Scientists Probing Spill Unsettled by Calls From Fed Lawyers

"NEW ORLEANS-- Some independent scientists, who have been looking into oil spill contamination in the Gulf of Mexico, said they have received some unsettling phone calls from the federal government.

The calls came from attorneys, on behalf of the National Oil Spill Commission. The scientists said their questions seemed designed to cast doubts on their findings.

As the oil spill unfolded, scientists from research institutions around the country descended on the Gulf to witness what ended up becoming an unprecedented environmental event. Two of those scientists included Dr. William Sawyer, a Florida-based toxicologist, and Marco Kaltofen, a scientist and head of Boston Chemical Data in Massachusetts."

Maya Rodriguez reports for WWLTV Eyewitness News (New Orleans) September 16, 2010.

SEE ALSO:

"Whistleblower Group Sues To Find Out Why Administration Lowballed BP Oil Spill Estimates" (Huffington Post)

"Scientists Seek Insight on BP Oil Disaster's Toll" (Sarasota Herald Tribune)

"The Oil Spill's Money Squeeze" (New York Times)

Editorial: "Questions About the Gulf" (New York Times)

"Lawsuit Claims Feds 'Hiding' Hundreds of BP Oil Spill Flow Rate Documents" (ENS)

"Interior Dept.to be Sued Over Oil Spill Emails" (CBS)

"Bacteria in the Gulf Mostly Digested Gas, Not Oil, Study Finds" (Los Angeles Times)

"Gulf Oil Spill: After It Hit Beaches, Where Did It Go?" (Christian Science Monitor)

"Assessing The BP Spill's Impact" (NPR/ National Geographic)