New BP Data Show 20% of Gulf Spill Responders Exposed to Chemical That Sickened Valdez Workers

2-butoxyethanol has reared it's ugly head once more, only this time it has been reported as being used in the first type of corexit that BP used during the early days of the spill. This is the same chemical that caused sickness in the Exxon-Valdez cleanup workers. Nothing has been learned.

NY Times

In an under-the-radar release of new test results for its Gulf of Mexico oil spill workers, BP PLC is reporting potentially hazardous exposures to a now-discontinued dispersant chemical -- a substance blamed for contributing to chronic health problems after the Exxon Valdez cleanup -- among more than 20 percent of offshore responders.

According to this article, BP is playing with the numbers by switching between exposure limits that are set by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) and the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH). Exposure limits set my NIOSH are apparently more health protective than limits set by OSHA. BP is using these limits to present a more friendly version of chemical exposure limits. Hardly any surprise here that BP would distort the facts.