As
BP began accepting volunteer help from Louisiana fishermen to aid in
the cleanup of oil that continues to leak from the Deepwater Horizon
disaster BP was also making those fishermen sign agreements which
"seriously compromised the existing and future rights and potential
legal claims of these volunteers," said Stuart Smith, an attorney for
the fishermen. Some fisheries were closed on Friday April 30, 2010 and more extensive fisheries closures were implemented today. NOAA is
restricting fishing for a minimum of ten days in federal waters most
affected by the BP oil spill, largely between Louisiana state waters at
the mouth of the Mississippi River to waters off Florida's Pensacola Bay
( click here for map). The closure is effective immediately. Details can
be found here: http://sero.nmfs.noaa.gov/. Many
Louisiana fisherman feel a deep vested interest in protecting the
marine resources that provide them their livelihood and the heart of
their culture. They are also desperate to make a living in the face of
the fisheries closures and the likelihood that shrimp and oyster harvests in the affected areas will be shut down for at least this upcoming season.
The
offer of paid volunteer work helping to clean up the spill was welcomed
but the restrictive agreements that BP was asking them to sign was
making the fishermen feel that they were being taken advantage of. The
U.S.
District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana was opened this
afternoon
by Judge Ginger Berrigan to receive petition of Louisiana commercial
fisherman
to nullify and strike the offensive language in the British Petroleum
volunteer
fisherman charter contract.
District
Judge Berrigan, after hearing from counsel for the fisherman and BP,
indicated
the language in question in the MCA was overbroad. Legal counsel for BP
agreed
to enter into a stipulated judgment holding that the offensive
provisions are
without effect.
"This is an
amazing example of how well our civil justice system works for the
hard-working
people of America, such as Louisiana fisherman who most need it right
now,"
said Attorney Smith.
Commercial
fisherman George Barasich stepped forward asking for emergency relief
from the
federal court to stop British Petroleum from forcing the volunteer corps
of
oil-spill responders to enter into agreements which seriously compromised the
existing and
future rights and potential legal claims of these volunteers.
Attorney Smith
said
especially egregious provisions within the Agreement were:
- BP, which is mandated to take
100 percent responsibility for the oil clean-up, is demanding that the
volunteers IMDEMNIFY IT for any accidents that might occur from the
volunteers'
efforts (Art. 13(F));
- BP demands that the volunteers
WAIVE their First Amendment
constitutional free speech rights about the volunteer's
participation in
the clean-up efforts of the disaster; for example, if a commercial
fisherman signed
this agreement he or she could not then speak to anyone about the
disaster or
clean-up efforts until BP first "approves" of what the volunteer wants
to say
(Art. 22);
- BP demands a FREE-RIDE on the
volunteers' insurance policies so that if there is damage to a
volunteer's
vessel or other injuries, such as to a crew member, BP will be an
"additional
insured" and the financial responsibility for the damage will rest on
the
volunteer's insurance carrier, NOT BP; quite obviously, the volunteers
paid
good money for this insurance and BP should not be allowed
after-the-fact to
worm their way into that contract so that it can attempt to avoid
further legal
responsibility for the very volunteers it is asking for aid and
assistance;
(Art. 13(A)); and
- BP demands 30 days of notice
before any volunteer is allowed to pursue legal claims against BP, and
there
are no exceptions made for emergencies (Art. 13(I) [sic (G]).
We are happy to see the swift action of the civil justice system to protect citizens rights.
If
you see anything fishy happening on your waterways don't hesitate to
call the Lower Mississippi Riverkeerp hotline at 1-866-MSRIVER
Support this vital work today!
Yes! I want to help make Louisiana safe for us and for future generations!
LEAN is a 501(c)3 Non-Profit Organization Louisiana
Environmental Action Network (LEAN) is a non-profit organization
working to foster communication and cooperation among citizens and
groups to address Louisiana's environmental problems.
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