We are now seeing the devastating consequences of drilling for oil in the Gulf. Risk management obviously failed to its job in protecting our natural resources. We continue to see the actual cost of allowing oil companies to tap our nature resources in the Gulf. Drilling for oil in an environment that is conducive to catastrophic failure when something goes wrong is simply too risky to continue.

BP should have had Failure Mode and Effects Analysis (FMEA) studies in place before the first barrel of oil was pumped from the Gulf. You can bet they knew the risks we far greater working at depths where it is simply impossible to manage mechanical challenges when they arise. Of course, those risks probably were worth the profit margin in the eyes of BP executives. Guaranteed safe guards and proof of those guarantees should have been mandated by our government prior to allowing drilling. Why do we continue to allow big business to set their own standards, and then, allow the fox to watch over the chicken coop?

President Obama sent to Congress last week a legislative package meant to speed up assistance to those affected by the Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill.

Here's a brief overview from White House "Fact Sheet" of the topics that legislative package contains:

A ROBUST RESPONSE

Immediate Funding
Food Safety
Monitoring and Improving Off Shore Oil Exploration
Environmental Studies

ASSISTANCE TO AFFECTED INDIVIDUALS AND BUSINESSES

Oil Spill Unemployment Assistance
Nutrition Assistance
Employment Assistance
One-Stop Assistance

HELP FOR COMMUNITIES

Economic Recovery
Fisheries Disaster
SBA Loans

PROTECTING TAXPAYERS AND HOLDING OIL COMPANIES RESPONSIBLE

Ensuring BP is Compensating People Affected by the Spill
Raising the Liability Caps
Increasing the Excise Tax that Funds the Oil Spill Liability Trust Fund
Promoting Program Integrity and Ensuring Aid Dollars Are Spent Well

Perhaps now we will finally realize that the risk of drilling in our wetlands is far greater than the benefits or profit margins available to the huge corporations controlling the drilling. It's time to find a better way folks…time for a change in how companies do business at the cost of the general population's burden. The ripple consequences of this catastrophic event will be seen for many years to come…that you can count on.

If we continue to rely strictly on fossil fuels to support our current needs our next generations will continue to suffer the consequences such as those caused by the Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill. In the short-run it may be more expensive to drill for oil on land, however, in the long-run the total cost to everyone is considerably higher.

Terry Swejkoski