Washington, DC – U.S. Senator Barbara Boxer (D-CA), Chairman of the Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works, and Senator Bill Nelson (D-FL) sent the following letter to President Barack Obama today.

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June 20, 2010

President Barack Obama

The White House

Washington, DC 20500

Dear Mr. President:

We strongly support your efforts to ensure the long-term recovery of the Gulf of Mexico.  We also commend you for establishing the $20 billion escrow account to ensure BP pays the claims of all the people whose lives and livelihoods are being harmed by the spill.

The purpose of this letter is to offer a suggestion to speed up the cleanup and improve efforts to prevent damage to the beaches, marshes, islands and other economically and environmentally vital near-shore areas.

Your decision to appoint Navy Secretary Ray Mabus to develop a long term recovery plan for the Gulf is a good one, and we urge you to accelerate the Navy’s assignment in the Gulf. 

For example, we believe that Navy coordination of rapid response teams composed of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Environmental Protection Agency and National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration could give a singular focus to the oversight of these critical near-shore areas now.

Responding to this spill is a massive undertaking, and we strongly believe that further enhancing the Navy’s role at this time will be effective and productive as you move to protect the Gulf’s critical coastal economy.

We thank you for consideration of this option.  We stand ready to work with you in any way that is helpful in dealing with this unprecedented disaster.

Sincerely,

Barbara Boxer

U.S. Senator

Bill Nelson

U.S. Senator

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