‘Deepwater Horizon’, released on 30th September, is an action packed, rip-roaring Hollywood disaster movie featuring an all-star cast of Mark Wahlberg, John Malkovich, Kate Hudson, Gina Rodriguez and Kurt Russel. It’s based on the story of the 2010 Gulf of Mexico oil spill disaster of the same name and has opened to decent reviews on both sides of the Atlantic.
Mike Ryan of the Uproxx news and discussion website praised the film’s performances and ability to make audiences angry at BP: “…if nothing else, I hope it gets people angry again, because the people who did this to our planet, and killed 11 people in the process, got off too easy.”
Although BP has, quite rightly, been held to account for its part in the Deepwater Horizon disaster and paid out in the region of $50bn of fines and damages it’s nonetheless easy to see why people in the affected area think it simply isn’t enough.
But, how do the same people feel about the damages paid by US multi-national Union Carbide to settle the civil claims surrounding the Bhopal Disaster in which many thousands of people lost their lives?
Union Carbide paid just $470million dollars to settle the Bhopal Disaster civil claims. This sum included no provision for later illness or death, nor for birth defects; it took no account of environmental damage and allocated nothing to remove the thousands of tonnes of highly toxic waste left contaminating the environment for miles around.
Union Carbide has never answered the criminal charges outstanding against it and since Dow Chemical took over Union carbide in 2001 it has been served notice, on four separate occasions, to appear in the Bhopal court and explain Carbide’s continued absence. But Dow, like its wholly-owned subsidiary Union Carbide, has thus far failed to attend court.
“BP is receiving the punishment it deserves, while also providing critical compensation for the injuries it caused to the environment and the economy of the Gulf region,” Attorney-general Loretta Lynch said. “Once approved by the court, this agreement will launch one of the largest environmental restoration efforts the world has ever seen.”
Compare the difference between the Deepwater Horizon and Bhopal settlements: HERE
