Baker Panel Report Criticizes BP Safety BP Failed to Emphasize Safety at U.S. Plants Before Deadly Explosion, Baker Panel Report Says By JOHN PORRETTO The Associated Press

HOUSTON - British oil company BP failed to emphasize safety at its U.S. refineries before the 2005 Texas City explosion that killed 15, according to a report released Tuesday by an independent panel led by former U.S. Secretary of State James A. Baker III.

The panel, in a statement summarizing its 300-plus page report on BP PLC’s operations, said the company had made strides in personal accident prevention but came up short on the bigger picture.

“The panel maintains a central theme that prior to the Texas City tragedy BP emphasized personal safety and had achieved significant improvements in personal injury rates, but the company did not emphasize process safety,” the statement said. “BP mistakenly interpreted improving personal injury rates as an indication of acceptable process safety performance at its U.S. refineries.”

The 11-member panel made 10 recommendations, including that an independent monitor report to the company’s board of directors for five years.

“BP gets it and I get it, too,” BP CEO John Browne told reporters by video link from London. “I recognize the need for improvement.”

Browne, who got the report from Baker on Sunday, called the report a “hard-hitting and critical analysis that focused on deficiencies and negatives.”

Browne defended the company’s overall safety record, which the Baker report acknowledged was sufficient in terms of personal injury prevention and environmental safety.

But on so-called process safety, “it wasn’t excellent enough,” Browne said. “And the standard is excellence.”

The chief executive said the company would implement the panel’s recommendations, including the independent monitor. But he said the company needs to compare Baker’s report with a companywide safety examination that began soon after the Texas City explosion and gave no time frame for making the changes Baker’s group suggested.

Baker has led the panel investigating corporate management at Houston-based BP Products North America following the March 2005 blast that killed 15 people and injured more than 170 others.

The U.S. Chemical Safety and Hazard Investigation Board, known as the CSB, urged BP in August 2005 to hire outside experts to look at the company’s oversight of safety management systems and make its findings public similar to an investigation at NASA following the space shuttle Columbia tragedy.

The panel, announced in October 2005, has traveled to BP’s five U.S. refineries and interviewed hundreds of employees.

“BP tended to have a short-term focus in its U.S. refining operations, and its decentralized management system and entrepreneurial culture delegated substantial discretion to U.S. refinery plant managers without clearly defining process safety expectations, responsibilities or accountabilities,” the panel said in the report.

Baker, a senior partner at the Houston-based Baker Botts law firm, was White House chief of staff and treasury secretary in the Reagan administration and secretary of state in the first Bush administration. The release of the BP report was twice delayed because of his work with the Iraq Study Group, which made its recommendations to President Bush last month on how to revamp U.S. policy in Iraq.

The release of the report comes less than a week after London-based BP said Chief Executive John Browne would step down by the end of July, more than a year ahead of schedule.

BP said Friday that Browne, 58, will be succeeded by Tony Hayward, the head of exploration and production, who will assume the task of trying to repair the company’s reputation with the public and investors. Problems stem from a series of well-publicized mishaps that include the Texas explosion and last year’s giant oil spill in Alaska.

Browne said Tuesday the report had “nothing to do” with his decision to retire earlier than expected, noting that he decided in December that when the company’s board found a successor, he would step aside.

John Manzoni, the company’s head of refining and marketing, said Tuesday he had no plans to resign.

The 2005 explosion has so far cost the company around $2 billion in compensation payouts, repairs and lost profits. BP has settled hundreds of lawsuits related to the accident, putting aside $1.6 billion just to resolve legal disputes.

Based on its investigation, the CSB has criticized BP for its safety systems at Texas City, about 40 miles southeast of Houston, finding the company fostered bad management at the plant and failed to fix problems.

In September 2005, the U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration found BP committed more than 300 willful violations of its rules and fined the company $21.3 million.

BP’s own December 2005 report blamed failures by management at the refinery, saying it didn’t make safety a priority, tolerated risks and failed to communicate. But BP added it “found no evidence of anyone consciously or intentionally taking actions or decisions that put others at risk.”

The CSB has credited BP for cooperating with its investigation, making sweeping changes in how it recognizes potential hazards and hiring the Baker panel.

BP has said it will invest about $1 billion over five years to improve and maintain the Texas City site. BP also operates refineries in California, Indiana, Washington and Ohio.

BP shares fell 1.5 percent to close at 5.41 pounds ($10.62) on the London Stock Exchange

Mellody Hobson: Giving Back for the Holidays Tips on Giving to Charity or Giving Gifts of Stock During the Holiday Season

Dec. 14, 2006 - As the saying goes, it is better to give than get.

But in reality, especially during the holiday season, Americans would rather spend and receive than give.

In fact, statistics show that Americans spend $8 billion on Christmas decorations — almost four times what they give to protect animals and the environment.

For those looking to give to charity, Mellody Hobson offers some advice on how to make a difference this holiday season and explains how you can do something to make a difference in the lives of others.

Donate Your Unused Vacation Time

Yes, this is a terrific option — as long as you do it before Dec. 31, 2006. The Internal Revenue Service allows workers to donate unused vacation time and sick days for victims of Hurricane Katrina.

Employers can convert the donated time into cash contributions to charities, and workers can deduct the amount donated from their federal tax returns.

This is an excellent way to use up those vacation days you know you will never get around to taking — for charitable and taxable reasons!

Give to Charity by Searching the Internet for Your Holiday Gifts

There is a search engine called Goodsearch.com that donates 50 percent of its revenue to charities and schools designated by its users.

Basically, once you designate and verify the charitable organization that you would like to help, Goodsearch will donate about 1 cent for every search you make.

A penny does not sound like a lot, but the site is all about numbers — the more supporters you can find for your organization who are willing to use Goodsearch for their Internet searches, the more money you will raise.

For example, if an organization can rally 500 people to use the search engine, and the users do five Web searches a day, the organization could raise more than $9,000!

Think of all the money that could be raised this holiday season while you and your friends and family are surfing the Web for gift ideas!

Buy From Retailers Who Are Giving Back

Many designers and retailers partner with various causes.

The most recent example is The Gap’s “Red” campaign.

The Gap has committed to contributing half the profits from sales of its Red product line to the Global Fund to help women and children affected by HIV/AIDS in Africa.

Another instance of this type of partnership is “Think Pink” items, which raise money for breast cancer.

For example, Coach, the leather goods and accessory retailer, has designed a “breast cancer” wristwatch that retails for $395.

For each watch sold between now and Dec. 31, Coach will donate $100 to The Breast Cancer Research Foundation.

By selecting gifts with a purpose, you are not only able to give your friends and family interesting gifts, but you can also support worthy causes.

Give Back by Sending Out Holiday Cards

Not only are there holiday cards that benefit certain organizations, but the U.S. Post Office currently offers fundraising stamps geared toward three causes: Breast Cancer Research, Heroes of 2001 and Stop Family Violence.

Even though you spend a bit more on these stamps — 45 cents per stamp rather than the usual 39 cents — the profits generated from sales are then transferred to the designated organization(s) affiliated with each cause.

For example, in the case of the Breast Cancer Research stamp, 70 percent of the net amount raised is given to the National Institutes of Health, while the remaining 30 percent goes to the medical research program at the Department of Defense.

How Can You Participate if Money Is Tight?

If your budget is tight this year, rather than charging up more credit card debt in an effort to give to your friends and family, suggest forgoing gifts and agree to volunteer together at a nonprofit.

Not only will you be able to share in the holiday spirit with your loved ones, but you will also be providing assistance to those who need it most.

Another idea is to issue “gift certificates” to friends and family, offering your time to baby-sit or help with housework, yard work, and other special projects.

Should You Buy Your Kids Stock Instead of Toys?

This may not be realistic for your own child, but I would absolutely recommend this when it comes to giving a gift to a grandchild, niece or nephew.

A typical American child receives 70 new toys a year! There is not a better stocking stuffer than a stock certificate from a company that your child is familiar with — it is educational and financially rewarding.

For example, you can buy stock directly from Mattel Inc. for your nephew instead of the hot toy that he is sure to forget.

Likewise, buy your father-in-law a share of stock directly from Home Depot instead of a new power drill.

Gifts of stock are a low-price gift that makes a big impact. I like to think of them as a present for the future.

Mellody Hobson, president of Ariel Capital Management in Chicago (www.arielmutualfunds.com) is “Good Morning America’s” personal finance expert.

The British and Kenyan governments weighed into the growing debate over “food miles” yesterday, insisting it was ethically and environmentally sound to buy flowers from Kenya on Valentine’s Day.

There is increasing concern at the amount of carbon emitted by the fleets of aircraft that carry millions of flowers to Europe every day from the impoverished east African nation. People in Britain will buy 10,000 tonnes of roses today.

Joseph Muchemi, the Kenyan high commissioner to Britain, said: “‘Food miles’ is a valuable concept but it must be looked at in the whole. It is neither fair nor sustainable to stigmatise certain goods purely on the basis that they have been freighted by air. ‘Food miles’, or the distance food has travelled, is on its own not a reliable indicator of the environmental impact of food transport.”

Hilary Benn, the international development secretary, said that while people wanted to buy ethically and do their bit for climate change, they often did not realise that they could support developing countries and reduce carbon emissions.

“Recent research shows that flowers flown from Africa can use less energy overall than those produced in Europe because they’re not grown in heated greenhouses.

“So, this Valentine’s day, you can be a romantic, reduce your environmental impact and help make poverty history. This is about social justice and making it easier, not harder, for African people to make a decent living.”

Mr Muchemi said Kenya provided 31% of Europe’s cut flowers, directly employing 500,000 people and another million through auxiliary services.

Air-freighted fresh flowers, fruit and vegetables from the whole of sub-Saharan Africa accounted for less than 0.1% of total UK carbon emissions, he said. Moreover, while the average Briton emits 9.3 tonnes of carbon a year, the average Kenyan is responsible for 0.2 tonnes.

“European nations must look to reduce their emissions first before penalising African producers. A boycott of Kenyan roses or green beans would be disastrous for many Kenyan farmers, especially smallholders, and would do little to mitigate climate change.”

Mr Benn pointed to a recent study that showed emissions produced by growing flowers in Kenya, where it is warm and sunny, and flying them to the UK can be less than a fifth of those for flowers grown in heated and lighted greenhouses in the Netherlands, Europe’s main producer of flowers. “Climate change is hugely important to the future of developed and developing countries but if we boycott goods flown from Africa we deny the poor the chance to grow; their chance to educate their children and stay healthy.

“We in the west can have more impact on our huge carbon footprint by turning off our TVs at night and using energy-saving lightbulbs.”

Mr Muchemi said he was concerned that plans by European retailers to introduce labels on their products more clearly identifying their origin could hit Kenyan farmers. “We can’t have a situation in which poor farmers in Africa pay the price for European carbon emissions. It’s simply not fair to penalise African farmers.”

Environmentalists, though, are concerned about the ecological impact that flower growing is having in Kenya.

As we report in Society Guardian today, the thousands of workers who have flocked to the shores of Lake Naivasha to work in the flower-growing areas are placing enormous strain on the local ecology, such that the lake could soon be polluted beyond use and have all but dried up in the next 10 to 15 years.

David Harper, a University of Leicester ecologist, says the flower trade is devastating the area. “The lake is being destroyed at an alarming rate by the sheer pressure of people on it.” He does not advocate boycotting Kenyan flowers but wants to see a “Fair Trade” system and “Fair Planet” label to highlight the problem. Its profits would be used to improve the lake’s environment, he says.

Food miles

The idea of food miles is an extension of the argument that the further things are transported to Britain from other countries, the higher will be the amount of carbon dioxide emitted.

The study mentioned by Hilary Benn yesterday, though, shows that the arguments can become complex if, in the case of fresh flowers, they are also produced in Europe but in heated greenhouses, which emit CO2 in far greater quantities than aircraft that bring flowers from Kenya.