Gulf Oil Disaster... BP Deepwater Ground Zero

Amid the worst accidental release of crude oil in human history, the Obama administration sought to undermine its own scientists’ estimates of just how much oil was gushing into the Gulf of Mexico, a newly disclosed email reveals.

Obtained by a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request filed by the advocacy group Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility (PEER), the message shows how the White House, the National Incident Command (NIC) and Department of the Interior (DOI) recommended scientists with the U.S. Geologic Survey (USGS) lowball their estimates in public statements.

The agency was able to determine that at least 25,000 barrels of oil were gushing out of the damaged BP well in the gulf — an estimate they said was on the low end of the spectrum. But when those figures were reported by members of the press, they were stated dramatically lower, sparking complaints from scientists who felt their findings were being misrepresented.

more

http://www.rawstory.com/rs/2012/01/23/obama-officials-pushed-to-und...