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Protect Environmental Whistleblowers! |
As oil continues to gush into the Gulf of Mexico, the headlines paint a picture of executive greed, scientific studies ignored, and government regulations disregarded.We are reminded of the words of presidential candidate Obama, "Workers are the eyes and ears of enforcement." As the Deepwater Horizon oil spill quickly becomes the biggest and worst environmental disaster in history, we are left asking, where were the whistleblowers?
On the day of this terrible disaster, and on the days
that led up to it, not a single employee who worked on the Deepwater
Horizon rig or any other offshore oil rig was entitled to meaningful
whistleblower protection! We know that a few brave
employees raised their concerns and were silenced or ignored. We also
know that the key laws that govern offshore drilling: the Outer
Continental Shelf Act, the Oil Pollution Act of 1990, and the Endangered
Species Act, contain no whistleblower protections whatsoever.
Critical studies have confirmed that encouraging employees to blow
the whistle is essential preventing catastrophes before they happen. Any
successful reform effort must include protections for employees who
dare to come forward and report the deplorable disregard for our
environment and safety that has become the norm in the profit-obsessed
offshore drilling industry. The laws must be retroactive,
to ensure that workers who have the courage to testify against BP,
Halliburton and Transocean and the corrupt regulators at the Minerals
Management Service are encouraged to speak out and are fully protected.
Congress must immediately enact broad, effective whistleblower
protections that cover the entire offshore drilling industry and its
regulators.
Take
Action Now! Tell your representatives in Congress to enact
whistleblower legislation to protect the employees in the offshore
drilling industry who witness the blatant disregard for
environmental and safety regulations every day.
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Tags: Environment
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