Enviro Links: Lessons from Exxon Valdez, Turtles in Peril, and More

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Here’s the latest on the Gulf oil disaster, now in its 78th day:

Cleanup workers from the Exxon Valdez oil spill warn Gulf workers of the long-term health hazards of exposure.

Transocean, the owner of the Deepwater Horizon rig and the world’s largest offshore drilling company, is known for “testing local laws and regulations” in its operations around the world, reports the New York Times. Their record includes charges of human rights abuses, tax fraud, and questionable legal maneuvering, just to name a few.

TPM reports that the National Marine Fisheries Service, which enforces the Endangered Species Act, underestimated the impact an oil spill might have on vulnerable species like sea turtles when it signed off on new Gulf drilling in 2007.

Michelle Obama plans to visit the Gulf sometime soon.

Some owners of BP stations are switching brands (or at least, trying to) as boycotts of the oil company threaten their businesses. “It’s either change or go out of business,” said Abdel Berry, who owns three BP stations near Detroit.

Religious leaders visit the Gulf, call for better protection of God’s creation.

BP is pushing to cap the Gulf gusher by July 27, which happens to be the day the company is expected to report its second-quarter earnings to shareholders.

The Gulf spill site gets Obama-ized.

And in non-oil news:

The Discovery Channel loves sharks, and so does Sen. John Kerry (D-Mass.).

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AN IMPORTANT UPDATE

We’re falling behind our online fundraising goals and we can’t sustain coming up short on donations month after month. Perhaps you’ve heard? It is impossibly hard in the news business right now, with layoffs intensifying and fancy new startups and funding going kaput.

The crisis facing journalism and democracy isn’t going away anytime soon. And neither is Mother Jones, our readers, or our unique way of doing in-depth reporting that exists to bring about change.

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If you can part with even just a few bucks, please help us pick up the pace of donations. We simply can’t afford to keep falling behind on our fundraising targets month after month.

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