Rudloe’s appeal to BP futile. Keep hope alive on Operation Noah’s Ark
In this photo taken July 9, 2010, Jack Rudloe holds a Kemp’s Ridley, claimed to be the most endangered sea turtle, at his Gulf Specimen Marine Lab in Panacea, Fla. In the wake of the Deepwater Horizon oil spill, Rudloe and his wife Anne are working on a “Noah’s Ark” project (read an earlier post here) to protect the species in the gulf effected by the oil.
In support of the ongoing project, we embed this appeal by Rudloe to BP for a donation that will allow them to continue the upkeep of a water-filtered conservation laboratory.
As it stands, their efforts – that would usually go into biological research – are now being redirected to the act of collecting and saving these animals in the uncertain hope of providing them with a future. What does BP claim to be doing as of today? Well, we got onto their website, and were not surprised to see that their homepage is entirely dedicated to publicising the response to the Gulf of Mexico crises. Hi-tech pictures of analysis and large-scale action reassure us that they are “on the case”, per say; and I am entirely inclined to believe them. BP, after all, is a powerhouse made up of almost 100,000 employees across 100 countries. Not even the guys at the top are all bad… we hope. The Latest report (published yesterday) reads thus:
BP Forms Gulf of Mexico Oil Spill Escrow Trust. BP announced today that it has established a trust and made a $3 billion initial deposit of the previously-announced $20 billion escrow account to pay legitimate claims arising from the Deepwater Horizon incident and the resulting oil and gas spill.
“The purpose of the escrow account was to assure those adversely affected by the spill that we indeed intend to stand behind our commitment to them and to the American taxpayers,” said Bob Dudley, CEO of BP’s Gulf Coast Restoration Organization. “Establishing this trust and making the initial deposit ahead of schedule further demonstrates our commitment to making it right in the Gulf Coast.” Click here for more information.
Now, the Urban Times dearly believes that a multi-million dollar donation from BP is thoroughly in order. But having done a little extra research we understand why that is a very unlikely event. The problem is that they have lost so, So SO much money. The company is paying no dividend to its shareholders this year. We cannot find exact specifics on the amount of money BP has lost, but suggestions lie in the $50-100 billion range (not including the $3 billion injected into the trust for claims). It is perhaps understandable from a business perspective, that they will only distribute funds to cover damages – what they term “legitimate claims” – and thus will not consider pre-emptive donations such as the one that Rudloe asks for. Such a plea is probably futile. If money gets from BP to The Noah’s Ark Operation, it will be in the form of damages if oil directly affects his land. And let’s hope that this does not happen.
The likelihood is that The Noah’s Ark Operation is on it’s own… But it’s not! The Urban Times is here to support it.
We may not be able to compete with the wonderful $25,000 water-oil separator sent by Martin Marine, but we hope to spread the word, and raise awareness to the best of our ability. To begin with, we found that link to donate to the Rudloes. Unfortunately, it seems the donation page hasn’t been updated since the spill – the team is probably too busy saving wildlife – so in the meantime, we will look harder for ways to help fill the ark.
Here, Rudloe gives some advise to those who may come into contact with any delayed effects of the Oil Spill. If that’s you, then here’s your chance to play your part by documenting the crises. Perhaps your footage will be a pivotal thread in the greater fabric of a solution.
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