As the BP oil spill is halfway through the its third month questions remain about the aftermath, both short and long term.   When will the oil leak be stopped?  At what point will we now the true damage caused by the oil spill?   What will become of off-shore oil drilling?   At the moment the priority is stopping the oil spill. While internal and government investigations will likely take a year or more to fully conclude, oil spill lawyers that filed early class action lawsuits against BP and others may lead the investigatory charge while proving their cases. 

The 1969 oil spill off of Santa Barbara, California created impetus for the environmental movement.  Any significant oil industry reform will come from Congress; however, the oil & gas industry contributes significantly  to many election campaigns and virtually every Congressperson has residents in their state employed by oil & gas. Given this, can we truly expect any positive outcomes for the environmental movement from the Gulf Coast oil spillmassive oil spill in the Gulf Coast region?  Mississippi oil spill lawyers representing large numbers of out of work fishermen, shrimpers & oystermen may create litigation on multiple fronts, against oil & gas companies, federal government agencies and state and local governments while trying to defend their clients livelihood.   These lawsuits could be what causes legislation to ultimately occur.

We can only hope that such a reevaluation of priorities will occur after this, the worst global ecological disaster of time.  As Americans continue to see images of crude-soaked birds, it is hard to ignore that our nation’s dependence on oil needs to be rethought.  Such a traumatic disaster as this should also highlight all the negative consequences of oil, from national security threats to the risks of global warming.  President Obama must deliver on his promised priority of a new economy of green jobs and clean energy; his recent rhetoric indicates that he intends to use the BP oil spill as a platform to start this work.  However, as those who lost their jobs, business or even way of life due to the oil spill may point out: words are only words and action is what is needed.  In the wake of this tragedy, Americans must not settle for this to be resolved through just another class action oil spill lawsuit, and also start demanding clean energy options and the infrastructure that will allow us to reduce our national energy consumption.