Protect Environmental Whistleblowers!

from National Whistleblowers Center lmw@whistleblowers.org
reply-to National Whistleblowers Center lmw@whistleblowers.org
to Tony Whitcomb
date Tue, Jun 1, 2010 at 11:56 AM
subject Protect Environmental Whistleblowers!
mailed-by mailmanager.net

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.

Protect Environmental Whistleblowers!

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