08-24-07 by simpson
Bumbling Petroleum – BP – finally listened to the expressions of outrage about its plans to increase pollution pumped into Lake Michigan after it completes a $3.8 billion refurbishing of its Whiting, Ind., refinery. It has now pledged not to dump any more wastes into the lake than it currently does.
Of course in its news release the oil giant doesn’t acknowledge the protestors were correct, saying “ongoing regional opposition to any increase in discharge permit limits for Lake Michigan creates an unacceptable level of business risk for this $3.8 billion investment.” Whatever.
As noted by The Chicago Tribune, though, the pledge is just words at this point even if Bob Malone, chairman of BP America, flew to Chicago to deliver the news personally to Mayor Richard Daley.
The fact is BP still holds a license from Indiana to pollute at the higher rate.
You know what I think of pledges from oil executives, so put me with those who are calling for BP to make its pledge binding. The company could easily do that by asking Indiana to rewrite its new license only to authorize polluting at the current level.
The Sun-Times, which had launched a boycott of BP in an editorial a week ago, is among the skeptics calling for binding action:
“If BP wants us to permanently halt our boycott of its gas, they are going to have to give us more than slick promises. We are suspending — not rescinding — the boycott against BP we called for on this page a week ago.”
In the news release Bumbling Petroleum noted it would participate with the Purdue Calumet Water Institute and the Argonne National Laboratory to develop technologies to improve wastewater treatment across the Great Lakes. Malone said that BP would give a $5 million grant to Purdue University to help the research effort. That’s good news, but does anyone believe it would be happening unless folks continued to hold BP’s feet to the fire?
I’m glad do see that standing up for the right thing does make a difference.