US: NASA, universities in spill prevention coalition

NASA, the University of Houston and Rice University will be part of a coalition of scientists, policy experts, oil and gas engineers and state officials focused on preventing future oil spill disasters, Governor Rick Perry said in Houston on Tuesday, writes Joe Holley for the Houston Chronicle.

Standing beneath the Saturn V moon rocket on display at Johnson Space Center, Perry announced the formation of the Gulf Project to make offshore drilling safer, which he described as "a Texas version of that legendary race to the moon". Perry reiterated his opposition to the Obama administration's moratorium on deep-water drilling and what he described as "mountains of new regulations based more on prevailing emotions than on sound science".

Perry said the Gulf Project represented "an unprecedented collaboration of the state's top scientists, engineers and researchers focused on a clear set of vitally important goals of protecting our residents, our environment and our economy".
Full report on the Houston Chronicle site