BP is containing…  [hmm]. 
BP is dispersing…  [aagh]. 
They are setting fire to the oil from the Deepwater Horizon rig…some if it.  So we’ve heard. 

(Controlled burn off the Louisiana Coast.  Photo:  John Masson, USCG.)

More recently, we’ve heard that endangered sea turtles are being burned alive as they get trapped in the “controlled burn” areas.  What’s worse, wildlife rescuers are saying that BP is preventing them from saving the oil-soaked turtles, leaving the helpless creatures to a brutal death.

This will not only create a PR nightmare for BP, but will also affect the litigation that emerges in the aftermath of the disaster.  There are very real consequences for illegally harming, or “taking,” endangered species from American waters.

The Kemp’s Ridley sea turtle is protected under the Endangered Species Act of 1973.  It is the rarest and most endangered species of sea turtle, and occurs in 16 coastal states in the U.S., reaching as far north as Massachusetts. 

Since the April 20 explosion on the Deepwater Horizon oil rig, around 300 sea turtles have been found dead.  Most of the casualties were identified as Kemp’s Ridleys, according to NPR.  Like most body counts, it’s only a fraction of the losses actually sustained.

NPR’s Elizabeth Shogren states,

Bodies of dead animals are evidence the government will use when it decides how much to charge BP for the disaster.  Endangered animals, like the sea turtles, will be particularly expensive for BP.

The Endangered Species Act

“Knowingly” violating any provision of ESA can earn you civil penalties of up to $25,000 “for each violation.”

“Knowingly” violating “any provision of any other regulation” made under ESA can warrant up to $12,000.

Persons who “otherwise” violate ESA can be penalized only up to $500.

We might wonder, how many dead turtles BP will have “knowingly” dispatched, come time to assess the fines?

Then there are the criminal penalties.

“Knowing” violators of ESA (other than infractions of record-keeping) face up to $50,000 fines, 1 year imprisonment, or both.

“Knowing” violators of any other regulation issued under ESA can be fined up to $25,000, imprisoned for up to 6 months, or both.

Again, ask, will BP have “known” what it was doing?  Perhaps we will learn the turtles appeared witch-like at the time.

Furthermore, ESA provides for

A re-ward to any person who furnishes information which leads to an arrest, a criminal conviction, civil penalty assessment, or forfeiture of property for any violation of this chapter or any regulation is-sued hereunder

Also,

The Attorney General of the United States may seek to en-join any person who is alleged to be in violation of any provision of this Act [via injunction]

And citizens may file civil suits to achieve similar results.

A Firsthand Account

Mike Ellis, a boat captain who was working to save sea turtles from incineration in BP’s “controlled burns,” complains that BP has thwarted his and other crews’ efforts.

Well?

The National Marine Fisheries Service of NOAA is responsible for protecting the Kemp’s Ridley under the Endangered Species Act, according to a 1999 Department of Commerce rule on ESA regulations consolidation.

A recovery plan for the Kemp’s Ridley, currently under revision, states,

To achieve recovery for the Kemp’s ridley, it is not sufficient simply to maintain current efforts.

That has never been truer than in the recent havoc of BP’s oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico.

You can do the following

- Comment on the Draft Recovery Plan until July 1, 2010. 

- Call BP’s suggestion line, at (281)-366-5511, or seek further public information. 

- Track the Southeastern Regional Office of NMFS.