Gulf Coast states to respond to this crisis; currently, 1,335 are active.
   
• More than 27,197 personnel are currently responding to protect the shoreline and wildlife and cleanup vital coastlines.
   
• More than 3,980 vessels are currently responding on site, including skimmers, tugs, barges, and recovery vessels to assist in containment and cleanup efforts—in addition to dozens of aircraft, remotely operated vehicles, and multiple mobile offshore drilling units.
   
• Approximately 2.11 million feet of containment boom** and 8.78 million feet of sorbent boom have been deployed to contain the spill—and approximately 1.29 million feet of containment boom and 3.36 million feet of sorbent boom are available.
   
• More than 34.7 million gallons of an oil-water mix have been recovered.
   
• Approximately 1.84 million gallons of total dispersant have been applied—1.07 million on the surface and 771,000 sub-sea. Approximately 577,000 gallons are available.
   
• 411 controlled burns have been conducted, efficiently removing a total of more than 11.14 million gallons of oil from the open water in an effort to protect shoreline and wildlife. Because calculations on the volume of oil burned can take more than 48 hours, the reported total volume may not reflect the most recent controlled burns. 
   
• 17 staging areas are in place to protect sensitive shorelines.
   
• Approximately 678 miles of Gulf Coast shoreline is currently oiled—approximately 359 miles in Louisiana, 117 miles in Mississippi, 72 miles in Alabama, and 130 miles in Florida. These numbers reflect a daily snapshot of shoreline currently experiencing impacts from oil so that planning and field operations can more quickly respond to new impacts; they do not include cumulative impacts to date, or shoreline that has already been cleared.
   
• Approximately 52,395 square miles of Gulf of Mexico federal waters remain closed to fishing in order to balance economic and public health concerns. Approximately 78 percent remains open. Details can be found at http://sero.nmfs.noaa.gov/.
   
• To date, the administration has leveraged assets and skills from numerous foreign countries and international organizations as part of this historic, all-hands-on-deck response, including Argentina, Belgium, Canada, China, Estonia, France, Germany, Greece, Ireland, Japan, Kenya, Mexico, Netherlands, Norway, Qatar, Russia, Spain, Sweden, Taiwan, Tunisia, United Arab Emirates, United Kingdom, the United Nations’ International Maritime Organization, the European Union’s Monitoring and Information Centre, and the European Maritime Safety Agency.
   

**The decrease in boom numbers is due to the continued recovery of displaced boom. Once recovered, this boom must be decontaminated, repaired, inspected, and certified before being staged or redeployed. New boom is being deployed in some areas.  
Resources:

• For information about the response effort, visit www.RestoreTheGulf.gov. 
   
• For specific information about the federal-wide response, visit http://www.whitehouse.gov/deepwater-bp-oil-spill.
   
• To contact the Deepwater Horizon Joint Information Center, call (713) 323-1670.
• To volunteer, or to report oiled shoreline, call (866) 448-5816. Volunteer opportunities can also be found here.
   
• To submit your vessel as a vessel of opportunity skimming system, or to submit alternative response technology, services, or products, call 281-366-5511.
   
• To report oiled wildlife, call (866) 557-1401.
   
• For information about validated environmental air and water sampling results, visit www.epa.gov/bpspill.
   
• For National Park Service updates about potential park closures, resources at risk, and NPS actions to protect vital park space and wildlife, visit http://www.nps.gov/aboutus/oil-spill-response.htm.
   
• For Fish and Wildlife Service updates about response along the Gulf Coast and the status of national wildlife refuges, visit http://www.fws.gov/home/dhoilspill/.
   
• For daily updates on fishing closures, visit http://sero.nmfs.noaa.gov. 
   
• For information on assistance loans for affected businesses, visit the SBA’s Web site at www.sba.gov/services/disasterassistance, call (800) 659-2955 (800-877-8339 for the hearing impaired), or email disastercustomerservice@sba.gov.
   
• To file a claim with BP, visit www.bp.com/claims or call BP’s helpline at (800) 440-0858. A BP fact sheet with additional information is available here. Those who have already pursued the BP claims process and are not satisfied with BP’s resolution, can call the Coast Guard at (800) 280-7118. More information about what types of damages are eligible for compensation under the Oil Pollution Act as well as guidance on procedures to seek that compensation can be found here.
• In addition, www.disasterassistance.gov has been enhanced to provide a one-stop shop for information on how to file a claim with BP and access additional assistance—available in English and Spanish. 
   
• Any members of the press who encounter response personnel restricting their access or violating the media access policy set forth by Admiral Allen should contact the Joint Information Center. Click here for more information, including a list of regular embed opportunities.

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