"BP Continues to Use Surface Dispersants in Gulf Despite EPA Directive"

"BP PLC has applied 272,000 gallons of dispersants to the surface of the Gulf of Mexico in the four weeks since U.S. EPA directed the company to stop using the chemicals, except "in rare cases" when other approaches to fighting the ongoing oil leak proved unworkable, according to government records.

The oil giant's dispersant strategy has come under scrutiny from scientists who warn that adding unprecedented volumes of the chemicals to the Gulf environment could pose unknown risks to human and marine health. But the surface use of dispersants, in some cases spread aerially by planes, stirs a specific worker-protection concern for National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) Director John Howard."

Elana Schor reports for Greenwire June 24, 2010.

SEE ALSO:

"Hey EPA: How Are Those Dispersant Tests Going?" (Mother Jones)