WH adviser: Less-toxic dispersant for oil spill not readily available; BP told to use less

WH adviser: Less-toxic dispersant not available

WASHINGTON — The White House energy adviser says BP is complying with the government’s request to use less of a toxic dispersant in fighting the Gulf oil spill, but she says alternative dispersants aren’t so readily available.

In a letter to BP, the Environmental Protection Agency ordered the oil company to find a less toxic alternative to the dispersant the company is using to break up the oil.

But in meetings that followed, White House adviser Carol Browner told ABC’s “Good Morning America” Tuesday, it became clear there aren’t as many alternatives being manufactured in sufficient quantities as was originally thought.

In the meantime, Browner says, the EPA has directed BP to use less of the dispersant.