WASHINGTON, Oct. 26 (UPI) -- A U.S. lawmaker called on British energy company BP to take steps to remove any oil left from the 2010 spill in the Gulf of Mexico in a spirit of transparency.
BP announced it plugged a leaking containment device in the Gulf of Mexico following September reports of sheen in the Gulf of Mexico. The company said it put a 750-pound cap over an opening in the so-called cofferdam, which was a failed attempt to seal the leak that resulted from the sinking of the Deepwater Horizon rig in 2010.
"Initial visual inspections of the cap and plugs have observed no oil droplets emanating from any of the openings," the company said in a statement.
U.S. Rep. Ed Markey, D-Mass., ranking member of the Natural Resources Committee, called on BP to come up with a plan to remove oil in the cofferdam or any other Deepwater Horizon wreckage.
"We shouldn't have to wait for the next leak to plug another problem," Markey said. "BP must devise a plan to clean up any remaining oil in the environment, and do so in the most transparent manner possible."
The U.S. Coast Guard, said BP, determined it's not feasible to remove the sheen remaining in the Gulf of Mexico. What's there, the company said, doesn't pose a risk to the U.S. coast.
