Library Search

<strong>Drill leases are moving to deeper, riskier waters in the Gulf of Mexico.</strong> Data sources: Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, <a href="https://www.data.boem.gov/Leasing/OffshoreStatsbyWD/Default.aspx" class="a_color--black">Offshore Statistics by Water Depth</a>, 2/27/2026. <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S030142151201141X" class="a_color--black">Impact of water depth on safety</a>, Muehlenbachs et. al., Energy Policy, Vol. 55, 2013. (Casey Chin / Earthjustice)
feature March 10, 2026

Why BP’s Kaskida Project Is a Recipe for (Yet Another) Disaster

The offshore oil drilling project would push into riskier, deeper waters than the infamous Deepwater Horizon rig.

 A fisherman holds his hand dsiplaying a clump of oil from the ruptured BP Deepwater Horizon oil rig on June 9 2010 in the waters of the Gulf of Mexico off of Grand Terre Island, Louisiana. (Benjamin Lowy / Getty Images)
From the Experts March 11, 2026

A New Era of Offshore Drilling Quietly Threatens the Health of Gulf Communities

BP’s proposed Kaskida project could become a sequel to Deepwater Horizon.

Oil platforms in the Gulf of Mexico. (Lucasz Z / Shutterstock)
Press Release March 11, 2026

Gulf and Environment Groups Respond To Public Waters Sell-off To Oil Industry; Amid Soaring Energy & Gas Prices, Trump Admin Draws Far Fewer Bids Than Dec. Sale

New oil-and-gas leases will lock in decades of pollution; won’t lower Americans’ energy bills

A controlled burn of oil from the BP Deepwater Horizon oil spill sends towers of fire hundreds of feet into the air over the Gulf of Mexico on June 9, 2010. (PO1 John Masson / U.S. Coast Guard)
Update December 3, 2025

Government Rejects New Drilling Proposal from the Company Behind the Deepwater Horizon Spill

What’s happening: The federal government has rejected an initial proposal by BP, the company behind the worst oil spill in U.S. history, to build a new, ultra-deepwater project in the Gulf of Mexico. Last August, Members of Congress sent a letter to the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM), urging the agency to reject Kaskida,…

Press Release August 29, 2025

Federal Government Rejects Development Plan for BP’s First Completely New Oilfield in Gulf of Mexico Since Deepwater Horizon

BP must address serious flaws in proposal for ultra-deepwater drilling project before it can move forward

Press Release August 26, 2025

Members of Congress Urge Bureau of Ocean Energy Management to Reject BP’s Ultra-deepwater Oil Drilling Proposal in Gulf of Mexico

Members have serious concerns about BP’s readiness to safely operate “Kaskida” project

Offshore oil and gas platforms are a common site in the Gulf of Mexico, including this one off the Louisiana coast. (Brad Zweerink / Earthjustice)
video August 8, 2025

The ultra deepwater drilling project Kaskida has the potential to spill up to 4.5 million barrels of oil.

BP’s Deepwater Horizon oil spill was the most destructive in U.S. history. Now, the company wants to go into deeper and riskier waters in the Gulf.

Smoke billows from controlled oil burns near the site of the BP Deepwater Horizon oil spill in June 2010.
(Derick E. Hingle / Bloomberg via Getty Images)
Article October 15, 2021

I Investigated the Deepwater Horizon Disaster. When Will We Learn From Our Mistakes?

As we find ourselves in the grip of another catastrophe, it’s worth reflecting on how the nation and the oil industry responded to the Deepwater Horizon disaster.

(Guzman Barquin / Unsplash)
feature July 11, 2025

Your Favorite Beach is Under Threat

The Trump administration is opening millions of acres of ocean to oil companies. New offshore drilling risks huge oil spills.

Fire boat response crews battle the blazing remnants of the offshore oil rig Deepwater Horizon.
(Photo Courtesy of U.S. Coast Guard)
From the Experts April 20, 2022

Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill Anniversary Is a Grave Reminder of Why Not to Trust the Oil Industry

The only thing we can truly trust this industry to do is fight to preserve its business model and secure profits for its shareholders.

Clockwise, from top-left: (David Shindle for the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission),  (Kelvin Gorospe / NOAA), (David Herasimtschuk for Earthjustice), (Edwin Remsberg / Getty Images), (Gerald Herbert / AP), (Danielle Villasana for Earthjustice), (Petty Officer First Class John Masson / US Coast Guard), (Matteo Colombo / Getty Images)
feature November 4, 2025

Earthjustice Program Report: Fall 2025

Together with our clients, we’re wielding the power of the law across 700 legal matters to protect people and our planet. With deep gratitude, we are pleased to share highlights of this work, which is made possible by partners like you.

Oil leaks in the Gulf and smoke plumes over the BP Deepwater Horizon platform after it exploded on April 20, 2010.
(MASS COMMUNICATION SPECIALIST 2ND CLASS JUSTIN STUMBERG / U.S. NAVY)
Article July 2, 2019

Estamos Demandando Con el Fin de Prevenir El Próximo Derrame de Crudo Como el de Deepwater Horizon

Exenciones y restricciones a la Regla del Control de Pozos ponen en riesgo muchas vidas

Dark clouds of smoke and fire rise from a controlled oil fire in the Gulf of Mexico following the April 20, 2010, explosion on the Deepwater Horizon.
(MASS COMMUNICATION SPECIALIST 2ND CLASS JUSTIN STUMBERG / U.S. NAVY)
Article July 1, 2019

We’re Suing to Prevent the Next BP Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill Disaster

Waivers and rollback of Well Control Rule put lives at risk.

JJ Waters stands in the surf along the shore near her home in Pensacola Beach, Florida. (Gregg Pachkowski for Earthjustice)
Article November 18, 2025

Trump’s Ocean Drilling Sale Risks Another Disaster for Gulf Communities — We’re Suing

15 years after one of the worst oil spills in U.S. history, the Trump administration is illegally selling off nearly 80 million acres of public waters in the Gulf for oil and gas drilling.

Clockwise from top left: Laura Beth Resnick of Butterbee Farm. (Alyssa Schukar for Earthjustice) Controlled burn during BP Deepwater Horizon disaster in 2010. (Petty Officer First Class John Masson / U.S. Coast Guard) Subway train on the 7 line in Queens, New York City. (Marco Bottigelli / Getty Images) An oil-coated feather on a Florida beach in 2010, following the BP Deepwater Horizon explosion and oil spill. (Tech. Sgt. Emily F. Alley / U.S. Air Force)
feature December 11, 2025

Our Lawsuits Against the Trump Administration

We will defend the progress we have made and keep moving forward.

A Gulf of Mexico Rice’s whale — one of the world’s rarest whales — observed in the western Gulf of Mexico in 2024. The species is the only large whale species that lives year-round in North American waters. (Paul Nagelkirk / NOAA Fisheries - NMFS ESA/MMPA Permit #21938)
From the Experts January 16, 2026

As a kid, he came face to face with one of the rarest whales in the world — he just didn’t know it yet

A photo of the whale caught a researcher’s eye, sparking a scientific odyssey spanning 56 years. Today, amid a push to expand fossil fuel drilling in the Gulf, Rice’s whales face extinction.

People gather at the beach after sunset with offshore oil and gas platform Esther in the distance in Seal Beach, California. (Mario Tama / Getty Images)
Update November 18, 2025

Trump Plans to Drill 1.27 Billion Acres of Ocean. Here’s How We’re Fighting Back.

We’ve successfully challenged Trump’s past offshore oil lease sales that broke the law at the expense of coastal communities, and we’re ready to win again.

A brown pelican covered in oil sits on the Louisiana coast in June 2010. Oil from the <em>Deepwater Horizon</em> has affected wildlife throughout the Gulf of Mexico. (Charlie Riedel / AP)
Press Release April 18, 2024

Gulf and Environmental Groups React to Congressional Letter Calling on Interior Department to End Rubber Stamping of Offshore Oil Drilling Projects

Letter comes on eve of the 14th anniversary of the BP Deepwater Horizon spill