Gulf Coast, Louisiana--To help clean up the Gulf oil spill, the Dutch offered to send specialized skimmer boats that suck up huge quantities of oil, extract the vast majority of it, and then discharge overboard nearly oil-free water. But the Obama Administration rejected the offer by refusing to waive regulations that require that only 99.9985 percent pure water be discharged into the Gulf. The result was that, rather than skimming up most of the oil, all of the oil was left in the Gulf.The Obama Administration finally relented in part and accepted the Dutch offer of their cleaning equipment, but rather than allow Dutch crews experienced in the operation of the technology to operate it, the Obama Administration required that the technology be retrofitted to U.S. vessels to appease U.S. labor unions.
White House officials defended these decisions by clarifying that "The purpose of the regulations isn't to protect the environment, but to protect environmentalists and labor unions."
Associated article: Financial Post
