Emanuel, Durbin Call on BP CEO to Reconsider Dumping More Ammonia and Sludge in Lake Michigan

WASHINGTON, D.C.—Today, U.S. Representative Rahm Emanuel (IL-5) and U.S. Senator Dick Durbin (IL) released the following letter to Tony Hayward, Chief Executive Officer of BP calling on him to reconsider BP’s decision to dump more ammonia and “sludge” into Lake Michigan.
 
The following is the text of the letter:

Dear Mr. Hayward,

Like many Americans, we have been impressed with BP's “beyond petroleum” advertising campaign.  BP's broadcast and print ads featuring your company's commitment to alternative energy and a cleaner environment are a refreshing message from one of the world's major energy companies.  But in light of your company's plan to dump an additional 1,584 pounds of ammonia and 4,925 pounds of “sludge” into Lake Michigan each day from a BP plant in Whiting, Indiana, America may not want to follow your corporate lead “beyond petroleum.”

We both value Lake Michigan as a regional and national treasure. The Lake forms the eastern border of the 5th Congressional District and its shoreline is among the crown jewels of Chicago -- central to our city's bid for the 2016 Summer Olympic Games.  More important, the Great Lakes account for 95 percent of the surface freshwater in the U.S. and provide drinking water for more than 30 million Americans, including the entire Chicago-metropolitan region. 

Unfortunately, the Great Lakes are plagued by decades of pollution that has resulted in frequent beach closings and warnings against consuming fish from its waters. For years, thousands of concerned citizens and elected officials have been working hard to reduce that pollution and to guarantee the health of the Lakes for generations to come.  Your company's plan to increase its dumping of ammonia and “sludge” by thousands of tons each year threatens these efforts to preserve and protect what President Bush has called “a national treasure.”  We cannot allow the Great Lakes to be treated as a dumping zone for industrial waste.
 
We have appealed to federal authorities to block the State of Indiana's approval of this new permit allowing additional dumping in the Lake.  We also plan to work with our many colleagues around the region, and their millions of constituents, to ensure that this expanded dumping will not come to pass. 

While we fully recognize and support the economic growth that will come from the expansion of the refinery in Whiting, we respectfully urge you to reconsider your decision to dump tons more ammonia and “sludge” into Lake Michigan.  As a company that strives to set an example of environmental stewardship, we encourage you to make those changes necessary that will eliminate the need to further pollute Lake Michigan.   

We would be happy to discuss this matter with you, and await your response.

Sincerely,

 

Richard J. Durbin                               Rahm Emanuel
United States Senator                         Member of Congress