As Record Settlement Announced Over BP Gulf Oil Disaster, Lesson Is Clear: Clean Energy Now

BP and the Justice Department announced Thursday the agreement of an $18.7 billion settlement over federal, state, and local claims stemming from the 2010 Deepwater Horizon oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico.

Environmental groups responded to the settlement by stressing that the damage from the 2010 oil disaster is ongoing; that the funds must be used to restore the Gulf and its communities; and that the lessons of the disaster should be heeded by moving towards a clean energy future.

Attorney General Loretta Lynch noted the historic amount of the settlement, saying in a statement: “If approved by the court, this settlement would be the largest settlement with a single entity in American history.”

Her statement adds that the settlement “would justly and comprehensively address outstanding federal and state claims, including Clean Water Act civil penalties and natural resource damages.”

BP issued a statement laying out how the amount would be divided: a Clean Water Act civil penalty of $5.5 billion payable over 15 years; $7.1 billion to the United States and the five Gulf states over 15 years for natural resource damages (NRD); an additional $232 million to be added to the NRD interest payment at the end of the payment period to cover any further natural resource damages that are unknown at the time of the agreement; $4.9 billion paid over 18 years to settle economic and other claims made by the five Gulf Coast states; and up to $1 billion to resolve claims made by more than 400 local government entities.

Cynthia Sarthou, Executive Director with Gulf Restoration Network, welcomed the settlement as staving off potential years of further legal wrangling, but added: “Although $18.7 billion is a significant sum, we have serious concerns about how much of this money is actually going to be allocated towards restoring the Gulf’s environment and impacted communities.

“The funds from this settlement provide a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to repair the Gulf in the wake of the BP disaster and make our coasts and communities stronger and more resilient for future generations. We must not squander this opportunity,” she continued.