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Oil giant BP  is already shifting emphasis on staving off disaster by reportedly pushing commercial fishermen to sign settlement agreements capping any claims against the oil giant at $5,000. Last week, the Alabama attorney general reportedly ordered BP to stop distributing agreements to Alabama’s fishermen, advising the fishermen to proceed with caution and understand the ramifications before signing any agreement. In addition, BP has reportedly caused problems with fishermen, who they had enlisted to help in the cleanup for their…

As the BP oil spill moves onto the shore of the Gulf Coast, it’s clear that there is one victim bigger than all the rest: new drilling operators. With the Gulf oil slick a few miles away from the mighty Mississippi River Delta Friday, residents from Louisiana to Florida are seeing the possibility of banned fishing, oily beaches, closed harbors, a destroyed coastline and devastated livelihoods. All of those people in affected areas make federal government plans to increase offshore…

Top Attorneys from Alabama, Mississippi, Florida, Louisiana and Texas reportedly sent a letter Thursday to the president and Attorney General Eric Holder, asking that a combined state-federal group help prepare guidelines for potential litigation. The attorneys general of the five southern states, who find themselves and their residents threatened by the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico, have asked President Obama for federal help in preparing damage assessments, and for guidelines to avoid duplication. The states’ laws vary, so…

BP has publicly pledged to pay for the cleanup of the oil spill that’s still pumping some 200,000 gallons a day into the Gulf of Mexico, just south of the Louisiana coastline. But some experts say that the amount of the actual payout can vary dramatically. Based on what happens with the still-spreading slick and some maritime laws, the amount of money and to whom it will pay the money is far from clear. Estimates to both clean the spill…

Low-interest economic injury loans have reportedly been  made available to small firms via the Small Business Administration for Louisiana coast residents that have been hurt by the Gulf Coast BP oil spill. The SBA is reportedly offering affected businesses 30-year loans of up to $2 million under its Economic Injury Disaster Loans program at a 4% interest rate. The April 20th spill led to a ban on fishing along Louisiana’s southeast coast, and has affected potentially millions of livlihoods throught…