Offshore Oil Drilling and the Oil Rig Disaster in the Gulf

[Bostech]

Balls.
Tar balls.

[Victor711]

I never really supported Offshore Oil Drilling, And now that this disaster has happened,
Its time for a change. A clean energy is possible 

[gatorback]

Who didn't see the leaks the day they released the vid? It's a little bit higher risk, and we had to do it, but it's still a major failure.

[Timkin]

If you go to YOUTUBE , search BP OILLEAK in seabed... this is scary.  I have a feeling we are being grossly misled about the magnatude of this

[acme54321]

If you go to YOUTUBE , search BP OILLEAK in seabed... this is scary.  I have a feeling we are being grossly misled about the magnatude of this

So?  The National Academy of Sciences did a study that estimated there are some 5,000 natural oil seeps in the GOF that release approximately 160,000 tons of oil into the gulf every year.  That video says nothing about where this seep is located.  They supposedly located a seep 2 miles from the well, which could very likely be this one in the video.  Who knows?  

From the way the oil is slowly wafting in the current it doesn't seem to be anything of major concern to me, but I don't know anything about oilfield geology, and I doubt you do either.  Videos like that are just posted for the sake of fearmongering.

[Dog Walker]

Natural processes will degrade and disintegrate crude oil from the seeps, mostly.  Seeps like this occur on land too.

The BP spill was putting more oil into the Gulf in a day than all of the seeps do in a year.

[Timkin]

If you go to YOUTUBE , search BP OILLEAK in seabed... this is scary.  I have a feeling we are being grossly misled about the magnatude of this

Interesting... It was a BP live feed video.. and what I observed did not look like a little bit of oil seeping.   No argument the Blown out well was spewing alot out,, but this did not appear normal.. Im not into conspiracy theories , so please do not assume to think that was what I was getting at.. Its simply an observation from a live BP feed that did not look normal .

So?  The National Academy of Sciences did a study that estimated there are some 5,000 natural oil seeps in the GOF that release approximately 160,000 tons of oil into the gulf every year.  That video says nothing about where this seep is located.  They supposedly located a seep 2 miles from the well, which could very likely be this one in the video.  Who knows? 

From the way the oil is slowly wafting in the current it doesn't seem to be anything of major concern to me, but I don't know anything about oilfield geology, and I doubt you do either.  Videos like that are just posted for the sake of fearmongering.

[Timkin]

Go to the new BP Thread and READ, PEOPLE !!!!   

[BridgeTroll]

Not as big... but... here we go again...

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/07/27/louisiana-oil-geyser-20fo_n_660874.html

[cityimrov]

An analyst once said this "If one oil spill in the US bankrupts a company, why would any company want to drill in the US?"  It seems like our entire energy policy is to outsource our energy problems to another country!  

I see people willing to ban any kind of drilling in the US yet at the same time not willing to give up a single drop of oil they use for whatever they use.  It's hard to find anyone willing to give up their SUV's, "international" fruits and vegetables, and other oil dependent products.  Especially Florida!!!  As a state, we don't want to drill here but we are more then willing to take oil drilled from other places!  The mass transit option in the state, no this city, is awful!  Sure, there's a few guys here in MetroJax who supports the idea of mass transit but the rest of the population.....  Add a mass transit tax and a small riot would happen!

Why are we as a nation, state, or city willing to pillage, destroy, and ruin "other" parts of the planet for our success as long as the consequences of using that energy is NIMBY?  

[CS Foltz]

Somehow I don't think that BP will be bankrupted! It would have been prudent to have other options to select from instead of making a game plan up as you go along.......with internet coverage no less! Drilling that deep is on the edge for current technology, here in the US, pretty common in the north sea and some other parts of the world! BP's biggest problem was trying to short cut safety guide lines, drilling procedures and possibly using substandard materials! Post incident investigation should show just what took place if it is not squashed by big brother..............either way we need to drill plain and simple! We just need to do a better job without dropping the ball and mucking up the neighborhood!

[finehoe]

Scientists Confirm that Dispersants Are Increasing Contamination in the Gulf
By George Washington
Created 11/30/2010 - 12:44
→ Washington’s Blog [1]

I have repeatedly documented the detrimental impacts of dispersants on humans, wildlife and seafood safety. See this [2], this [3], this [4], this [5], this [6], this [7] and this [8].

As I noted [9] in September, scientists from Oregon State University found elevated levels of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) in the Gulf, and blamed dispersants.

Now, the website of the prestigious Journal Nature is also reporting [10] on the increase of PAH contamination due to the use of dispersants in the Gulf:

Peter Hodson, an aquatic toxicologist from Queen’s University in Kingston, Ontario, presented his case on 9 November at a meeting of the Society of Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry in Portland, Oregon…

The problem, explains Hodson, is that the dispersed cloud of microscopic oil droplets allows the PAHs to contaminate a volume of water 100â€"1,000 times greater than if the oil were confined to a floating surface slick. This hugely increases the exposure of wildlife to the dispersed oil. …

Worse, the toxic constituents of oil hang around longer than other components, another speaker told the meeting. “This idea that there’s an oil biodegradation rate doesn’t hold,” says Ronald Atlas, a microbiologist at the University of Louisville, Kentucky, who has studied the aftermath of the 1989 Exxon Valdez spill in Alaska. Alkanes, the simple hydrocarbons that comprise the bulk of oil, are degraded more readily than the PAHs, he points out.

As the Press Register notes [11]:

“These chemicals, these are PAHs that are carcinogenic. … These items are not in any way appropriate for anyone to eat,” said Ed Cake, an environmental consultant from Ocean Springs. “There’s no low-dose level that’s acceptable to eat.”…

[William Sawyer], the [veteran] Florida toxicologist, said the government tests do not look for total petroleum hydrocarbons in the seafood. He said his tests of Gulf shrimp have shown unsafe levels of the compounds, which can cause liver or kidney damage in a matter of weeks.

And watch this short video [12].

Raw Story reports [13]:

Dr. William Sawyer… said… “We found not only petroleum in the digestive tracts [of shrimp], but also in the edible portions of fish.

“We’ve collected shrimp, oysters and finned fish on their way to marketplace â€" we tested a good number of seafood samples and in 100 percent we found petroleum.”

The FDA says up to 100-PPM of oil and dispersant residue is safe to consume in finned fish, and 500-PPM is allowed for shellfish.

Dr. Sawyer, who has long been a vocal critic of these rules, called the government’s tests “little more than a farce.”

Maine Public Radio points out [14]:

“We’re more concerned about the dispersant and the dispersant mixed with oilâ€"the dispersed oil, if you willâ€"than we are about the crude oil itself.”

Tests conducted in recent months by [University of Southern Maine Center for Toxicology and Environmental Health director John] Wise’s lab, using human cell lines, show that dispersants cause cell death and DNA damage, which has been linked to cancer and reproductive problems.

WFTV Orlando reports [15]:

Brand new laboratory test results just in Monday morning are showing troubling problems with gulf seafood… the results are raising a lot of red flags.

WFTV put gulf shrimp to the test by ordering raw shrimp over the Internet and shipping it to a private lab. …

Scientists found elevated levels of Anthracene, a toxic hydrocarbon and a by-product of petroleum. The Anthracene levels were double what the FDA finds to be acceptable.

The scientist who tested the shrimp said she would not eat it based on the results…

I've also previously reported [16] that dispersants were used long after BP and the government said they had stopped using them in July. Now, Cherri Foytlin and Denise Rednour claim [17] to have pictures of 176 empty containers of ‘discontinued’ COREXIT 9527A found… With a ship date of August 10th. And the president of a county seafood workers' association claims [18] that dispersant is still being applied. In related news:

Louisiana allegedly has more oiled shoreline now than in July [19] [20]
A Gulf resident’s November blood test shows ethylbenzene levels higher than cleanup workers tested in August [20] [19]
An NSF-funded workgroup notes [21]: “Storms are likely to resurrect the oil that is currently hidden from sight” â€" “Much oil persists” nearshore
A Florida State University professor says [22] the oil is still there: "most of that Deepwater Horizon oil â€" as much as 70 percent to 79 percent of it â€"sank to the ocean floor, where it remains, sucking up oxygen and inhibiting life.
A University of Florida scientist says [23] “clear evidence that much of the oil is still below the surface in subsurface plumes”
At an international conference of experts, almost no one had great confidence in the safety of Gulf seafood [24]
Alabama shrimpers find [25] catch “coated in oil” at area open for fishing â€" Boat to be decontaminated
Instead of cracking down on BP, the Obama administration has granted [26] "categorical exclusions" to federally funded stimulus projects by BP (and other companies), effectively exempting those projects from environmental oversight
Hat tip: Florida Oil Spill Law [27]

Crude Crude Oil Exxon Florida Obama Administration

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Source URL: http://www.zerohedge.com/article/scientists-confirm-dispersants-are-increasing-contamination-gulf
Links:
[1] http://www.washingtonsblog.com/
[2] http://www.washingtonsblog.com/2010/07/toxicologists-corexit-ruptures-red.html
[3] http://www.washingtonsblog.com/2010/08/is-gulf-seafood-safe.html
[4] http://www.washingtonsblog.com/2010/08/dispersants-cause-gulf-fish-to-absorb.html
[5] http://www.washingtonsblog.com/2010/09/dispersants-can-make-toxins-from-oil.html
[6] http://www.washingtonsblog.com/2010/09/overwhelming-majority-of-studies-find.html
[7] http://www.washingtonsblog.com/2010/09/scientists-dispersants-may-delay.html
[8] http://www.washingtonsblog.com/2010/11/senior-epa-analyst-government-doing.html
[9] http://www.washingtonsblog.com/2010/09/scientists-40-times-more-cancer-causing.html
[10] http://www.nature.com/news/2010/101110/full/news.2010.597.html
[11] http://blog.al.com/live/2010/11/fda_says_it_likely_would_take.html
[12] http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=40QR9q4SMA8&feature=player_embedded
[13] http://www.rawstory.com/rs/2010/11/activist-lab-tests-show-dangerously-toxic-substances-present-gulf-shrimp/
[14] http://www.mpbn.net/Home/tabid/36/ctl/ViewItem/mid/3478/ItemId/14299/Default.aspx
[15] http://www.wftv.com/news/25875784/detail.html?cxntlid=cmg_cntnt_rss
[16] http://www.washingtonsblog.com/2010/08/confirmed-corexit-still-being-sprayed.html
[17] http://deniselngbch.blogspot.com/2010/11/very-interesting-photos-taken-november.html
[18] http://www.apalachtimes.com/news/oil-8967-evidence-state.html
[19] http://www.gadling.com/2010/11/29/bowermasters-adventures-measuring-the-extent-of-oil-spillage/
[20] http://www.floridaoilspilllaw.com/inland-gulf-resident-tests-positive-ethylbenzene-styrene-higher-cleanup-workers
[21] http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/editorial/outlook/7304197.html
[22] http://www.waltonsun.com/news/settled-88838-newsherald-most-spilled.html
[23] http://www.gulfbreezenews.com/news/2010-11-25/Community/Gulf_Coast_left_with_more_questions_than_answers_i.html
[24] http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/40279226/ns/us_news-environment
[25] http://www.local15tv.com/news/local/story/Bon-Secour-Shrimpers-Say-Nets-and-Shrimp-Covered/q4ezOp9lNUuaoZxNHDlq4g.cspx
[26] http://www.publicintegrity.org/articles/entry/2565/
[27] http://www.floridaoilspilllaw.com/

[Lunican]

Gulf seafood deformities alarm scientists
Eyeless shrimp and fish with lesions are becoming common, with BP oil pollution believed to be the likely cause.

http://www.aljazeera.com/indepth/features/2012/04/201241682318260912.html

[Timkin]

Sad..  Not shocking at all.. Yet BP has these expensive commercials airing , depicting that the gulf is practically back to the point it was before oil wells started being placed.

Anyone with common sense realizes the contrary.   The impact of this will last centuries at least.

[finehoe]

4th Anniversary of Gulf Oil Spill

BP and the Government Decided to Temporarily Hide the Oil by Sinking It with Toxic Chemicals ... The Gulf Ecosystem Is Now Paying the Price

http://www.ritholtz.com/blog/2014/04/4th-anniversary-of-gulf-oil-spill/