by Shay Sokol

The feds haven't gotten to the bottom of the Big Oozy yet, but they threw oil companies itching to go back to the bottom of the Gulf a bone yesterday, allowing the black gold miners to bid on new tracts of land for drilling in the same area of the body of water as the Macondo well for the first time since the Deepwater Horizon blew. Centered at the Superdome, the first offshore oil lease sale in the Central Gulf since 2010 brought 56 offshore energy companies to submit 593 bids on 2.4 million acres.

Whether it will be more Hatfields & McCoys or Usual Suspects remains to be seen, but the movie actors Kevin Costner and Stephen Baldwin are set to step into a New Orleans court this week. At the root of their dispute is those Waterworld gizmos Costner was showing off in 2010 that were supposed to clean up the Big Oozy.

The only person charged with a crime in connection to the Big Oozy would appear to be an open-and-shut case for the feds. Former BP Engineer Kurt Mix allegedly destroyed text messages that discuss the amount of oil that was pulsing out of the Macondo well around this time in 2010. Since the texts are nowhere to be found, one might assume he was caught in the act. But yesterday, Mix said he has secret evidence that will get him off the hook. For now, the evidence will remain a secret unless a judge rules otherwise because of somebody else's attorney-client privilege. Until then, we'll mine past secrets for clues as to what it could be.

With the two year anniversary of the Big Oozy quickly passing by, a lot of the lingering questions about BP's comeuppance were quickly dispersed. But before the oil got too far from public view, the feds took the time to answer whether anyone from BP would ever be arrested. This morning, they dragged in a mid-level employee over some text messages. Former engineer Kurt Mix was bagged on charges that he deleted more than 300 text messages with a BP boss, the U.S. Department of Justice said.

Two years ago today, the Deepwater Horizon exploded off the Gulf, setting off the Big Oozy. Even before the gusher was capped, the smells and sights of dispersants flying around South Louisiana made everyone on edge about their health. Well, this week in The Nation, Antonia Juhasz writes that those suspicions weren't unfounded. Still, like withthe oil pollution's effect on the ecosystem, the health impacts can't be understood until more research is conducted. Tomorrow at 3 p.m., Juhasz, the author of a Big Oozy book called Black Tide, will talk about the health of the Gulf Coast at Maple Street Book Shop's New Orleans Healing Center location. It's an Earth Day discussion about one of the largest affronts to the environment in recent history.

Remember that settlement BP said they reached with the people of the Gulf? Well, it still hasn't technically taken effect yet. But, just in time for Friday's two-year anniversary of the Big Oozy, the two sides filed papers in court to get the whole thing approved, BP said. The filing simultaneously is the first time the public has been able to get a look at what's in the settlement with its own two eyes.

Reliable hearsay had it that BP, the feds and other private persons and corporations involved in the Big Oozy were hunkered down trying to get a settlement done before the start of their massive trial. But, until now, there wasn't any official confirmation that blame for the Deepwater Horizon disaster would be divvied up out of court. This afternoon, the parties to the trial announced they were pushing back the start date from tomorrow to Mon., March 5.  In a statement, the parties said they were trying to hammer out a settlement.

After the Superdome went luxury, it only seemed a matter of time that workers would start batting around naming rights at the Hive. But the current idea for sponsorship will please shrimp boat captains more than captains of industry. The Louisiana Seafood Promotion and Marketing Board is in talks to partner with the Hornets and rename New Orleans Arena the Louisiana Seafood Arena. The money for the deal, would come from the large BP influx the Board received to promote the La. seafood that passed the smell test after the Big Oozy. That only leaves one question: How long will it take for BP to try to get their name on this one, too? Details here and here.

A New Orleans woman who claimed to be a line cook at Danny's Seafood pled guilty to claims fraud for two checks she received from the BP's post-Big Oozy fund that is designed to reimburse locals for lost income in the Deepwater Horizon disaster. Natasha Wells, 25, submitted false payment information to the Gulf Coast Claims Facility, and received a total of $7,600 for her so-called losses, according to U.S. Attorney Jim Letten's office. Wells never worked at Danny's, which has locations on Magazine St. and in the 7th Ward, and admitted to falsifying tax documents, Letten's office said.

by Brad Rhines

This free, curbside taco was brought to you by BP. As New Orleans rang in the New Year with packed hotel rooms and football fever, the excitement spread far beyond the Superdome. Blimps and billboards shined overhead, as corporate entities like Allstate, AT&T, and even the much-maligned British Petroleum were taking advantage of the crowds, and making their presence known around town. The oil company that was responsible for the Big Oozy sponsored the “Gulf Coast Seafood and Tourism 2012 Bash,” a two-week push to support local seafood and help clean up their own image.