News
White House Takes a Bigger Role in the Oil Spill Cleanup
Loading ...President Obama increased his administration’s role in the cleanup of the vast oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico on Thursday, by positioning the Department of Defense to assist the giant oil company BP in dealing with the spill and by sending three top officials to Louisiana.
In Baton Rouge, Gov. Bobby Jindal declared a state of emergency Thursday afternoon, saying that the oil slick, which has been spreading perilously closer to shore, “threatens the state’s natural resources.”
Janet Napolitano, the Secretary for Homeland Security, said at a White House briefing on Thursday that the oil slick was “a spill of national significance.” That designation meant that federal resources from many regions can be used to combat it.
Ms. Napolitano will be in Louisiana on Friday, along with Interior Secretary Ken Salazar and Lisa Jackson, the head of the Environmental Protection Agency.
“We will continue to push BP to engage in the strongest response possible,” Ms. Napolitano said. “We will continue to oversee those efforts, and add to those efforts where we deem necessary.”
Via NYTimes.com.
You might also like
|
|
|
|
|
