I served on the Deepwater Horizon inquiry commission. Trump has us headed for a new disaster | Terry Garcia

toIn the month of AST, I joined nearly 500 former and current employees in the National Geographic, where you were the CEO and the great science and exploration employees for 17 years, and urged the Foundation to take a general position against the Trump administration’s reckless science attacks. our letter He pointed out that the programs that are dismantled are “a necessity for the success of our country’s economy and that it is the basis of our progress and welfare. It makes us safer, stronger and more prosperous.” We warned that overcoming a recipe for disasters.

In the face of this danger, none of us can remain silent.

I say this from a unique perspective to engage closely in the most important environmental disasters in the history of the United States – Exxon Valdez and Deepwateer Horizon Oil.. Fifteen years ago this Sunday, a huge explosion has been torn through the BP Deepate Horizon podium and shot an environmental disaster that destroyed the Gulf of Mexico. The explosion led to the launch of more than 3 meters of oil that contaminated 1300 miles from the coast from Louisiana to Florida. Eleven life was lost, ecosystems were destroyed and economic losses exceeded billions.

I served on The National Committee on the BP Deepwateer Horizon oil leakageWhich was achieved in the root causes of the catastrophe, and before that led the federal government implementation of the Axon Valdez oil spill plan. I watched directly the human and economic losses that these events pay. The men and women, who had gained their livelihood from the sea, had suddenly confronted the possibility of losing a complete way of life.

Despite such painful lessons from the past, we find ourselves again in the catastrophe. Trump administration employees and software in science, environmental and safety agencies, and the decline in the sentence of environmental regulations, threaten to uncover contracts from progress in protecting our nation. These procedures are not only misleading-they are a serious rejection of the knowledge obtained by the same acquired from previous crises and a gambling that we cannot afford.

Among the many disturbing moves by the Trump administration are plans to weaken drilling safety measures abroad in response to the Deep Water Disaster, such as reflection. Bown Biden Administration on Drilling In sensitive coastal areas, including the Arctic, the closure of regional offices responsible for the response of oil spill. The elimination of these measures shows a harsh ignorance of the lessons learned at amazing human and economic cost.

It is concerned, these measures are only a small part of a greater effort to weaken environmental organization and supervise under the guise of restoring government competence. Take The latest decline in dozens of health and safety of the Environmental Protection Agency I mentioned Plan for the judiciary The agency’s scientific research office. The administration claims that these moves will launch US energy and reduce the cost of living, while the only thing they guarantee is to undermine the basic protection that maintains our air and water cleanliness. the The mass layoffs operations and plans to dismantle The National Administration of Oceanic and Air Country (NOAA), where I was a deputy responsible for 1997 until the end of 1999 and before that, has nothing to do with its general advisor, as it is an explicit assault on science. Targeting programs that monitor the health of the ocean, track the changes in the ecosystems and study climate effects – necessary to understand and mitigate threats on the horizon – Blind and Defnelessed will leave us Next risks.

Science financing discounts inflated damage, exposes our ability to invent solutions, evaluate risks, and effectively respond to crises. In 2010, we lacked the basic data on ocean conditions in the areas surrounding the DEPWater water horizon. This absence of critical knowledge hindered response and recovery efforts, including an understanding of the effects of the use of oil dispersion in the deep ocean. After the spill, strong government support for researchers enabled the development of new response and cleaning techniques, better understanding of long -term environmental impacts, and providing decisive visions that helped form the environmental and safety policy. Without government support, it was impossible for this progress to be impossible – and it will be impossible in the future as funding was reduced.

The Trump administration’s insistence that its actions will reduce bureaucratic burdens or stimulate false economic growth intentionally. It illuminates the national level. The only confirmed result is that the burden of risk will be converted into ordinary societies, companies and Americans. The destruction of habitats and livelihoods is not an abstract result of environmental disasters. They destroy families, arduous economies, toxic food supplies and leave societies struggling for decades. Companies are climbing, and community members suffer from healthy consequences for changing life. After Deepwateer Horizon leakage, the losses in hunting, tourism, commercial and entertainment properties reached tens of billions of dollars; Cleaning and recovery costs exceeded $ 60 billion – far exceeded the preventive measures that were required.

Trump and his allies in the industry will draw such an event as an unexpected tragedy, accident accident, sad accident. Do not buy it.

While we distinguish this simple anniversary, we cannot allow Exxon Valdez warning tales and Deep Water horizon to fade in history, only to repeat when the next horror ripens. Scientific and environmental protection is the first line of defense against the disaster. It is time to demand that our government stops madness and adherence to strong environmental systems and safety, strict scientific research, and adequate financing for agencies in charge of protecting our health and joint resources. The price of ignoring science and dismantling the regulations is very high.

• Terry Garcia, CEO of National Geographic and Specialist for 17 years of science and exploration officials. He also held the position of Assistant Minister of Commerce in the oceans and the deputy director of Noaa, as well as its general advisor