In the wake of the disastrous BP oil spill, there are increasing calls for heads to roll, and one of the first is Elizabeth Birnbaum, or rather S Elizabeth Birnbaum, head of the Mineral Management Service. The Mineral Management Service, or MMS, is part of the Department of the Interior and that is the office that oversees off shore drilling operations. Whether MMS or British Petroleum is at fault is unknown. However, Birnbaum is out of a job and a moratorium on offshore drilling is due to take effect.
Source for this article: Head of Mineral Management Service quits
Director of Mineral Management Service steps down
After the explosion of the oil rig touched off the BP oil leak, it was clear that some accountability was going to be brought to bear on someone. No one is in need of a loan until payday to put an attorney on retainer, at least yet. The director of the Mineral Management Service, Elizabeth Birnbaum, is one of the first government officials to go in the wake of the disaster. According to the New York Times, she was asked by Ken Salazar, the Secretary of the Interior, to resign. Her resignation was announced on Thursday, May 27.
Moratorium on drilling
President Obama is announcing a moratorium on off shore drilling. According to the Los Angeles Times, the moratorium will last at least 6 months, and current plans for an offshore drilling rig off the Virginia coast will be scrapped. Some members of Congress have insisted the agency is already broken, and Birnbaum is only a scapegoat.
The moratorium may be for the best
Though off shore drilling can potentially offset the cost and need for imports, the potential for disaster is still one that requires a responsible approach to drilling. There is a ghoulish history of taxpayers having to foot the bill to clean up the damage after corporate entities have pillaged the earth and left, such as the various Superfund sites. Business is after all business, but that hardly offers a remote defense of the taxpayers being forced to clean up the mess after the offenders have made off with the profits.
Citations:
New York Times
Los Angeles Times
Wikipedia
Tags: BP oil leak, elizabeth birnbaum, loan until payday, mineral management service