First Disaster (originally aired November 1, 2005)
President Allen and Speaker of the House Templeton go to Florida to inspect the damage resulting from a hurricane, but get into a dispute over how a leaking oil tanker should be handled.
- Federal-State Dispute. The conflict over allowing hazardous material into a state is reminiscent of a 2002 dispute between the federal government and South Carolina over the transportation of nuclear material to a conversion site in that state.
On April 19, 2002, Energy Secretary Spencer Abraham specifically authorized the transfer of six metric tons of surplus plutonium from Rocky Flats to the Savannah River Site in South Carolina for eventual conversion into nuclear-reactor fuel. Arguing that the transportation of nuclear material into South Carolina was unjustified and would pose new risks of terrorist attack, South Carolina Governor Jim Hodges challenged Abraham's decision in federal court in May 2002. Rejecting the governor's arguments, Federal District Judge Cameron McGowan Currie entered a judgment in favor of the federal government on June 13, 2002, two days before the first shipment possibly could have arrived.
Nonetheless, the very next day, Hodges issued Executive Order No. 2002-14, which declared a state of emergency in South Carolina. Noting the recent detainment of Jose Padilla and the allegations that he was thinking of developing a so-called "dirty bomb" that would irradiate an area, Gov. Hodges prohibited the transportation of plutonium on South Carolina roads and highways and ordered the South Carolina Department of Public Safety to prevent such material from entering the state. He even sent law enforcement officers to a crossroads near the Savannah River Site to check trucks for any plutonium shipments.
Less than a week later, on June 20, 2002, Judge Currie declared Hodge's order null and void, sternly noting that the governor's action was clearly unconstitutional and was not permitted under federal law. The court also noted that Hodge's deployment of law enforcement the day before the earliest shipment could have occurred indicated that "this action may have been intended primarily to gain media attention." Hodge agreed to abide by the court's order.
- Oil Spills. The Exxon Valdez incident, which was the largest oil spill in US history, occurred on March 28, 1989. The Valdez released more than 11 million gallons of oil (it held more than 50 million gallons at the time), causing massive damage to Alaska's Prince William Sound. In 1991, Exxon agreed to pay $900 million to the United States and Alaska governments in 10 annual payments. A jury ordered Exxon in 1994 to pay $5 billion in punitive damages, but this award was overturned on appeal.
The Valdez incident, along with a 1988 inland incident by the Ashland Oil Company that contaminated the water supply around western Pennsylvania, led to the enactment of the Oil Pollution Act of 1990. This act expanded liability for responsible parties so they must pay not only federal cleanup costs, but costs and damages incurred by local governments and private parties, and it set fines for oil discharges. The act also expanded spill prevention and preparation measures, and funded research.
The Environmental Protection Agency has more information about the Valdez incident here.
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By Stephen Lee
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