Corexit: EPA Still Testing Potentially Harmful Dispersant

During a conference call with reporters on May 24, EPA Administrator Lisa Jackson, fielding questions about the use of toxic dispersants to break up the oil from the BP spill in the Gulf of Mexico, made a clear promise: "We will conduct our own tests to determine the least toxic, most effective dispersant available in the volumes necessary for a crisis of this magnitude." Jackson said that she was "not satisfied that BP has done an extensive enough analysis of other dispersant options."

But a month later those tests have not been completed, according to the EPA. In the meantime, the total amount of Corexit--the brand of dispersant chosen by BP and approved by the Coast Guard--that has been dumped into the Gulf has reached more than 1.4 million gallons.

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