5000 Barrel of Oil in the Gulf

[Frankiarmz]

What a mess, what a screwup, what a challenge to fix. I was against drilling in the Gulf for years, for this very reason. Now, I think it is an opportunity to go after the drilling companies and force them to do it right, use the safety gear that would most likely have prevented this massive spill.
Do you think we should suspend all drilling in the Gulf, or move forward and do it right?

[CWSmith]

Re: 5000 Barrel of Oil in the Gulf

Not only in the Gulf, but ALL offshore drilling! At least until the oil companies have the technology and the will and means to safely drill.

Remember all the hype and argument just a few months ago about even more drilling being allowed in the gulf and how many supporters were screaming about how bad it was for our country that Cuba (and others) are drilling there and we still had major areas that were restricted by our own narrowminded laws!

The API (American Petroleum Institute) is very, very good about NOT widely publishing the number of oil rigs they already have out there. They also deluge our television with commercials that tell us how many millions of new jobs they are creating and how wonderful and environmentally conscience they are. But what they don't tell us and that they try to hide, is the number of accidents, fires, and deaths that are occuring each year out there on those oil platforms. It is an extremely dangerours business.

Up here in the Pennysylvania/New York area they are clamoring for rights to drill into the Marsellus (sp?) shale for the abundance of natural gas that has been found. Using a method called hydro-cracking, the process turns the area into a chemically polluted wasteland and already there are reports (and evidence) that it is polluting the land and water supply. Yet the big money that they are spending on politics and shoveling into townships is causing far too many of our bureaucrats to overlook the safety of our people. All they see is money and jobs!

But there in Gulf, in this latest accident, is a clear indication that the oil companies have absolutely NOT contingency plans for such a disaster. How can you tap into a major oil reservoir and not have an absolutely fool-proof way to shut off the tap if the pipe is broken or blown apart????

On NPR this morning, they are reporting that as much as 5,000 barrels of heavy crude are pouring into the gulf each day and that it could be months before it is stopped. Now the petro companies are asking for the military to aid. Also massive aid request are going out to the fishing industry and anyone who can aid in slowing/minimizing the oil contamination of the coastal areas... which will start within the next day or so.l

So, while the API loves to hype the jobs it is creating, it seems to be all too quiet with regards to the jobs it is about to destroy as this black scum wipes out the shrimp and oyster beds, the coastal tourist areas, beaches, etc. Nor does it tell us of the massive cost to our government and us taxpayers that is occuring and will continue to occur over possible decades because of this single incident.

And if that is not all...what about the other Gulf nations that will probably be damaged by this calamity.

Also we must clearly understand that the oil companies do NOT pay for this clean-up! WE DO! How long ago was the Exxon Valdez accident? Exxon has to date still not paid the full cost of what it was responsible for.... and in fact has managed it's government to substantially lower it's cost accountability and neglect it's legal responsibility in that decades old accident.

One might take note too, that there is recent legislation that is opening up many areas of the east coast for more oil exploration and drilling. Like do we really need this? I don't think so. What we need is serious regulation that prohibits further drilling until such time that the API and it's member industries have a "preventive" technology in place to safeguard against such accidents and the resulting calamity that it may cause.

CWS

[Frankiarmz]

Re: 5000 Barrel of Oil in the Gulf

I heard on the News that there is a safety shut off that "could" have been installed on the ocean floor, why was it not done? Is it better to suspend all drilling or can we force them to do it safely? Just asking. I know they are doing a controlled burn, but can that get out of control as the spill grows and if winds pick up? Chances are this will happen again, so I think it might be better to develop faster and better containment plans as well as safety measures.

[SpiffPeters]

Re: 5000 Barrel of Oil in the Gulf

There is a acoustical shutoff valve that other countries require for offshore drilling. The US does not require this $500k valve.

Drill baby drill. Privatize the profits, socialize the risk. Tax payers are on the hook yet again.

I wonder how long it will take for gas prices to jump?

[Mr. Ooter]

Re: 5000 Barrel of Oil in the Gulf

It burns my *** that these people are so stupid, careless, and greedy.

No plumber in their right mind would forgo installing a main shut off valve in a house. Why would it be any different for AN OIL RIG??? Their codes/regulations should be way more restrictive. The company that owns the rig should be held responsible 100%

[SpiffPeters]

Re: 5000 Barrel of Oil in the Gulf

They are not stupid. And I think they are generally pretty careful. Ocean drilling is a dangerous task.

But I will give you a huge AMEN Brother on the greed part.

[Frankiarmz]

Re: 5000 Barrel of Oil in the Gulf

Hard to predict how big and how long this will take to stop and clean up. If my math is correct, 5000 barrels a day for 90 days, put it up around twenty million gallons.

Does anyone know if the oil reaching land can be ignited to burn by either sparks from boat engines, or folks looking to purposely cause harm? What would such a fire do, 100 miles long? Very scary.

[CWSmith]

Re: 5000 Barrel of Oil in the Gulf

It is my understanding that the "acoustic shutoff valve" was on schedule to be installed (as was stipulated in earlier legislation) on all off-shore oil platforms in U.S. coastal water, but that the regulation was scrapped under the Bush administration in 2003.

But already we can see that the industry has a good excuse... the BP spokesman today said that in light of all the other things that failed, the "Acoustic Valve" would probably have not worked either. (Ya gotta luv it!)

Back when I was working, my employer (as a manufacturer of oil refinery and process gas equipment) was a member company of the API (American Petroleum Institute) and we used to get API reports as well as various studies and other publications of the industry. The whole industry is prone to accident and the oil platform is one of the most dangerous places to work, with fires, explosions, and deadly accidents taking place every year. Very rarely does any of it make the nightly news or even the news publications.

I'm of the opinioun, that the industry will go to whatever means necessary to save a buck and make a buck. Preventive measures, unless proven to be well-founded in history probably are going to be cut from the budget. They also have a proven history of being able to dodge and delay any kind of legal actions against them, which proves the point of such narrow-minded thrift. As mentioned in my first post, they still have not paid for the Exxon Valdez accident in which they were found guilty.

Oil is as much a "wildcat" business today as it was at the beginning of the 20th century. Everytime we go to the gas pump we are reminded of the greed in the business and that is evidences by the massive profits the industry rakes in everytime there's a so-called "shortage". Safety solutions and back-up mechanisms cost money and unless it's regulated and government mandated, it doesn't happen; and, we all know how much OSHA and the EPA and other safety and environmental regulators were chopped under the last administration.

Now just think about this... thanks to John Roberts and his supreme court buddies, these oil companies can put as much money into the next presidential and congressional campaigns as they want... with little to no restriction. They can even run thier own candidate, spend $billions if they so wish, in order to sell you on any lies that will get your vote or turn you away from the opposition. Think about that, while we watch all this oil scum wipe out the coastal resorts, fishing, etc. By the next campaign, we'll all be told how much this oil has made things florish along the coast, bringing new jobs, and industry, and valuable science to the study of our environment. We'll also be told how vital it will be to drill in the Outer Banks, off the Monteray Coast, in the Great Lakes, and any other place they think they can make money!

CWS

[SpiffPeters]

Re: 5000 Barrel of Oil in the Gulf

Where are all those "Drill Baby, Drill" and deregulation advocates?

[James P]

Re: 5000 Barrel of Oil in the Gulf

Where are all those "Drill Baby, Drill" and deregulation advocates?

In Louisanna with Piyush Jindal watching the black gold come ashore.

[Frankiarmz]

Re: 5000 Barrel of Oil in the Gulf

If we wanted the drilling to be done right, the contracts should have been outsourced to communit china. There are far fewer mistakes made when your life is on the line!

Yeah, I was against this for years figured it would damage the beautiful Gulf, doesn't matter now. The Gulf is now a toxic dump ,so keep drilling and finish the job.

[HebertDrainCare]

Re: 5000 Barrel of Oil in the Gulf

210,000 gallons per day

At least 10 state and national wildlife management areas and wildlife refuges in Louisiana and Mississippi are in the path of the more than 20,000-square-mile oil plume.

Sportsmans Paradise, not for long...

http://www.nola.com/news/index.ssf/2...ould_reac.html

[Frankiarmz]

Re: 5000 Barrel of Oil in the Gulf

210,000 gallons per day

At least 10 state and national wildlife management areas and wildlife refuges in Louisiana and Mississippi are in the path of the more than 20,000-square-mile oil plume.

Sportsmans Paradise, not for long...

http://www.nola.com/news/index.ssf/2...ould_reac.html

Lenny, it's difficult for me to imgaine the size of this thing? The impact to humans who live and depend on the waters for food and jobs has got to be devistating. I have a feeling as the days go by we will discover much more disturbing information about the size and duration of the problem, including personal accounts of the folks who are coming into contact with this dangerous mess. Take care. Frank

[xooma]

Re: 5000 Barrel of Oil in the Gulf

There is a acoustical shutoff valve that other countries require for offshore drilling. The US does not require this $500k valve.

Drill baby drill. Privatize the profits, socialize the risk. Tax payers are on the hook yet again.

I wonder how long it will take for gas prices to jump?

Well up here in Canada the price jumped last night. I live in a oil rich province and am still amazed at the speed in which the price can go up. But really amazed at how long it takes for it to go down. Just like they say they do not price gouge around a holiday weekend evey long weekend the price goes up but tkaes for ever to come down. To bad it happened in the Gulf but as said in this tread GREED GREED. How much does one need??

[DUNBAR PLUMBING]

Re: 5000 Barrel of Oil in the Gulf

http://online.wsj.com/article_email/...DEzNDAyWj.html





Ahhh goodness.


Everyone missed my trinket.


Felt good for 2 minutes.....I just had to turn the Emergency Broadcast System off.

LOL!!!


The chemicals BP is now relying on to break up the steady flow of leaking oil from deep below the Gulf of Mexico could create a new set of environmental problems.
Even if the materials, called dispersants, are effective, BP has already bought up more than a third of the world’s supply. If the leak from 5,000 feet beneath the surface continues for weeks, or months, that stockpile could run out.
On Thursday BP began using the chemical compounds to dissolve the crude oil, both on the surface and deep below, deploying an estimated 100,000 gallons. Dispersing the oil is considered one of the best ways to protect birds and keep the slick from making landfall. But the dispersants contain harmful toxins of their own and can concentrate leftover oil toxins in the water, where they can kill fish and migrate great distances.
The exact makeup of the dispersants is kept secret under competitive trade laws, but a worker safety sheet for one product, called Corexit, says it includes 2-butoxyethanol, a compound associated with headaches, vomiting and reproductive problems at high doses.
“There is a chemical toxicity to the dispersant compound that in many ways is worse than oil,” said Richard Charter, a foremost expert on marine biology and oil spills who is a senior policy advisor for Marine Programs for Defenders of Wildlife and is chairman of the Gulf of the Farallones National Marine Sanctuary Advisory Council. “It’s a trade off – you’re damned if you do damned if you don’t -- of trying to minimize the damage coming to shore, but in so doing you may be more seriously damaging the ecosystem offshore.”
BP did not respond to requests for comment for this article.
Dispersants are mixtures of solvents, surfactants and other additives that break up the surface tension of an oil slick and make oil more soluble in water, according to a paper published by the National Academy of Sciences. They are spread over or in the water in very low concentration – a single gallon may cover several acres.
Once they are dispersed, the tiny droplets of oil are more likely to sink or remain suspended in deep water rather than floating to the surface and collecting in a continuous slick. Dispersed oil can spread quickly in three directions instead of two and is more easily dissipated by waves and turbulence that break it up further and help many of its most toxic hydrocarbons evaporate.
But the dispersed oil can also collect on the seabed, where it becomes food for microscopic organisms at the bottom of the food chain and eventually winds up in shellfish and other organisms. The evaporation process can also concentrate the toxic compounds left behind, particularly oil-derived compounds called polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, or PAHs.
According to a 2005 National Academy of Sciences report, the dispersants and the oil they leave behind can kill fish eggs. A study of oil dispersal in Coos Bay, Ore. found that PAH accumulated in mussels, the Academy’s paper noted. Another study examining fish health after the Exxon Valdez spill in Alaska in 1989 found that PAHs affected the developing hearts of Pacific herring and pink salmon embryos. The research suggests the dispersal of the oil that’s leaking in the Gulf could affect the seafood industry there.
“One of the most difficult decisions that oil spill responders and natural resource managers face during a spill is evaluating the trade-offs associated with dispersant use,” said the Academy report, titled Oil Spill Dispersants, Efficacy and Effects. “There is insufficient understanding of the fate of dispersed oil in aquatic ecosystems.”
A version of Corexit was widely used after the 1989 Exxon Valdez spill and, according to a literature review performed by the group the Alaska Community Action on Toxics, was later linked with health impacts in people including respiratory, nervous system, liver, kidney and blood disorders. But the Academy report makes clear that the dispersants used today are less toxic than those used a decade ago.
“There is a certain amount of toxicity,” said Robin Rorick, director of marine and security operations at the American Petroleum Institute. “We view dispersant use as a tool in a toolbox. It’s a function of conducting a net environmental benefit analysis and determining the best bang for your buck.”
Charter, the marine expert, cautioned the dispersants should be carefully considered for the right reasons.
“Right now there is a headlong rush to get this oil out of sight out of mind,” Charter said. “You can throw every resource we have at this spill. You can call out the Marine Corps and the National Guard. This is so big that it is unlikely that any amount of response is going to make much of a dent in the impacts. It’s going to be mostly watching it happen.”