Currently, the operators of oil rigs off the California coast must have contingency plans do deal with the first seven days after an accident. The new order extends those plans to cover the first full month.
The plans must be submitted to the Office of Spill Prevention and Response by July first. Lieutenant Governor Abel Maldonado says the time frame allows drillers to come up with effective contingency plans.
"I want to make sure that we get good solid plans. Obviously we can get them done earlier. I expect them to be done earlier. But I'm giving them plenty of time."
Drill rig operators must also find a third party to inspect
blowout preventers, such as the one that failed in the Golf of
Mexico. The inspection has to be done by the end of next
January.
