Pay Up Exxon! Petition for Exxon to Pay for Long-term Harm to Wildlife and Wild Lands from the Exxon Valdez Oil Spill

September 1, 2005

PAY UP EXXON!
PETITION FOR EXXON TO PAY FOR LONG-TERM HARM TO WILDLIFE AND WILD LANDS
FROM THE EXXON VALDEZ OIL SPILL


WHEREAS, on March 24, 1989, Exxon spilled well over 11 million gallons of crude oil in Prince William Sound, Alaska, killing more wildlife than any other spill in the world, and oiling 1,500 miles of coastline much of it publicly-owned national wildlife refuges and forests, and state parks, critical habitat, and game santuaries;

WHEREAS, the 1991 civil settlement among Exxon, the United States and the State of Alaska for damages to publicly-owned wildlife and wild lands from the Exxon Valdez oil spill provided a Reopener for Unknown Injury;

WHEREAS, only 7 of 30 species officially listed as injured by the Exxon Valdez Oil Spill Trustee Council are now listed as recovered;

WHEREAS, scientists have documented severe and unexpected long-term ecological harm from Exxons spill harm which was not anticipated at the time of the 1991 settlement;

WHEREAS, this unanticipated harm includes, for example,
delayed recovery of 56 years for pink salmon; about 8 years for black oystercatchers and river otters; and 15 or more years for mussel beds and beach communities, sea otters, and fish-eating orcas
species not recovered after 15 or more years such as harlequin ducks, Pacific herring, pigeon guillemots, harbor seals, and mammal-eating orcas
indirect effects to species like black-legged kittiwakes that were not initially harmed by the spill, but were harmed later through spill-related losses of prey species such as Pacific herring;

WHEREAS, much of the documented unforeseen harm stems from unexpectedly high levels of Exxon's spilled oil, which remains buried on publicly-owned lands in the intertidal zone and which NOAA (federal) scientists now estimate will take at least another 20 years to naturally degrade; and

WHEREAS, it is the duty of the federal government and State of Alaska to: protect publicly-owned wildlife and wildlands; hold companies that spill oil accountable for all harm to publicly-owned resources; and educate the public that oil is much more toxic to wildlife than previously thought.

NOW, THEREFORE, the undersigned do hereby request the Attorneys General of the United States and the State of Alaska to take immediate action to reopen the 1991 civil settlement and claim the entire $100 million due from Exxon for mitigation projects of publicly-owned wildlife and wild lands, projects to protect these injured resources from future spills, and public education on oil toxicity.