Exxon Calls a Party but No Alaskan Wants to Come

Exxon called for a celebration to mark the end of the massive Alaska oil spill cleanup, which still had two days to go today, but Alaska said Exxon had caused too many people pain and an uncertain future for any celebration.

Coast Guard Vice Adm. Clyde Robbins, treading a cautious middle ground between the squabbling oil company and state of Alaska, said that in his opinion Exxon has met its goal of treating the oily shoreline--but the cleanup is not complete. He said Exxon should return in the spring to finish the job.

As far as Exxon is concerned, the cleanup is essentially finished as crews work the final three-quarters of a mile of soiled shoreline on several islands.

Two top Exxon cleanup officials--General Manager Otto Harrison and Operations Manager Bill Rainey--announced at a crowded Valdez Civic Center meeting Tuesday night that they felt a “sense of celebration.”

They offered self-congratulatory statements about the company’s summer cleanup of nearly 11 million gallons of crude oil that poured out of the grounded Exxon Valdez almost six months ago, coating 1,100 miles of shoreline.

“Bill Rainey and Otto Harrison refer to a sense of celebration. I appreciate the progress made so far,” said Dennis Kelso, the commissioner of the Alaska Department of Environmental Conservation. “For us it is not a time for celebration, but a time for reflection.”

Kelso said, “People have been hurt by this spill and face a painful time of uncertainty.”

The spill wreaked havoc with fishing and left questions about future seasons. It killed tens of thousands of animals and left native subsistence hunters and fishermen wondering whether their food sources were safe. The lives of coastal residents in more than a dozen towns and cities were disrupted. And scientists believe it could take years for the environment to recover.

Kelso said the state of Alaska was in no mood to celebrate, and he invited Exxon to continue working. “We’re eager to keep our sleeves rolled up and hope you join us in that.”