Letter to the Hon. Gene Dodaro, Comptroller General of the United States - E&C Leaders Request Investigation Into Trump Administration's Failure to Finalize Oil Spill Protocols

Letter

Dear Comptroller General Dodaro:

We write to request that the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) investigate the federal government's oil spill response capabilities, including the use of chemical dispersants and efforts to incorporate lessons learned from the response to the 2010 Deepwater Horizon oil spill. The Trump Administration's misguided proposals to expand drilling in most U.S. continental-shelf waters[1] and rollback of important offshore drilling safety regulations[2] may increase the risk of another catastrophic spill. It is imperative that the federal government is adequately prepared to respond to offshore oil spills.

The Deepwater Horizon oil spill was the largest oil spill in U.S. waters in history, with the height of the response involving nearly 47,000 workers.[3] Responders to the disaster applied an unprecedented volume of chemical dispersants (1.8 million gallons) in the cleanup and used an approach for applying dispersants in deep water at the source of the wellhead that had not previously been used or planned.[4] Following the oil spill, the National Commission on the BP Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill and Offshore Drilling issued recommendations on the use of dispersants, concerning dispersant test protocols, government approvals, and topics for further research areas, including on the impacts of high-volume and subsea dispersant use.[5]

In May 2012, GAO reported that relatively few federal research projects had examined the use of dispersants subsurface or in the Arctic, and recommended that more research be conducted on biodegradation rates for oil spills in the Arctic.[6] GAO also reported that support for dispersant research has fluctuated, with temporary increases following a major spill, making it difficult for federal agencies to fund studies long term.[7] In January 2019, GAO reported that members of the Interagency Coordinating Committee on Oil Pollution Research (ICCOPR) funded over 100 oil spill research projects each year from fiscal years 2011 through 2017, and that the interagency committee had improved the coordination of federal oil spill research efforts.[8] In the spring of 2019, the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine also released a new report on the efficacy of using dispersants in response to marine oil spills and its effects on human health and the environment.[9] Although significant research has been done following the Deepwater Horizon response, it appears there still may be remaining uncertainties with respect to the use and efficacy of dispersants.[10]

Based in part on considerations learned from the Deepwater Horizon response, in 2015, EPA proposed a series of changes to the regulations governing chemical dispersants used in oil spills.[11] According to EPA, the proposed changes were intended to help ensure that chemical and biological dispersants have met efficacy and toxicity requirements, and that product manufacturers provide important use and safety information.[12] However, EPA has yet to finalize the updates to the regulations, which were last revised in 1994.[13] At a briefing for Energy and Commerce Committee staff on July 23, 2019, leadership from EPA's Office of Emergency Management reported that the Agency does not intend to finalize these important regulatory updates until 2022, at the earliest.[14]

We request that GAO review what actions federal agencies have taken to incorporate the latest science and lessons learned on the use of dispersants for oil spill planning and response, and specifically address the following questions:

1. What is known about the efficacy of using dispersants and their effects on human health and the environment, and specifically:

To what extent have federal agencies conducted studies on the effective and safe use of dispersants, and, in particular, long-term studies of the residual effects of the use of dispersants on the environment and human health, as well as studies of the impacts of rising ocean temperatures on dispersant efficacy and risks;
If studies have been conducted, what did they find; and
What research gaps remain, if any, in the federal agencies' understanding of the use of dispersants to address offshore oil spills?
2. To what extent have federal agencies, such as EPA and the U.S. Coast Guard, incorporated lessons learned and the latest research on dispersants into offshore oil spill response planning protocols, policies, and regulations?

How have agencies integrated this information and research?
What gaps remain in agency response planning protocols, policies, and regulations with regard to the efficacy and use of dispersants?
What challenges or limitations exist that could prevent or undermine agencies' ability to incorporate lessons learned and the latest research on dispersants, if any?
Thank you for your attention to this request. If you have any questions or need further information, please contact Judy Harvey or Jon Monger of the Committee staff at (202) 225-2927.

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