BP May Owe Anglers $585 Million After Oil Spill
People who fish recreationally in the Gulf of Mexico may be entitled to up $585 million in compensation due to lost fishing opportunities following the 2010 Deepwater Horizon oil spill.
In the case of the BP spill, the money wouldn’t go back to individual anglers, but instead might fund ecosystem improvements or to stock more fish in the Gulf.
After a disaster such as an oil spill, trustees—who could include federal, state, or tribal authorities—often attempt to secure financial compensation from those responsible.
“These are sizable losses borne by recreational users of publicly owned resources,” says Sherry Larkin, a food and resource economics professor at the University of Florida.
Because the oil spill affected thousands of square miles of fisheries, trustees could try to compensate for everyone who uses the Gulf in the future.
Source: oilpricecom
