[5][11] Ott continued to live and work in the 2500-person town of Cordova, which suffered economic and social collapse in the wake of the oil spill.

[13] Tom Cirigliano, Media Relations Manager for Exxon, has argued that Ott overestimates the amount of oil spilled and underestimates the company's response to the event.

[16] In an interview with Rose Aguilar, she expressed concern about the health issues in the Gulf following the spill, detailing some who had evacuated and criticizing public officials for their response.

[17] She cautioned workers involved in cleaning up the mess to be wary of the health effects of going near the oil slick, saying that those who had been affected by the spill from the Exxon Valdez had suffered long-term consequences of a medical nature.

[19] In August 2010 she wrote an open letter to the Environmental Protection Agency alleging that dispersants were still being used in secret and demanding that the EPA take action.

She cites, for example, Exxon's attempt to re-enter Prince William Sound—after being banned from the area by the Oil Pollution Act of 1990—by claiming a Fifth Amendment right.