Protecting The Public's Right To Know About Oil Dispersants

Earthjustice filed a Freedom of Information Act lawsuit against the EPA to reveal the secret ingredients of oil dispersants used during the 2010 BP oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico, challenging the use of "confidential business information" to hide safety data.

• During the Macondo well blowout in April 2010, approximately 1.84 million gallons of oil dispersants were used in the Gulf of Mexico. This included 1.07 million gallons applied to the ocean surface and a first-time application of 771,000 gallons released subsea at the site of the gushing oil well one mile below the surface.
• A report by Earthjustice and Toxipedia Consulting Services, based on EPA materials, identified health and environmental risks among 57 ingredients in eligible dispersants: five are linked to cancer, 33 to skin irritation, 33 to eye irritation, 11 are suspected respiratory toxins or irritants, and 10 are suspected kidney toxins. Environmentally, 8 chemicals are suspected or known to be toxic to aquatic organisms and 5 are suspected to have moderate acute toxicity to fish.
• Earthjustice is seeking to compel the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to implement comprehensive toxicity testing, toxicity standards, and disclosure for dispersant ingredients, while also pursuing legal action to establish limits on the amount of dispersants used and identify specific water bodies where they should not be used.

APA

Earthjustice (2010). Protecting The Public's Right To Know About Oil Dispersants. https://earthjustice.org/case/ingredients-in-gulf-oil-dispersants-challenged

Chicago

Earthjustice. Protecting The Public's Right To Know About Oil Dispersants. 2010. https://earthjustice.org/case/ingredients-in-gulf-oil-dispersants-challenged.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=Earthjustice |title=Protecting The Public's Right To Know About Oil Dispersants |date=14 July 2010 |url=https://earthjustice.org/case/ingredients-in-gulf-oil-dispersants-challenged |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{earthjustice2010protecting, author = {{Earthjustice}}, title = {{Protecting The Public's Right To Know About Oil Dispersants}}, institution = {Earthjustice}, year = {2010}, month = jul, url = {https://earthjustice.org/case/ingredients-in-gulf-oil-dispersants-challenged}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }