Black Tide: The Devastating Impact of the Gulf Oil Spill

387 Pages·2011·5.52 MB·English

by  Antonia Juhasz

—continued from front flap— $25.95 USA/$29.95 CAN
TT HH EE DD EE VV AA SS TT AA TT II NN GG II MM PP AA CC TT
Petroleum Festival showcase the deeply intertwined A searing look at the human face
It is the worst oil disaster in American history. An oil
world of seafood and oil in the Gulf, even as the fi erce
GG UU LL FF OO II LL SS PP II LL LL and gas monster lurking deep below the ocean kills
jousting by BP CEO Tony Hayward, oil lobbyist Jack of BP’s disaster in the Gulf oo ff tt hh ee
eleven men and destroys a multimillion-dollar rig, the
Gerard, Governor Bobby Jindal, and President Barack
Deepwater Horizon, before launching a deadly ram-
Obama exposes the political-corporate straitjacket
“We cannot allow the BP disaster to be pushed from public view the way BP used chemical
page across the Gulf of Mexico and onto the shores
confi ning us to a world governed by our deadly ad-
dispersants to hide the oil. These remarkable stories—of loss, heroism, and culpability—are a
and beaches of four states. The heads of the world’s
diction to oil.
vivid reminder that this catastrophe will be with us for decades, and that we have not yet made mightiest corporations and most powerful govern-
It was a disaster that should never have happened,
the changes necessary to prevent destruction in the future.” ments sit impotent for three long months in the face
and one that has every possibility of occurring again if
JUHASZ
—Naomi Klein, author of The Shock Doctrine: The Rise of Disaster Capitalism of the monster’s attack. Blasted by chemicals, a toxic
those who are fi ghting for lasting change are not suc-
oily stew remains fl oating in underwater plumes,
cessful. Often in their own words, here is the story of TTB
waiting on the bottom of the ocean for the next big
the people of the BP Gulf oil spill, a story you have not “Black Tide is extremely well researched, reasoned, and written. The story of the Macondo HH
storm to strike and penetrating deep into the food
yet been told. Part whodunit, part political thriller, and well disaster has important ramifi cations for our future. Antonia Juhasz helps us understand EE
part epic tale of a true-life disaster, Black Tide is the L chain. And it could all happen again. But even if you
what this disaster can mean to present and future generations.” DD
followed it in the media, you have yet to get the whole
defi nitive account of the unforgettable event whose
—Dr. Robert Bea, Deepwater Horizon Study Group EE
story. To truly understand the causes and the impact
full impact, both on the Gulf Coast and through- VV
A of this disaster, you must know the people behind it
out the world, will be with us all for years to come. AA
“It’s hard to imagine a better person to turn loose on this epochal disaster than Antonia Juhasz, SS and those forever changed by it.
with her compassionate heart, vivid prose, and rich expertise in both oil and economic policy. TT In Black Tide, award-winning author and oil
ANTONIA JUHASZ is a AAC
Au leading oil industry expert and Black Tide covers everything from the details of the oil-smeared beaches and the drilling rig’s TT industry watchdog Antonia Juhasz, whose previous
tho control room to the big picture of the mega oil corporations and the governments they push II book The Tyranny of Oil warned that all this could
r P Director of the Energy Pro- NN happen, offers an in-depth investigation behind the
hoto gram at Global Exchange. She around, but it’s not just a book about disaster: it’s a series of encounters with real people, from GGK scenes and beyond the sludge-smeared beaches to
: Ju is the author of The Tyranny oceanographers to oyster shuckers, striving to make things right. Juhasz tells this story as no I I "We cannot allow the BP disaster to be pushed from public view the way BP used chemi- meet the people whose mistakes, and possible crimes,
d
e M of Oil and The Bush Agenda, one else could. Black Tide is riveting, infuriating, and incredibly important to understand the MM cal dispersants to hide the oil. These remarkable stories -- of loss, heroism and culpability resulted in the most devastating oil spill in American
oo and editor of The True Cost of places, politics, and people who survived the Gulf oil disaster.” PP -- are a vivid reminder that this catastrophe will be with us for decades, and that we have history and those who must continue to bear its costs.
n
e Chevron: An Alternative An- AAT not yet made the changes necessary to prevent destruction in the future."
y —Rebecca Solnit, author of A Paradise Built in Hell: The Extraordinary From the families who paid the ultimate price,
nual Report, 2009 and 2010. She has covered and Communities That Arise in Disaster CC --NaomBi Klein, author ofL The Shock DoctriAne: The Rise of DiCsaster Capitalism K you will hear heart-pounding accounts of the last
TT
commented on the BP disaster on NPR, BBC Radio,
I fateful hours aboard the Deepwater Horizon and the
CBC TV, and Democracy Now!, and in the Guard- oo
The story of the largest oil disaster in American history is more than one of ruined beaches, f f "Black Tide is extremely well researched, reasoned and written. The story of the Macondo struggle to prevent the largest deepwater blowout
ian, the Times-Picayune, Ms. Magazine, and Dollars & ththD well disaster has important ramifi cations for our future. Antonia Juhasz helps us under- in history unfold. You will follow “plume hunters”
dead wildlife, chemical dispersants, corporate spin, political machinations, and fi nancial fall- ee
Sense. Her oil industry analyses have been published stand what this disaster can mean to present and future generations."
GG tracking the oil across the ocean and workers who
in the New York Times, International Herald Tribune, out. It is a riveting human drama fi lled with people whose lives will forever be defi ned as --Dr. Robert Bea, Deepwater Horizon Study Group
UU clean up the toxic mess. Dedicated scientists expose
Petroleum Review Magazine, Washington Post, and the “before” and “after” the Gulf oil disaster. Black Tide is the only book to tell this story through LLE T I D E the harms of dispersants while shrimpers, crabbers,
Los Angeles Times, and she was featured in the CNBC the perspective of people on all sides of the catastrophe, from those who lost their lives, loved FF "It's hard to imagine a better person to turn loose on this epochal disaster than Antonia and fi shers take you onto their boats to share a way of
documentary The Hunt for Black Gold and on Fresh
ones, and livelihoods to those who made the policies that set the devastating event in motion, OO Juhasz, with her compassionate heart, vivid prose, and rich expertise in both oil and eco- life that may never recover. You will see Native Ameri-
Air with Terry Gross. A former legislative assistant to
those who cut the corners and put corporate profi ts over people and the environment, and II nomic policy. Black Tide covers everything from the details of the oil-smeared beaches can families fi ght for survival as environmentalists
two members of Congress, Juhasz holds a master’s LL and the drilling rig's control room to the big picture of the mega oil corporations and
mount a defense from the beaches of Florida to the
those who have committed their lives to ensuring that such an event is never repeated.
degree in public policy from Georgetown University. SS the governments they push around, but it's not just a book about disaster: it's a series of halls of Congress.
Her Web site is www.black-tide.org. PP encounters with real people, from oceanographers to oyster shuckers, striving to make
Oil industry workers, engineers, and executives
II things right. Juhasz tells this story as no one else could. Black Tide is riveting, infuriating,
Jacket Design: Wendy Mount LL and incredibly important to understand the places, politics, and people who survived the will take you inside the dangerous and politically
LL
Jacket Photograph: VARLEY/SIPA Gulf oil disaster." volatile world of offshore oil production, revealing
A N T O N I A J U H A S Z
--Rebecca Solnit, author of A Paradise Built in Hell: The Extraordinary Communities that why this is not just a story of one accident or a single
Arise in Disaster
oil company. The king and queen of the Shrimp and
A u t h o r o f T h e Ty r a n n y o f O i l
—continued on back flap—
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B L A C K
T I D E
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Also by Antonia Juhasz
The Tyranny of Oil: The World’s Most Powerful Industry—
and What We Must Do to Stop It
The Bush Agenda: Invading the World, One Economy at a Time
ffirs 3/1/11 5:17 PM Page iii
B L A C K
T I D E
The Devastating Impact
of the Gulf Oil Spill
ANTONIA JUHASZ
John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
ffirs 3/1/11 5:17 PM Page iv
Copyright © 2011 by Antonia Juhasz. All rights reserved
Published by John Wiley & Sons, Inc., Hoboken, New Jersey
Published simultaneously in Canada
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ISBN 978-0-470-94337-3; ISBN 978-1-118-06761-1 (ebk.),
ISBN 978-1-118-06773-4 (ebk.), ISBN 978-1-118-06774-1 (ebk.)
Printed in the United States of America
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To the men of the Deepwater Horizon who gave their lives so that their
crewmates might live: Gordon Jones, Dewey Revette, Jason Anderson,
Shane Roshto, Stephen Curtis, Blair Manuel, Karl Kleppinger, Adam
Weise, Don Clark, Roy Kemp, and Aaron Dale Burkeen.
To those who opened their lives to me so that I would tell this story with
depth, honesty, and to the most lasting effect.
To my family: Joseph, Suzanne, Alex, Jenny, Christina, Linda, Emma,
Simone, Gabriel, Eliza, Zoe, Paul, Branny, Skip, and Lucky.
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We have gone to a different planet in going to the
deepwater. An alien environment. And what do you
know from every science fiction movie? The aliens
can kill us.
—Byron King, oil industry analyst, May 20101
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