Deal being finalized in lawsuit alleging turtles were killed when BP burned oil from Gulf well

Deal being finalized in lawsuit over Gulf turtles

NEW ORLEANS — BP and several wildlife protection groups are working out the final details of an agreement to resolve a lawsuit alleging turtles were being killed as BP burned oil from its blown-out well in the Gulf of Mexico, attorneys said Friday.

The deal under negotiation calls for biologists or other trained observers to be present whenever oil is burned, looking for any turtles trapped in corrals that BP PLC is using to capture and burn oil on the surface of the water, said plaintiffs’ attorney William Eubanks.

BP doesn’t plan to conduct any controlled oil burns before Tuesday because of foul weather, attorneys told U.S. District Judge Carl Barbier on Friday. In the meantime, the wildlife groups have agreed to withdraw their request for a temporary restraining order while they work on completing an agreement.

“Unfortunately, we don’t have final language that’s been approved … but I think we are extremely close,” said Martha Mann, a Justice Department attorney representing the U.S. Coast Guard.

The lawsuit filed Wednesday by the Animal Welfare Institute and other groups accuses BP of violating the Endangered Species Act. Eubanks said the groups are virtually certain turtles have been caught and burned, but no charred remains have been discovered.

BP spokesman Mark Proegler said Thursday that the company has deployed crews in boats to look for turtles before oil is burned, and they can stop the burns if any turtles are spotted. Protecting sea turtles is “important to everyone,” Don Haycraft, an attorney for BP, told Barbier.

Haycraft said BP, the Coast Guard and wildlife groups are working to develop the best ways to conduct the burns. He did not comment on the possible terms of the deal.