Will BP Stop Burning Sea Turtles to Avoid a Lawsuit?

We’ve all been horrified by the reports of endangered sea turtles being incinerated alive in controlled burns set off by BP in the Gulf of Mexico. Now, animal conservation groups are doing something about it. Earlier this week, they filed a lawsuit against British Petroleum and the U.S. Coast Guard.

On Tuesday, the Animal Welfare Institute, the Center for Biological Diversity and Turtle Island Restoration Network notified BP and the Coast Guard of their intent to sue. The notice states that BP’s actions are resulting in the deaths of threatened and endangered species, in particular the Kemp's ridley sea turtle.

"While cleaning up the catastrophic oil spill is critically important, so too is doing it in a way which doesn’t destroy wildlife in a flagrantly unlawful manner," AWI President Cathy Liss said in a statement.

They asked BP and the Coast Guard to put qualified observers in the Gulf who can watch for and save endangered turtles and other wildlife. If turtles continue to die, the groups said they would file a lawsuit charging BP with violating the federal Endangered Species Act as well as the terms of its lease for Deepwater Horizon — a lease that requires BP to comply with all federal environmental laws.

Guess what? BP is apparently listening. In meetings held yesterday in New Orleans, representatives from BP, the Coast Guard, the three animal protection groups and the Animal Legal Defense Fund agreed that the Coast Guard will immediately gather a group of scientists and, with input from the animal groups, try to figure out how to best ensure that no endangered sea turtles are killed during burn containment practices.

Due to stormy weather in the Gulf, the burning will be halted until at least next Tuesday. By then, BP and the Coast Guard are supposed to let ALDF and the animal groups know if it will be possible to have scientists aboard every burn boat. If they say "no can do," the parties will go back to federal court.

Meanwhile, along with the Endangered Species Act violations, PETA rightfully believes BP should be charged with cruelty to animals. This week it called on the attorneys general of Alabama, Florida, Louisiana and Mississippi to file animal cruelty charges against the BP executives who allowed the deaths and injuries to happen and, due to their negligence, let it continue.

Robert Wine, a flack for BP, doesn’t understand all the hubbub. He told the Times-Picayune that the company always looks out for turtles and other wildlife before starting the burns. "The idea of animals being burned alive is appalling to us," he said.

Is it really? Then why has his company been turning away rescuers trying to save the poor creatures before the oil is set afire? What’s truly appalling to BP must be the fact that, if the lawsuit is successful, the company could be facing hefty fines for every single endangered sea turtle it has harmed or killed — up to $25,000 in civil penalties and up to $50,000 in criminal penalties, along with possible prison time. Are they really always looking out for turtles, as their P.R. guy claims ... or always looking out for themselves?

We should know the answer next Tuesday.