WASHINGTON — Since the Deepwater Horizon rig exploded April 20, the Obama administration has granted oil and gas companies at least 27 exemptions from doing in-depth environmental studies of oil exploration and production in the Gulf of Mexico.
The waivers were granted despite President Barack Obama’s vow to launch a “relentless response effort” to stop the leak and prevent more damage to the gulf. One of them was dated Friday, the day after Interior Secretary Ken Salazar said he was temporarily halting offshore drilling.
The exemptions were granted by the Interior Department’s Minerals Management Service and included waiving detailed environmental studies for a British Petroleum exploration plan to be conducted at a depth of more than 4,000 feet and an Anadarko Petroleum Corp. exploration plan at more than 9,000 feet.
MMS officials said the exemptions are still being issued because they don’t represent final drilling approval.
McClatchy Newspapers
