07.20.10_N&W_OilSpillBriefs346 words = +9 inchesCompiled from Associated Press reports(I gave you more than will fit, so feel free to cut from the bottom. I tried to tighten up individual briefs too)
—Oil is leaking from the cap on BP’s ruptured oil well, but federal officials intend to leave it in place for now. Retired Coast Guard Adm. Thad Allen said Monday the leaks are so far not a major concern and seepage about two miles away is likely not related to the ruptured well. If there was a quick rise in pressure, they would open the well immediately to keep from creating leaks deep underground.
—Gov. Bobby Jindal wants the federal government to step up testing of seafood samples from Louisiana waters so they can be quickly reopened to commercial fishing. The state opened the areas for sport fishing on Thursday. But on Monday, Jindal and Louisiana seafood industry leaders complained that the Food and Drug Administration is too slow to test the samples.
—BP said Monday that the cost of dealing with the oil spill has now reached nearly $4 billion. The company said it has made payments totaling $207 million to settle individual claims for damages from the spill along the Gulf coast of the United States. To date, almost 116,000 claims have been submitted and more than 67,500 payments have been made, totaling $207 million.
—Using a law originally enacted to combat the Mafia, attorneys are filing lawsuits accusing BP PLC and Transocean Ltd. of committing a long-term series of crimes by concealing flaws in deepwater drilling plans and lacking safeguards to contain a catastrophic Gulf of Mexico spill. BP has been named in at least three lawsuits brought under the federal law known as RICO, for Racketeering Influenced and Corrupt Organizations. Transocean, which leased the ill-fated Deepwater Horizon drilling rig to BP, has been named in two. The lawsuits accuse both companies of committing wire and mail fraud over a number of years by filing false documents with the U.S. government, and by misleading investors through other documents and falsehoods.
—-Contact The Daily Reveille’s news staff at [email protected].