Robert Redford Involved in Clean up Oil Spill and Green Renewable Energy
28 June 2010 | posted by: Rachel Hanson | 2 Comments

Redford and Clean up Oil SpillThe 73-year-old actor Robert Redford joined the VIP group that fight to clean up oil spill and promote alternative energy solutions. Longtime celebrity eco-warrior turned back to his love for the arts and spoke Friday to about 900 attendees at an Americans for the Arts summit, saying that the worst oil spill in U.S. history should serve as a lesson for Americans. It came the time to move away from the dependence on oil and pursue green renewable energy.

He insisted that the oil spill could be the catalyst that has to transform United States into a green energy leader. Recently he founded the Redford Center in California to use the arts to push issues like clean renewable energy. He also started the Sundance Institute and Film Festival in 1980 with a $25,000 grant and now it generates $90 million in one year.

He mixed sympathizing words about President Obama with warnings for his role that he can use to make a difference in his presidency, making America a green nation. Redford’s father worked for Standard Oil and the actor himself worked in the oil-fields as a teenager and he could see what was happening up there. “To me, it was inevitable. It breaks my heart.” the actor says. “They [the victims] did not deserve this.”

Robert Redford just finished production on “The Conspirator,” according to IMDB, a story about Abraham Lincoln’s assassination with interesting connections to today. He hopes now to have more time for staying focus on clean up oil spill issue, without to compromise his passion for arts.

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2 Comments »

  • Nancy Goulas said:

    From an interview I saw on 60 Minutes, an employee from the rig said that they were told by a BP superviser to do or not do several things that weren’t safe and go against any deep well drilling procedures. This was done in an effort to get the well on line quickly and to get rid of the expense of the rig. BP is known for taking shortcuts and possibly, for that major oil company only, a catastrophic spill and/or accident with fatalities may have been inevitable.

    However, your comment that such an event was inevitable seems to include all major oil companies and is based on the experiences of youself and your father from many years ago. I began employment with Chevron on an offshore production platform in a clerical position in 1985. I was on the platform in the Gulf of Mexico for 24 hours a day, 7 days in a row. I’ll admit that the first 2 or 3 years the emphasis on personnel safety and enviromental protection could have been higher. However, Chevron, as well as the other US based majors, have stepped up their efforts and training in safety & environment exponentially in the past 15 to 20 years. There is ZERO tolerance for any purposeful action that has the potential to hurt personnel or damage the envionment. The last full year (2003) that I held the position, the field I worked in, which included at least 25 operating platforms, both manned and unmanned, had a total of 43 spills. THE TOTAL VOLUME OF THESE SPILLS WAS LESS THAN ONE GALLON. I’ve watched shrimpers put more oil than that cleaning their bilges and letting the waste dump into the Gulf.

    I respect your dedication to the environment but please become informed before you make such comments. Everyone who is looking to blame the “oil companies” for anything they can seems to forget that these companies are made up of thousands of employee and non-employee stockholders. And those who think that the oil companies get together to set the price of gasoline are probably the same people who think the moon landing was fake.

    Because people respect and listen to your opinions, you have an obligation to make sure that they are current and based on fact.

    # 28 June 2010 at 9:36 pm
    • Daniel Wright said:

      Thank you for taking your time and sharing this valuable information with us. We are thankful to know that the performances that you related was possible and we know that most people and companies are responsible in developing their work. We don’t know if Mr. Redford will respond to your comment regarding his opinion, but as long as your remarks will be done in the same respectful and constructive tone, you are always welcomed to express your thoughts.

      # 30 June 2010 at 8:59 am

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