Exxon Mobil

Stan, please sign the petition demanding transparency and independence in media access to the Mayflower, Arkansas oil spill site.Click here to sign.

Right now, there is a major oil spill clean-up happening in Mayflower, Arkansas. Over 12,000 barrels of oil have surfaced from a leak in an Exxon Mobil pipeline carrying tar sands oil from Canada, very similar to the proposed Keystone XL pipeline.

In addition to the unfolding environmental tragedy, media have had difficulties accessing the cleanup effort. One of the reasons for this is because access largely runs through Exxon Mobil employees who have a vested interest in keeping the media out of the loop.

For example, the FAA, which reports to the Department of Transportation, has issued a “no-fly zone order” over the area. While that order was amended to allow media to fly over the spill site with proper coordination, in practice that means going through an Exxon Mobil employee who has been appointed flight coordinator.

On the ground, reporters are being kept at a great distance from the actual site. Those who have tried to gain further access have been escorted away by security, threatened with arrest, and told to leave by local law enforcement.

The public and media deserve access to this oil spill. Please sign the petition to Department of Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood and Acting Director of the Environmental Protection Agency Bob Perciasepe demanding transparency and independence in media access to the Mayflower spill site.

Keep fighting,
Rachel Colyer
Campaign Director, Daily Kos