Gulf Coast oil spill could eclipse Exxon Valdez

[red_Dragon888]

Gulf Coast oil spill could eclipse Exxon Valdez

(Happy Earth Monty!!!)

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20100429/ap_on_bi_ge/us_louisiana_oil_rig_explosion_282

By CAIN BURDEAU and HOLBROOK MOHR, Associated Press Writers Cain Burdeau And Holbrook Mohr, Associated Press Writers – 1 hr 48 mins ago
VENICE, La. – An oil spill that threatened to eclipse even the Exxon Valdez disaster spread out of control and drifted inexorably toward the Gulf Coast on Thursday as fishermen rushed to scoop up shrimp and crews spread floating barriers around marshes.

The spill was both bigger and closer than imagined — five times larger than first estimated, with the leading edge just three miles from the Louisiana shore. Authorities said it could reach the Mississippi River delta by Thursday night.

"It is of grave concern," David Kennedy of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, told The Associated Press. "I am frightened. This is a very, very big thing. And the efforts that are going to be required to do anything about it, especially if it continues on, are just mind-boggling."

The oil slick could become the nation's worst environmental disaster in decades, threatening hundreds of species of fish, birds and other wildlife along the Gulf Coast, one of the world's richest seafood grounds, teeming with shrimp, oysters and other marine life.

The leak from the ocean floor proved to be far bigger than initially reported, contributing to a growing sense among many in Louisiana that the government failed them again, just as it did during Hurricane Katrina. President Barack Obama dispatched Cabinet officials to deal with the crisis.

Cade Thomas, a fishing guide in Venice, worried that his livelihood will be destroyed. He said he did not know whether to blame the Coast Guard, the federal government or oil company BP PLC.

"They lied to us. They came out and said it was leaking 1,000 barrels when I think they knew it was more. And they weren't proactive," he said. "As soon as it blew up, they should have started wrapping it with booms."

The Coast Guard worked with BP, which operated the oil rig that exploded and sank last week, to deploy floating booms, skimmers and chemical dispersants, and set controlled fires to burn the oil off the water's surface.

[alliance]

I want to see accountability and justice for this crap. Not just a corporation paying a fine. Someone should go to jail for this. Happy Earth Day!

[tednlou2]

Just like the coal mining industry, they know it is cheaper to pay fines than fix problems and safety.  Do ya think Republicans will be saying "Drill Baby Drill" anytime soon?  Florida has fought to keep oil rigs away from its shores.

[MitchMiller]

Well...  you'll have to send our "regulate-less" government to jail.  In 2003 they revoked a law requiring a backup device that would have been applicable in this case.  The law required acoustically activated shutoff valves... at a cost of $500K per well.  The drillers, typically, lobbied the US gov't to repeal the law and spread enough cash around to get it done. 

Goodbye white sand beaches of the southeastern gulf coast. 

At least my oil services company stock went up over 10% since they operate in the gulf and are probably raking in the $$$ assisting in this crisis.

[Hellraiser]

Well...  you'll have to send our "regulate-less" government to jail.  In 2003 they revoked a law requiring a backup device that would have been applicable in this case.  The law required acoustically activated shutoff valves... at a cost of $500K per well.  The drillers, typically, lobbied the US gov't to repeal the law and spread enough cash around to get it done. 

Goodbye white sand beaches of the southeastern gulf coast. 

At least my oil services company stock went up over 10% since they operate in the gulf and are probably raking in the $$$ assisting in this crisis.

Fun Fact: Mississippi's coast doesn't have white sand naturally, they have to truck it in on a yearly basis!

But yeah this is just kind of ridiculous, I guess I don't understand why it's going to be so hard to cap this thing?  Also in another thread I stated that this wouldn't threaten the shores of Louisiana and Mississippi.  I'd like to apologize right now for being so utterly wrong, this thing isn't even on the way to being stopped and hit the Mississippi River delta last night.

[Jeff G]

The sad thing is no matter what they say the oil spill will never be cleaned up . Exxon never finished the job at Valdez and BP track record is just as bad .

Stealth edit LOL .  

[WillyWump]

This is a horrible situation, I cringe when I hear the reports.

And now the "3-Stooges" types that are running the cleanup have decided to just throw a match on the slick and "see what happens", I have images of the entire gulf ablaze and all the rednecks from floroda to Texas sitting on docks roasting mashmallows.

No I dont ahve a better solution.

[Miss Philicia]

I have images of the entire gulf ablaze and all the rednecks from floroda to Texas sitting on docks roasting mashmallows.

Will you be joining them?

[skeebo1969]

    I could fix this thing with my Swiss Army knife and one gulp of air...

[Hellraiser]

    I could fix this thing with my Swiss Army knife and one gulp of air...

MacGruber?

[Jeff G]

    I could fix this thing with my Swiss Army knife and one gulp of air...

Or you could use your dreads again 

[Hellraiser]

Or you could use your dreads again 

JG: 1, Skeebo: 0

[mecch]

Well...  you'll have to send our "regulate-less" government to jail.  In 2003 they revoked a law requiring a backup device that would have been applicable in this case.  The law required acoustically activated shutoff valves... at a cost of $500K per well.  The drillers, typically, lobbied the US gov't to repeal the law and spread enough cash around to get it done.  

Well if this is true, I do hope there is some accountability.

Also it seems like it HAS TO BE HUGE since the oil wont stop flowing for a very long time.

What gets me is they keep talking about the thousands of feet of booms they are floating.  Thousands?? of Feet?   This fucker is huge.  

Why not some massive deployment of army navy, US and British, to get that hole to stop blowing.  Its so deep.  Seems impossibly complicated to fix and brazenly greedy to not prevent.

[red_Dragon888]

The sad thing is no matter what they say the oil spill will never be cleaned up . Exxon never finished the job at Valdez and BP track record is just as bad .

Stealth edit LOL .  

That is a good point.  Now they can say since the environment is ruined, let's drill some more.

[skeebo1969]

Or you could use your dreads again 

I think you got the clean up method confused with how I am going to fix this thing.

[tednlou2]

My partner's parents have a rental property in Gulf Shores, AL and just bought a winter home in southern Florida on the Gulf.  His dad is a big republican and was all for "Drill Baby Drill".  It is funny when stuff like this actually affects them, they change their tune.  Tonight, they were saying something needs to be done. 

His sister is a big repub, too.  She talked so bad about Clinton.  She had to take off work due to her son getting hurt and is now on FMLA.  She said she is so happy it was available for her to take. 

[WillyWump]

Look out Eastern Seaboard...Our problem could soon be your problem as well:

"The well is at the end of one branch of the Gulf Stream, the warm-water current that flows from the Gulf of Mexico to the North Atlantic. Several experts said that if the oil enters the stream, it would flow around the southern tip of Florida and up the eastern seaboard."


http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/36897088/ns/us_news-environment/

[Miss Philicia]

Don't you just love multinational corporations?

link

Attorney General Troy King has asked BP to cease circulating settlement agreements among south Alabamians.Alabama Attorney General Troy King said tonight that he has told representatives of BP Plc. that they should stop circulating settlement agreements among coastal Alabamians.

The agreements, King said, essentially require that people give up the right to sue in exchange for payment of up to $5,000.

King said BP's efforts were particularly strong in Bayou La Batre.

[J.R.E.]

Scientist:  Oil could reach the "Loop Current" in a day :   

http://www.baynews9.com/content/36/2010/5/3/614351.html?title=Scientists:+Oil+could+reach+


Scientists: Oil could reach 'loop current' in a day
Monday, May 3, 2010
 
A scientist says oil could reach the loop current in a day, eventually reaching Florida's coast.

GULFPORT, Miss. (AP) - Scientists say the Gulf oil spill could get into the what's called the Loop Current within a day, eventually carrying oil south along the Florida coast and into the Florida Keys.

Nick Shay, a physical oceanographer at the University of Miami Rosenstiel School of Marine and Atmospheric Science, said Monday once the oil enters the Loop Current, it likely will end up in the Keys and continue east into the Gulf Stream.

Shay says the oil could affect Florida's beaches, coral reefs, fisheries and ecosystem within a week.

He described the Loop Current as similar to a "conveyor belt," sweeping around the Gulf, through the Keys and right up the East Coast.

Shay says he cannot think of any scenario where the oil doesn't eventually reach the Florida Keys.
State of Emergency Extended

Florida Gov. Charlie Crist has extended the oil spill state of emergency for the state down to Sarasota County.

The declaration now covers the Gulf coast of the state from the Panhandle to Sarasota County.


Today's executive order adds Citrus, Hernando, Pasco, Pinellas, Hillsborough, Manatee and Sarasota counties to the declaration.

A state of emergency was issued for Franklin, Wakulla, Jefferson, Taylor, Dixie, Levy counties last week.

Meanwhile, officials expect another week of oil pouring from the seafloor.

Dead sea turtles have been washing ashore and a massive rust-colored slick continues to swell from an uncontrolled gusher spewing into the water.

"I've been in Pensacola and I am very, very concerned about this filth in the Gulf of Mexico," Crist said at a fundraiser for his U.S. Senate campaign Sunday night. "It's not a spill, it's a flow. Envision sort of an underground volcano of oil and it keeps spewing over 200,000 gallons every single day, if not more."
More Information

    * How to volunteer with oil-affected wildlife
    * Florida braces for oil threatening its coastline
    * Oil could affect turtle nesting
    * Fishing ban put in place
    * Questions? Claims? Volunteer information? Call these numbers
    * Five possible solutions for containing the spill
    * Crist news conference commentsWatch Video
    * Clearwater Marine Aquarium response to spillWatch Video

BP PLC was preparing a system never tried before at such depths to siphon away the geyser of crude from a blown-out well a mile under Gulf of Mexico waters.

However, the plan to lower 74-ton, concrete-and-metal boxes being built to capture the oil and siphon it to a barge waiting at the surface will need at least another six to eight days to get it in place.

Crews continued to lay boom in what increasingly feels like a futile effort to slow down the spill, with all ideas to contain the flow failing so far.

Fishermen from the mouth of the Mississippi River to the Florida Panhandle got the news that more than 6,800 square miles of federal fishing areas were closed, fracturing their livelihood for at least 10 days and likely more just as the prime spring season was kicking in.

The slick also was precariously close to a key shipping lane that feeds goods and materials to the interior of the U.S. by the Mississippi River.


Ray

[mecch]

Move on, nothing to see here. Just a big bowl of chocolate milk nothing to be concerned about.

http://thinkprogress.org/2010/05/03/mississippi-congressman-oil-chocolate/

[J.R.E.]

I wonder how much hair it will take to suck up all that oil :

http://www.baynews9.com/content/36/2010/5/4/614844.html?title=Tampa+hair+salon+doing+its+part+in+oil+spill+cleanup


Dumb And Dumber :


http://www.treehugger.com/files/2010/05/7-stupidest-statements-bp-gulf-oil-spill.php


Ray

[mecch]

If they can just put domes over such uncapped problems, WHY DIDNT THEY HAVE A FEW ON HAND already.

condoms condoms condoms

I have a fire extinguisher and smoke alarms in my apt. I have aquastop on my washing machine. I have condoms just in case.  

The arrogance over natural splendors is astonishing.  Supposedly, Kenya is one big continuous oil spill. The biggest oil spill know is a mammouth spill under Brooklyn NY - years and years of "what the fuck, we're making money who cares"

[Miss Philicia]

Supposedly, Kenya is one big continuous oil spill. The biggest oil spill know is a mammouth spill under Brooklyn NY - years and years of "what the fuck, we're making money who cares"

You're referring to the Newtown Creek oil spill on the border of Brooklyn and Queens.  It's a large spill dating from the late 70's and since it's in a dense urban area it's absurd that it's still not completely cleaned up.  Most New Yorkers aren't even aware of it existing.

But it's not one of the largest spills in the world by a long shot as the latest estimates put it at 30 million gallons, or three times the Exxon/Valdez spill (so yes, for the US it's one of the largest, but not the world)

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oil_spill#Largest_oil_spills

[skeebo1969]

    I do a lot of fishing in the Everglades and the 10,000 Islands located on the West Coast of Florida.  The effects of this spill is going to devastate the area for sure.  This will surely kill off much of the mangroves that play such a vital part of the ecosystem.  AS if all the over-development down here wasn't already enough, now this had to happen.

   I would imagine, of course I may be wrong, that most of the cost associated with any kind of cleanup and/or fines would be passed along to us, the consumer.  So in essence the oil companies continuously pollute our waters, while making a profit, and we foot the bill.

  This sucks

[Hellraiser]

    I do a lot of fishing in the Everglades and the 10,000 Islands located on the West Coast of Florida.  The effects of this spill is going to devastate the area for sure.  This will surely kill off much of the mangroves that play such a vital part of the ecosystem.  AS if all the over-development down here wasn't already enough, now this had to happen.

   I would imagine, of course I may be wrong, that most of the cost associated with any kind of cleanup and/or fines would be passed along to us, the consumer.  So in essence the oil companies continuously pollute our waters, while making a profit, and we foot the bill.

  This sucks

Unfortunately I think you may be right.  The only recourse is to avoid buying anything petroleum based.  That includes all petrol based fuels and I think plastics are made from oil as well.  It's a conundrum.

[Cliff]

This is what happens when you drill baby drill.  And barely 5 years since BP had a major explosion at their Texas refinery. 

[mecch]

There go my ski holidays with my BP executive friends.  zut

[jkinatl2]

My partner's parents have a rental property in Gulf Shores, AL and just bought a winter home in southern Florida on the Gulf.  His dad is a big republican and was all for "Drill Baby Drill".  It is funny when stuff like this actually affects them, they change their tune.  Tonight, they were saying something needs to be done. 

His sister is a big repub, too.  She talked so bad about Clinton.  She had to take off work due to her son getting hurt and is now on FMLA.  She said she is so happy it was available for her to take. 

More than anything else, this is what pisses me off about many if not most Republicans. They cannot, are utterly incapable of seeing beyond their own noses. They are entitled and dismissive of the plights of others. Unemployment? Against the extension - until THEY lose a job. Drilling is dangerous? Absolutely NOT until a massive oil spill ruins their vacay - or their livelihood.

Ryan White? Don't fund it! Until THEIR Son/daughter/brother/sister gets HIV.

The short-sightedness is disgusting. And it is the very antithesis of the Christianity that so many wield like swords.

Disgusting.

[WillyWump]

Move on, nothing to see here. Just a big bowl of chocolate milk nothing to be concerned about.

http://thinkprogress.org/2010/05/03/mississippi-congressman-oil-chocolate/

What a fuckin idiot that Congressman is.

I guess the dead Loggerhead Turtles washing up will be glad to know It's nothing to be concerned about.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2010/may/03/deepwater-horizon-oil-spill-turtle-deaths-soar

Aren't we supposed to be the stewards of Gods creatures? This is a damn shame and it breaks my heart to see pics of the dead and dying animals. It's just as if we went out there and slit all their throats.

-Will

[red_Dragon888]

Oil may be wreaking havoc deep beneath the Gulf
(the Gulf may become the Dead Sea)

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20100505/ap_on_bi_ge/us_gulf_oil_spill_150

By CAIN BURDEAU and HARRY R. WEBER, Associated Press Writers Cain Burdeau And Harry R. Weber, Associated Press Writers – Wed May 5, 7:04 pm ET
NEW ORLEANS – The oil you can't see could be as bad as the oil you can.

While people anxiously wait for the slick in the Gulf of Mexico to wash up along the coast, globules of oil are already falling to the bottom of the sea, where they threaten virtually every link in the ocean food chain, from plankton to fish that are on dinner tables everywhere.

"The threat to the deep-sea habitat is already a done deal — it is happening now," said Paul Montagna, a marine scientist at the Harte Research Institute for Gulf of Mexico Studies at Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi.

Hail-size gobs of oil the consistency of tar or asphalt will roll around the bottom, while other bits will get trapped hundreds of feet below the surface and move with the current, said Robert S. Carney, a Louisiana State University oceanographer.

Oil has been gushing into the Gulf of Mexico at a rate of at least 200,000 gallons a day since an offshore drilling rig exploded last month and killed 11 people. On Wednesday, workers loaded a 100-ton, concrete-and-steel box the size of a four-story building onto a boat and hope to lower it to the bottom of the sea by week's end to capture some of the oil. Crews also set fires at the worst spots on the surface Wednesday to burn off oil.

Scientists say bacteria, plankton and other tiny, bottom-feeding creatures will consume oil, and will then be eaten by small fish, crabs and shrimp. They, in turn, will be eaten by bigger fish, such as red snapper, and marine mammals like dolphins.

The petroleum substances that concentrate in the sea creatures could kill them or render them unsafe for eating, scientists say.

"If the oil settles on the bottom, it will kill the smaller organisms like the copepods and small worms," Montagna said. "When we lose the forage, then you have an impact on the larger fish."

Making matters worse for the deep sea is the leaking well's location: It is near the continental shelf of the Gulf where a string of coral reefs flourishes. Coral is a living creature that excretes a hard calcium carbonate exoskeleton, and oil globs can kill it.





The reefs are colorful underwater metropolises of biodiversity, attracting sea sponges, crabs, fish, algae and octopus.

"In my mind, they are at least as sensitive to contamination to oil as coastal habitat," said James Cowan, an oceanographer at Louisiana State University. "They are in deeper water, so they are kind of out of sight, out of mind."

There are other important habitats in shallower waters, such as an ancient oyster shell reef off the Mississippi and Alabama coasts. It is a vital nursery ground for red snapper and habitat for sponges, soft corals and starfish.

[tokyodecadence]

BP should change their company slogan to


BP: Bringing oil to American shores.

[red_Dragon888]

BP should change their company slogan to


BP: Bringing oil to American shores.

lol

[WillyWump]

This may be the only thing that stands between us and The Gulf of MExico turning into a 615 Sq Mile slush pit.

Fingers crossed.


Oil spill: Giant box nears sea bed
BP engineer 'worried' amid risks of explosion

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/37008288/ns/us_news-environment/

[mecch]

I read that most other countries require the remote control capper that costs 500,000.  That its clearly a result of crappy congress giving concessions to rich corporations with no care for the consequences.  

This story makes me so sad, nervous, angry, scared, disgusted that I think I can't watch reports anymore in the evening. I just want to fast forward to the day the flow is stopped and scientists can assess the total damage.

Its hard to believe there will be justice served. How do you try the American government for such corruption???

[J.R.E.]

I read that most other countries require the remote control capper that costs 500,000.  That its clearly a result of crappy congress giving concessions to rich corporations with no care for the consequences.  

As I understand it ( And I haven't checked it out)  This device was required under the Clinton administration.  Under Bush/Cheney , .... well now you know the rest of the story.

Keith Olbermann mentioned something about this the other night.


Ray

[J.R.E.]

Cheney's Katrina :


http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=389x8280591


Couldn't find the Olbermann Clip.

Ray

[J.R.E.]

Drill Baby Drill : About 4 minutes into this clip


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wMlbhI5JMxU&feature=player_embedded#!


Ray

[skeebo1969]

Or you could use your dreads again 

 They're using hair clippings to protect our shores!! Check this out:

 http://news.yahoo.com/video/us-15749625/sf-based-group-gathers-hair-to-mop-up-oil-spill-19605449

[WillyWump]

As I understand it ( And I haven't checked it out)  This device was required under the Clinton administration.  Under Bush/Cheney , .... well now you know the rest of the story.

Keith Olbermann mentioned something about this the other night.

Ray

What about Obama? Was he not aware of the repeal of this device by Bush Cheney? If he was aware , why didnt he act when he came into office? I guess it jsut wasnt "important enough".
Clinton was the only one to have any sense out of the 3 administrations. There's blood on all their stinkin hands.

[WillyWump]

They're using hair clippings to protect our shores!! Check this out:

 http://news.yahoo.com/video/us-15749625/sf-based-group-gathers-hair-to-mop-up-oil-spill-19605449

I'm sure they got the idea from you!

[Hellraiser]

They're using hair clippings to protect our shores!! Check this out:

 http://news.yahoo.com/video/us-15749625/sf-based-group-gathers-hair-to-mop-up-oil-spill-19605449

Damn hippies.

[mecch]

You can't leave these mega industries to self regulate. 

How could Obama have been expected to know such minutia, by the way?  Congrees is crawling through his agenda to reinstate some consumer protection, environmental protection, and so on....

In a tangential but related story, an city government asbestos regularor / inspector OK thousands of buidlings and renovations in NYC and never inspected a one of them.

So we have a crisis in HUMAN ETHICS - capitalist industry can't self regulate because the profit motive at the top has warped the long-term view and the general benefit for society value.   But government officials can't regulate because they are baffoons.

I say the best shot is improving government and getting good solid regulation going on.

Otherwise Rome is buring and the USA's days are numbered.

[WillyWump]

How could Obama have been expected to know such minutia, by the way?  

Because he's the president and he is saddled with the job of protecting American lands no matter how minute the danger seemed on paper. Everyone, including Obama, knows that Bush/Cheney were in bed with the Energy/oil industry, Knowing this, it should have been higher than normal priority to isolate for review all r energy regualtions repealed or not acted upon by Bush/Cheney. Presidents have an infinite amount of minions to pour over the regulations that were reversed or repealed in the prior administration (which is typically one of the first things a president does after taking office).

However,
it seems like the above may be a mute point because if JRE is referring to a "Automatic BOP" (blowout preventer) that potentially was not required to be in place due to Bush/Cheney directives, then that's not the case with this particular well. It seems a BOP was in place here but failed due to the methane explosion, it further seems that this BOP had an automatic "Dead mans" switch that failed as well. Apaprently the only fully state of the art Automatic BOPS, which are acoustically operated,  are installed in wells off Norway and Brazil only. But even that type of BOP may not have worked in this incident.

http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/news/texassouthwest/stories/050410dnbusblowout.4a8d19d.html

It seems more and more that the root cause of this incident will be an unknown/uncontrollable Methane Explosion, to which potentially no BOp would have been able to quell. However the juries still out on whether alarms BP had on the rig to notify of such arising situations were inoperative or disabled.

I guess we will know more in the coming weeks as more info about BOPS and potential BP faults versus purported Act of God scenario. Which brings up another point, I think no oil company shoudl be allowed to declare "act of God" when they are drilling one mile below sea. If you are going to drill in the ocean you should be able to predict all variables and have corresponding foolproof plans to mitigate these variables. Until science/industry has a foolproof way to vent/ dissipate methane we have no business drilling with our "fingers crossed".

-Will

[mecch]

Apaprently the only fully state of the art Automatic BOPS, which are acoustically operated,  are installed in wells off Norway and Brazil only. But even that type of BOP may not have worked in this incident.

Those are the ones I referred to.

[J.R.E.]

"We all were sure we were going to die" Story from a survivor on that rig:



http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/37033430/ns/us_news-the_new_york_times/?GT1=43001

Ray

[skeebo1969]

   That giant milk carton looking thing they worked on all last week didn't work.   

[red_Dragon888]

   That giant milk carton looking thing they worked on all last week didn't work.   

Are you really surprise.

[skeebo1969]

     

Are you really surprise.

  Do you mean right now, or do you mean yesterday? LOL

[mecch]

Rachel Maddow reported how the workers were kept away from families and doctors until they signed waivers of all sorts.

[red_Dragon888]

Rachel Maddow reported how the workers were kept away from families and doctors until they signed waivers of all sorts.

It can still be contested in court if found they signed under duress.

[red_Dragon888]

     
  Do you mean right now, or do you mean yesterday? LOL

LOL...   Both.

[skeebo1969]

  To be honest Red I rolled my eyes everytime they showed the thing being constructed on the news.

[WillyWump]

I think it's safe to say that BP knows the only thing that will ultimately work will be the relief wells 3 months down the road. In the interim they have to look busy and they are trotting out their dog and pony show of impressive looking boxes, shooting tires and concrete into the hole, etc...

Meanwhile the gulf is filling up with oil and we are staring hurricaine season right in the face *sigh*. Get ready New Orleans, it will only take one small hurricaine to turn your city into a gooey, dripping oily mess.

-Will

[Jeff G]

I think it's safe to say that BP knows the only thing that will ultimately work will be the relief wells 3 months down the road. In the interim they have to look busy and they are trotting out their dog and pony show of impressive looking boxes, shooting tires and concrete into the hole, etc...

Meanwhile the gulf is filling up with oil and we are staring hurricaine season right in the face *sigh*. Get ready New Orleans, it will only take one small hurricaine to turn your city into a gooey, dripping oily mess.

-Will

I haven't even let myself think about the Hurricane season ... What a terrible thought .

[WillyWump]

Here's a realtime count of gallons spilled and map of area affected.

http://thebigoilspill.com/

[J.R.E.]

The smelll of oil is getting those at the beach sick:

http://www.baynews9.com/content/36/2010/5/9/617047.html



Some Bay area residents nauseous from oil spill smell
Monday, May 10, 2010

 
The smell of the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico has reached Florida's shores.

ST. PETE BEACH -- The oil in the Gulf of Mexico may stay away from Florida, but that doesn't mean the smell won't.

Some beachgoers in the Tampa Bay area said the odor of oil 300 miles away was enough to make them sick late Saturday night.

From Hernando County to Manatee County, residents reported smelling something sickening in the area.

Some concerned residents even called 911 about the odor. Emergency medical responders confirmed that it was, indeed, coming from the oil slick in the Gulf, carried to the Florida coast by winds from the west.

The smell Saturday night left many concerned about their Mother's Day plans the following day, as well as their health and safety.

Some residents reported nausea and nasal irritation.

The odor along the Gulf Coast did not seem to be as strong Sunday morning, as the winds have shifted.

   

Ray

[red_Dragon888]

  To be honest Red I rolled my eyes everytime they showed the thing being constructed on the news.

To be honest, when I hear experimental, never been done before, and all that, I gave it 50/50 chance.  But I was hopeful it would work.  This time next year, the fishermen will be gone, the residents will be gone, the tourists will be gone, but the drilling will continue.

[WillyWump]

To be honest, when I hear experimental, never been done before, and all that, I gave it 50/50 chance.  But I was hopeful it would work.  This time next year, the fishermen will be gone, the residents will be gone, the tourists will be gone, but the drilling will continue.

 A speech likely to be heard  in the next 6months or so...

"The relief wells have worked! Unfortunately the Gulf is Dead"

[dixieman]

I was just at the beach in Destin, Flrida and Panama City, Florida... globs of quarter size tar is in the water... not alot but, creeping in with the waves... the rusty goo of oil has not hit the beaches as yet...   I wanted to see the beaches as they once were before this oil destroys the coastline.

[skeebo1969]

I was just at the beach in Destin, Flrida and Panama City, Florida... globs of quarter size tar is in the water... not alot but, creeping in with the waves... the rusty goo of oil has not hit the beaches as yet...   I wanted to see the beaches as they once were before this oil destroys the coastline.

I feel ya brother, it's a sad situation.

I saw this article on Yahoo this morning.  The comments below the story are almost as shocking as the content of the article.  I don't understand why people show such apathy towards the enviroment.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20100510/ts_afp/unenvironmentbiodiversityeconomy

[alliance]

I guess we will know more in the coming weeks as more info about BOPS and potential BP faults versus purported Act of God scenario. Which brings up another point, I think no oil company shoudl be allowed to declare "act of God" when they are drilling one mile below sea. If you are going to drill in the ocean you should be able to predict all variables and have corresponding foolproof plans to mitigate these variables. Until science/industry has a foolproof way to vent/ dissipate methane we have no business drilling with our "fingers crossed".

-Will

I agree with you Willie. They had no business drilling, baby, drilling here - either they didnt know what they were doing or they were doing it on the cheap. Either way this damage should not go unpunished someone should go to jail. Just because you litter doesnt mean it's ok to pay a fine and go on and litter  some more.


No one wants to take resposnsibility for this.
I say send all three to jail.

video of congressional hearing-- no one is at fault:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=txmb-Tzxyd8

How about some Ackerman-style questioning for these guys?

video of Congressman Ackerman grilling the SEC about MAdoff:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bGmLh73fHQU&feature=related

I'm afraid this  is going to turn out just like the shuttle disaster, Katrina and the damned election--lots of shoulder shrugging, finger pointing and no one punished. So it will happen again.

The gulf is a beautiful place to visit (was?) teaming with life, nice beaches, nice weather. It's getting all screwed up. I love to visit the place, like many others, I think they owe me something as well. I dont even live near there, but we are all suffering a loss here. Send them three to jail. This shouldn't have happened, and it shouldn't happen again. They are the risk takers, who profit for the risk, they should also pay the price of taking the risk. JAIL! Get the pitchforks out.

[WillyWump]

No one wants to take resposnsibility for this.
I say send all three to jail.

video of congressional hearing-- no one is at fault:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=txmb-Tzxyd8

Ahhh yes, the 'ol blame the other guy schtick.

Meanwhile back at the ranch...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WYFYVNvgg-A&feature=player_embedded

[red_Dragon888]

BP Oil Disaster Update #1

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g4ONM0ed-OI&feature=related

[mecch]

Pity everything has to be fought in court. Pity the corporations will point fingers at each other. And how to we hold our own government responsible for lack of regulation.  Surely Obama will not want to own that responsibility and the American public seems so stupid that the Republicans will easily take it off their own adminstration´s responsibility, under Bush.  Perhaps its a whole hog coporate giveaways by both dems and republicans in congress.

[red_Dragon888]

Pity everything has to be fought in court. Pity the corporations will point fingers at each other. And how to we hold our own government responsible for lack of regulation.  Surely Obama will not want to own that responsibility and the American public seems so stupid that the Republicans will easily take it off their own administration's responsibility, under Bush.  Perhaps its a whole hog coporate giveaways by both dems and republicans in congress.

Maybe that was the plan.  First it was the financial meltdown that the republicans caused but Obama must own.  Then it is the war with the Taliban which was started by Republicans where Obama can find no easy answers.  Now it is the oil spill which lack of regulation was the republican making and again Obama must take responsibility.  There are so many ways the republican can get at Obama cause there are so many traps that they laid for him.  However, do they really think that no one knows that all these problems manifested from republican policies that was to make the country better or more to the point, line their pockets.  It is a simple strategy called "red herring," or point and blame tactic.  I see that the republican are playing a vicious game of politics but will the masses see this is debatable.

[WillyWump]

"Gulf of Mexico Oil Leak 'Relatively Tiny' Compared to 'Very Big Ocean'"- Tony Hayward, Chief Executive of BP.

http://www.foxnews.com/us/2010/05/14/bp-exec-gulf-mexico-relatively-tiny-compared-big-ocean/

Oh, ok Tony, I feel better now. Thanks for that. And I'm sure all the fisherman out of work now feel better. Oh and the dolphins, turtles and birds that have died...I'm sure they feel pretty stupid for dying in such a "tiny" spill.

Ignorant ass.

-Will



 

[red_Dragon888]

18 mins ago
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ynews/ynews_pl2270

Public opinion turning against Obama on oil spill

The American public is losing its patience with President Obama over his handling of the Gulf Coast oil spill.

In the five weeks since an explosion on the Deepwater Horizon rig sent hundreds of thousands of gallons of oil spilling into the Gulf of Mexico, Obama had largely escaped political fallout. But as BP attempts yet again to seal the leak, a new USA Today/Gallup Poll finds a majority of Americans unhappy with Obama's handling of the spill. According to the poll, 53 percent rate Obama's handling "poor" or "very poor"; 43 percent believe Obama is doing a good job.

Yet the poll also finds that the public tends to blame others in the mess more than it blames the White House. Asked  broadly about the federal government's role, 60 percent rated the response "poor." BP got the lowest marks: 73 percent of Americans gave the company's handling of the spill a "poor" rating. Still, a whopping 68 percent say BP should remain in charge of the cleanup.

More than two-thirds of respondents called the gulf spill a "disaster," and of them, 37 percent considered it the "worst disaster in 100 years." Yet 52 percent of registered voters still support offshore drilling. That number is slightly down compared with other polls in recent weeks, including an NBC/Wall Street Journal poll this month in which nearly 60 percent of voters still agreed with offshore drilling.

[See haunting photos of the oil disaster | And hundreds more images]

What will no doubt give the White House pause is the shifting public sentiment on Obama's handling of the spill. Earlier this month, the president seemed to be escaping most of the public wrath over the disaster. An Associated Press poll released May 13 found mostly good-to-neutral marks for Obama's role in the mess: 42 percent approved, 33 percent disapproved and 21 percent said they were neutral.

But with the leak still unplugged and the economic and environmental impact only worsening, the White House has increasingly come under fire for not doing enough to handle the cleanup and control the spill. That includes criticism both from Republicans including Sarah Palin, who tried to make an issue of BP's donations to Obama's presidential campaign, and Democratic allies like James Carville, who slammed Obama for being too "hands off."

Broken down along party lines: 63 percent of Democrats believe Obama is doing a "good" job on the spill, while 68 percent of Republicans rate the president's job as "poor." Among independent voters ? the voting bloc credited most for Obama's victory in 2008 ? 58 percent describe Obama's job on the spill as "poor."

White House officials aren?t unaware of the shift. In recent days, they?ve stepped up their media strategy in response to the spill. Tomorrow, Obama will hold  his first full-fledged news conference in nearly a year to take questions on the issue. And Friday, he is scheduled to make his second visit to the Gulf.

Will it be enough to placate an increasingly frustrated public?

? Holly Bailey is a senior political writer for Yahoo! News.

[WillyWump]

Finger's crossed everyone...

We are 3 hours into BP's "Top Kill" procedure, so far nothing the oil has not been stemmed any.

-W

[red_Dragon888]

http://acp.repoweramerica.org/page/invite/oilspillvideo?source=sprd-fwd&utm_source=crm_email&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=oilspillvideo20100527&utm_content=calloutimg

What BP does not want you to see

ABC News went underwater in the Gulf with Philippe Cousteau Jr., grandson of famous explorer Jacques Cousteau, and he described what he saw as "one of the most horrible things I?ve ever seen underwater."

Check out what BP does not want you to see. And please share this widely -- every American should see what's happening under the surface in the Gulf.

[red_Dragon888]

Obama: Gov't in charge of oil disaster response

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/us_obama

By JENNIFER LOVEN, AP White House Correspondent Jennifer Loven, Ap White House Correspondent ? 23 mins ago
WASHINGTON ? President Barack Obama moved aggressively to show his government is in charge of the Gulf oil spill on Thursday, calling the gushing leak an "unprecedented disaster" and blasting a "scandalously close relationship" between oil companies and regulators.

"The American people should know that from the moment this disaster began, the federal government has been in charge of the response effort," Obama told a news conference. He was responding to criticism that his administration had been slow to act and had left BP in charge of plugging the leak.

Obama said many critics failed to realize "this has been our highest priority."

He conceded that "people are going to be frustrated until it stops."

Obama announced a series of new steps to deal with the aftermath of the spill, including continuing a moratorium on drilling permits for six months.

He also said he was suspending planned exploration drilling off the coasts of Alaska and Virginia and on 33 wells currently being drilled in the Gulf of Mexico.

The president, speaking to reporters in the East Room of the White House, spoke as oil giant BP pumped mudlike heavy drilling oil into the well in hopes of stopping the flow.

He said while the "top kill" procedure was an example of his administration's willingness to try "any reasonable strategy" to stop the gusher, the process "offers no guarantee of success."

Obama's insistence that his administration was in charge of dealing with the disaster were a marked change in language. Previously, administration officials had emphasized that while they were overseeing BP's actions, the oil company had the expertise and equipment to do the job.

As recently as Monday, the top federal official in charge of responding to the oil catastrophe, Coast Guard Adm. Thad Allen, declined to broadly say the federal government was "in charge." Instead, when asked about that, Allen told reporters that BP was responsible for the cleanup and the government was accountable to make sure the company did it. "I would say it's less a case of 'in charge,'" Allen said when asked about that phrase.

Yet with each passing day, public frustration with Obama's government has grown, and his poll numbers on the matter are dropping.

As an example of the government's hands-on approach, Obama said that BP had wanted to drill a single "relief" well in an effort to eventually stop the leak in several months if all else failed. Instead, the administration insisted on two relief wells being drilled, Obama said.

Over and over, the president sought to counter criticism that the administration was giving too much leeway to BP PLC.

"Make no mistake, BP is operating at our direction," he said.

"We will demand they pay every dime they owe for the damage they've done and the painful losses they've caused," Obama said.

He denounced what he called "the oil industry's cozy and sometimes corrupt" ties with government regulators.

He spoke shortly after the head of the troubled agency that oversees offshore drilling resigned under pressure. The departure of Minerals Management Service Director Elizabeth Birnbaum was announced just before Obama's news conference began.

Asked about inevitable comparisons between his administration's handling of the disaster with his predecessor's handling of Hurricane Katrina in 2005, Obama said: "I'll leave it to you guys to make those comparisons. ... What I'm thinking about is how do you solve the problem?"

"I'm confident people are going to look back and say this administration was on top of what was an unprecedented crisis," he added.

Still, he acknowledged, "We've got to get it right."

Sen. Frank Lautenberg , D-N.J., a critic of offshore drilling, said Obama took an important step to halt the most imminent environmental threat to the Atlantic coast, but he said the danger will remain until there is a permanent ban on drilling in the Atlantic.

"BP's oil catastrophe in the Gulf is a wake-up call for our nation. Giving Big Oil more access to our nation's waters will only lead to more pollution, more lost jobs and more damage to our economy," Lautenberg said.

Obama said the federal government "has acted consistently with a sense of urgency" about the spill. But, he acknowledged a "sense of complacency on the government's part in planning how to deal with the worst-case scenario" before it happened.

He said a cozy relationship between industry and government didn't change when he came into office.

Interior Secretary Ken Salazar "came in and started cleaning house. But the culture had not fully changed at MMS. And surely I take responsibility for that."

But, he added, "there is no evidence some of the corrupt practices that took place earlier took place under the present administration's watch."

As to the resignation of the head of the agency that overseas offshore drilling, he said, "I found out about her resignation today. I don't know the circumstances under which this occurred."

[mecch]

Sometimes style of leadership is as important as substance.
Obama has no choice but to speak out more and give more obvious support and calm everyone's awful feelings about this mess. Even if its up to BP to cap the hole.

[red_Dragon888]

Sometimes style of leadership is as important as substance.
Obama has no choice but to speak out more and give more obvious support and calm everyone's awful feelings about this mess. Even if its up to BP to cap the hole.

In other words, he who smelt, delt it...

[red_Dragon888]

Gulf spill surpasses Valdez; plug try going well

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/us_gulf_oil_spill;_ylt=Ag5zQ9L7Rbgz3w9cMFBd6.Os0NUE;_ylu=X3oDMTNodHBlNHFuBGFzc2V0A2FwLzIwMTAwNTI3L3VzX2d1bGZfb2lsX3NwaWxsBGNjb2RlA21vc3Rwb3B1bGFyBGNwb3MDMQRwb3MDMwRwdANob21lX2Nva2UEc2VjA3luX3RvcF9zdG9yeQRzbGsDZnVsbG5ic3BzdG9y

COVINGTON, La. ? An untested procedure to plug the blown-out oil well in the Gulf of Mexico seemed to be working, officials said Thursday, but new estimates showed the spill has already surpassed the Exxon Valdez as the worst in U.S. history.

A team of scientists trying to determine how much oil has been flowing since the offshore rig Deepwater Horizon exploded April 20 and sank two days later found the rate was more than twice and possibly up to five times as high as previously thought.

The fallout from the spill has stretched all the way to Washington, where the head of the federal agency that oversees offshore drilling resigned Thursday and President Barack Obama sought to counter criticism by announcing a series of new steps to deal with the spill's aftermath.

Related
Obama announces slowdown on new deepwater drilling AP

Obama: Gov't in charge of oil disaster response AP
Obama: 'I was wrong' to believe oil industry ready AP
Obama cites 'complacency' ahead of spill AP

Even using the most conservative estimate, the new numbers mean the leak has grown to nearly 19 million gallons over the past five weeks. If the oil filled gallon milk jugs lined up side by side, there would be enough to reach from New York to Chicago and back.

In the worst case scenario, if 39 million gallons has spilled, the oil would fill enough jugs to stretch from the Louisiana marshes to Prince William Sound in Alaska. That's where the Exxon Valdez ran aground in 1989, spilling nearly 11 million gallons.

"Now we know the true scale of the monster we are fighting in the Gulf," said Jeremy Symons, vice president of the National Wildlife Federation. "BP has unleashed an unstoppable force of appalling proportions."

BP and the Coast Guard estimated soon after the explosion that about 210,000 gallons a day was leaking, but scientists who watched underwater video of well had been saying for weeks it was probably more.

U.S. Geological Survey Director Marcia McNutt said two different teams of scientists calculated the well has been spewing between 504,000 and more than a million gallons a day.

BP spokesman Steve Rinehart said the previous estimate came from industry experts and scientists based on the best data available at the time. Asked for the company's response to the new numbers, he replied: "It does not and will not change the response. We are going all out on our response. This is an all-out response and we're doing everything we can to stop this."

Marine scientists also said Thursday they have discovered a massive new plume of what they believe to be oil deep beneath the Gulf, stretching 22 miles from the leaking wellhead northeast toward Mobile Bay, Ala. The discovery by researchers on the University of South Florida College of Marine Science's Weatherbird II vessel is the second significant undersea plume recorded since the rig exploded.

Last week, BP inserted a mile-long tube to siphon some of the oil from the gushing well into a tanker. It sucked up 924,000 gallons, but engineers had to dismantle it so they could start the risky procedure known as a top kill to try to cut off the flow altogether by shooting heavy drilling fluid into the well.
If that works, BP will inject cement into the well to seal it. The top kill has been used above ground but has never been tried 5,000 feet beneath the sea. BP pegged its chance of success at 60 to 70 percent, and Obama cautioned that it "offers no guarantee of success."

Lt. Commander Tony Russell, an aide to Coast Guard Adm. Thad Allen, said Thursday the mud was stopping some oil and gas but had a ways to go before it proved successful. The top kill started Wednesday night.

"As you inject your mud into it, it is going to stop some hydrocarbons," Russell said. "That doesn't mean it's successful."

In Washington, meanwhile, Minerals Management Service Director Elizabeth Birnbaum stepped down from the job she has held since July 2009. Her agency has come under withering criticism from lawmakers of both parties over lax oversight of drilling and cozy ties with industry.

An internal Interior Department report released earlier this week found that between 2000 and 2008, agency staff members accepted tickets to sports events, lunches and other gifts from oil and gas companies and used government computers to view pornography.

Polls show the public is souring on the administration's handling of the catastrophe, and Obama sought Thursday to assure Americans that the government is in control. He was responding to criticism that his administration had been slow to act and left BP in charge of plugging the leak.

He announced that a new moratorium on drilling permits will be extended for six months. He also said he was suspending planned exploration drilling off the coasts of Alaska and Virginia and on 33 wells currently being drilled in the Gulf of Mexico.

He said many critics failed to realize "this has been our highest priority" but conceded that "people are going to be frustrated until it stops."

Fishermen, hotel and restaurant owners, politicians and residents along the 100-mile stretch of Gulf coast affected by the spill are also fed up with BP's failures to stop the spill. Thick oil is coating birds and delicate wetlands along the Louisiana coast.

"I have anxiety attacks," said Sarah Rigaud, owner of Sarah's Restaurant in Grand Isle, La., where the public beach was closed because blobs of oil that looked like melted chocolate had washed up on shore. "Every day I pray that something happens, that it will be stopped and everybody can get back to normal."

Seven cleanup crew members who reported dizziness, severe headaches and nausea while working in boats off the Louisiana coast remained hospitalized Thursday. The Coast Guard pulled commercial fishing boats from cleanup efforts in Breton Sound on Wednesday after workers first reported feeling sick.

If the top kill fails, BP says it has several backup plans. The only permanent solution is drilling a second well, but that will take a couple of months. BP plans to go ahead with that even if the top kill works.

Though the spill is now the biggest in U.S. history, it's not the biggest ever in the Gulf. An offshore drilling rig in Mexican waters ? the Ixtoc I ? blew up in June 1979, releasing 140 million gallons of oil.

___

Borenstein reported from Washington. Associated Press Writers Ben Nuckols, Matthew Brown, Jason Dearen and Andrew Taylor and Matthew Daly in Washington contributed to this report.

[mecch]

Well he was assumedly trying to avoid ownership, but that backfried miserably.
He's a great speaker. I don't see why he can't throw the accountability around and still own the challenge on behalf of americans.

[J.R.E.]

The "top Kill"  Didn't work ....


http://www.baynews9.com/content/36/2010/5/29/624273.html?title=BP:+Top+Kill+did+not+work;+company+will+try+next+option



BP: Top Kill did not work; company will try next option
Saturday, May 29, 2010
 
Oil continues spewing into the Gulf of Mexico.

COVINGTON, La. (AP) -  BP has concluded that the Top Kill operation has failed to stop the flow of oil into the Gulf of Mexico.

"After three full days of attempting Top Kill, we have been unable to overcome the flow from the well, so we now believe it's time to move on to our next option," said BP chief operating officer Doug Suttles Saturday evening. "We don't believe repeated pumping (Top Kill) will achieve success."

Suttles said the next option is to cut off the damaged riser from which the oil is leaking and install a cap. That cap will then be connected to a ship to allow oil to flow to the ship.

"This operation should be able to capture most of the oil," Suttles said. "I stress the word 'most.'"

Suttles said the next operation, installing what is called a "lower marine riser package," or LMRP, will take four days or longer. He said he is confident the new method would work, but cannot guarantee success.

Suttles also said the company is continuing its work on relief wells.
Top Kill

Under the Top Kill operation, BP pumped huge amounts of mud into the well at a rate of up to 2,700 gallons per minute..


BP also tried several times to shoot assorted junk into the well's crippled blowout preventer to clog it up and force the mud down the well bore.

BP had put the chances of success for the top kill at 60 to 70 percent

The spill is the worst in U.S. history and has dumped between 18 million and 40 million gallons into the Gulf, according to government estimates.
Search For Oil

Meanwhile, scientists are using newly designed technology to determine where the oil flowing into the Gulf of Mexico may be headed.

NOAA's Gordon Gunter, a 224-foot research vessel is about 20 miles off the mouth of the Mississippi delta and 22 miles from the Deepwater Horizon site.

The ship is looking for oil plumes, not big blobs. The plumes are diffuse and often invisible particles of petroleum that are dangerous to marine animals.

Another weapon in their arsenal is called The Gulper, which looks like a torpedo and can dive to almost 5,000 feet while sucking in water.

Samples collected are being tested in hopes of better predicting where the oil is going.

[tednlou2]

I heard the same thing tonight that "top kill" did not work.  It is so unbelievable to me that we allow a private company to have the environment in their hands.  What if BP just said they were going home?  Well, they haven't fixed it, so it wouldn't make much difference.  It just seems like the gov't should know how to do this stuff.  From what I've read, the gov't doesn't even know how to use submerssibles. 

They should do like what I've heard Canada requires-- Companies have to drill the relief well at the same time as the main well just in case something like this happens.

[mecch]

Did you see Anderson Cooper and Rachel Maddows various critiques this week.
Once again I had to stop watching. I'm not being dramatic. I get sick in my stomach and can't take each new awful news.
Anderson Cooper showed how BP hired hundreds of black prisoners to do a Potemkin Village clean up show on the beach that Obama visited.  Not there the days before, workers never seen. And also they were forbidden to say anything about who they were.   The mind BOGGLES at the multiple stupidities and insults in that action.

The Rachel Maddow bit that made me vomit was she showed the emergency guidelines for wildlife protection BP published - and they are worried about the walruses - which only live around the artic, duh. She said obviously, they had just copies and pastes dome other guidelines.

I hope the government legally requires BP to spend its very last dime, and then and only then, kicks it out of the country forever.  The us should have some dignity and NEVER let that company get another dime of US money, even if the US has to suffer to find other sources of oil.  

These oil companies make more money than GOD, as Maddow pointed out. That's no joke.  

[Jeff G]

It is sad news indeed and I hope BP pays every cent to clean up the mess . Its also high time consumers of oil to start and  do our part in this debacle , meaning where we make our gasoline purchases to who we are electing that makes and enforces our energy policies .

[red_Dragon888]

Anything to satisfy the public need for hope but this is the oil business baby. If I were BP I would stall like crazy until I have reached the master plan. And that is to get the oil out of the ground and the profits into BP's pockets. They are not going to waste time explaining to the public that plan A,B,C didn't work because the real goal is to put up a tower or another pipe line to get the oil and sell it.  I say by August the new pipe line or tower will be in place and BP will act like they'd saved the day and the Gulf of Mexico had very little environment impact due to the minor spill. Just don't eat the shrimp though.

[WillyWump]

They are not going to waste time explaining to the public that plan A,B,C didn't work because the real goal is to put up a tower or another pipe line to get the oil and sell it.  

You hit the nail on the head. Not only that, but I can assure you once they drill the relief well and start tapping that oil that the CEO will get a nice bonus.

...in the meantime they will continue to trot out hopeless attempts (publicity stunts). They've already indicated the next procedure they will try hasnt even worked at shallower depths. It's something akin to putting a dixie cup over a water hose at full stream.


-Will

[mecch]

I propose an enema tube down to the oil, and wash out the butts and dirty mouths of every BP executive involved, and all those corrupt at the government oversight agencies.

Also, BP executives should be required to sell ANY vacation house in America not on the Gulf, and holiday only there for the next 20 years. 

 

[J.R.E.]

I say by August the new pipe line or tower will be in place and BP will act like they'd saved the day and the Gulf of Mexico had very little environment impact due to the minor spill. Just don't eat the shrimp though.

Looks as though that's the way things are going. It will take at least until August, before it's stopped.

This other device they plan on getting into place shortly,  will not collect all the oil.  ( even if it works at all.)


Ray

[red_Dragon888]

Looks as though that's the way things are going. It will take at least until August, before it's stopped.

This other device they plan on getting into place shortly,  will not collect all the oil.  ( even if it works at all.)


Ray

I'm betting this time next year they will get it fixed.

[tednlou2]

Timelapse photos of oil spill from NASA.  If this isn't stopped until the Fall, then you can easily see how it will affect Florida.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mCWW5xt3Hc8


From NBC Nightly News tonight:  They go back to Alaska to see how things have recovered some 20 years later.  Many think it is fine now.  They show all you have to do is pick up a rock on the beach or take a sample of water and let it set for a couple minutes and you'll find oil still.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/21134540/vp/37457330#37457330

[J.R.E.]

If this isn't stopped until the Fall, then you can easily see how it will affect Florida.

Oil closes in on Florida as BP tries risky cap move :


http://www.baynews9.com/content/36/2010/6/2/625128.html?title=Oil+closes+in+on+Florida+as+BP+tries+risky+cap+move


Ray

[mecch]

I saw T. Boone Pickens on a week old Larry King interview.  He predicted (turns out correctly) that the "topkill" wouldn't work.  He said all the culpability should fall on BP and he said drilling would HAVE to continue eventually in deep water in the Gulf because American can't walk away from this resource.

He was so cool and collected about America's need for oil and the need to both exploit all the American resources possible and also work to remove dependence on foreign resources.  

Anyway, by the time the interview is over, you (at least I) get the feeling that there are a few people know exactly the truth about the most important things in this country AND that all the news media and government get, and do, is a bunch a spin, and feed spin to us.  

The topkill was pretty much entirely "spin" - a show to help people emotions.  The fake clean up behind the president - show.  The President saying he is in charge - show.

BP fed spin to the Obama administration and then to the news media (who give it to us).  The Democratic government gives spin to us - so worried are they about the future and keeping power for the rest of this administration by spinning everything toward getting an 8 year run for Obama.

Its all so fucking disheartening.  

The only true thing that BP seems to have said is

"The US is a big and important market for BP, and BP is also a big and important company for the US, with its contribution to drilling and oil and gas production," Svanberg said. "So the position goes both ways."

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/05/25/bp-is-big-and-important-b_n_589675.html

That quote came a couple of days before T. Boone Pickens comments and Pickens in summary says about the same thing. AND NOT in defence of BP.  Just as in - listen - its a catastrophe, BP looks like its a fault - it will clean it up only as far as the government makes it clean up, and as far as it can be cleaned up. And then business wil go on.  

So thats the bitter pill - swallow it.

We are fucking stuck with BP, and GM, and Goldman Sachs, and Halliburton.  And our government doesnt have, and cant offer anyway, any better way to do business.

[red_Dragon888]

Look it is very simple.  BP is fighting for its survival and to do the right thing is to lose the company.  To play with the public through the media hype is the best case scenario for BP.  Now they are fighting for media control and from their thinking the Govt is either on their side or have their hands ties from legal legislation put there to protect Big Business.  The Gulf is already lost so they must down play it as an "Act of God," or "Don't Worry, Be Happy," or "It's Just a Little Spill Not Worth Commenting," attitude so not to get the public hunting for Blood.  All that BP is thinking is "Damage Control," and how to still be a company after this disaster.  The odds are against them to win, but they may still some out ahead and smell like roses after this is over.  It is like Hershy Chocolate incident in India.  How many people still remember that catastrophe.  Or the Exxon tragedy, and that area is a toxic mine field, yet Exxon still has not paid the piper.

[red_Dragon888]

http://www.youtube.com/user/BPplc?v=imySWVEHtoo&feature=pyv&ad=5944942933&kw=

Statement from BP about the Gulf of Mexico and other statements.

[Jeff G]

Its probably easier to go into outer space and fix something broken than it is to go down that deep in the ocean . At some point BP needs to just tell the truth and the truth is they don't have the technology to repair the damage to that pipe or more importantly to restore the gulf of Mexico back to the way they found it .

In the meantime folks that continually deny we are doing irreparable harm to our planet now have some oily sand to bury there head in .

I am going to visit my brother at his beach house in Gulf Shores Alabama next week but from what I hear by that time it wont be the beach I remember .,

[mecch]

It is like Hershy Chocolate incident in India.  How many people still remember that catastrophe.  Or the Exxon tragedy, and that area is a toxic mine field, yet Exxon still has not paid the piper.

Hershey Chocolate?  Do you mean Bhopal, Union Carbide's disaster? The case isn't dead and people remember it very well indeed.

Ditto, Valdez.

[tednlou2]

This oil spill has brought my partner and I (the liberals) in sync with his family (the conservatives).  I have been surprised all of them are talking trash about the oil companies and believe oil extraction from the oceans needs to be reconsidered.  I was shocked!!!  Of course, I think I mentioned how his parents have properties in Gulf Shores, AL and down near Ft Myers, FL.  It is definitely hitting home to them and they now care.

[red_Dragon888]

Hershey Chocolate?  Do you mean Bhopal, Union Carbide's disaster? The case isn't dead and people remember it very well indeed.

Ditto, Valdez.

Sorry, I meant Nestle.

[alliance]

Or the Exxon tragedy, and that area is a toxic mine field, yet Exxon still has not paid the piper.

I still say jail, until the fine is paid. And then some.  They -- the ceo's-- say they make the mega bucks because of the risk they take. What risk? Risk of watching a corporation go down in flames while they look for another job? Where is the disincentive to fuck the world over? Where is the individual accountability? Ughh!

[WillyWump]

Get ready Florida, and the entire East coast....It's headed your way. Oh and those in Europe, yup, this could be your problem in 4 months...

A computer simulation of dye injected into the loop current:

 http://www.nydailynews.com/news/national/2010/06/03/2010-06-03_bp_oil_slick_could_hit_east_coast_in_weeks__and_spread_to_new_york__beyond_gover.html.


Then there's this.... It makes me sick to look at.

http://www.fox8live.com/news/local/story/Dozens-of-oil-soaked-pelicans-found-near-coast/qLSzuSQ4KEKlQjWo5suh3Q.cspx

Thanks you Bastards!

-Will

[red_Dragon888]

Yesterday, I visited Caminada Bay in Grand Isle, Louisiana -- one of the first places to feel the devastation wrought by the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico. While I was here, at Camerdelle's Live Bait shop, I met with a group of local residents and small business owners.

Folks like Floyd Lasseigne, a fourth-generation oyster fisherman. This is the time of year when he ordinarily earns a lot of his income. But his oyster bed has likely been destroyed by the spill.

Terry Vegas had a similar story. He quit the 8th grade to become a shrimper with his grandfather. Ever since, he's earned his living during shrimping season -- working long, grueling days so that he could earn enough money to support himself year-round. But today, the waters where he has worked are closed. And every day, as the spill worsens, he loses hope that he will be able to return to the life he built.

Here, this spill has not just damaged livelihoods. It has upended whole communities. And the fury people feel is not just about the money they have lost. It is about the wrenching recognition that this time their lives may never be the same.

These people work hard. They meet their responsibilities. But now because of a manmade catastrophe -- one that is not their fault and beyond their control -- their lives have been thrown into turmoil. It is brutally unfair. And what I told these men and women is that I will stand with the people of the Gulf Coast until they are again made whole.

That is why, from the beginning, we have worked to deploy every tool at our disposal to respond to this crisis. Today, there are more than 20,000 people working around the clock to contain and clean up this spill. I have authorized 17,500 National Guard troops to participate in the response. More than 1,900 vessels are aiding in the containment and cleanup effort. We have convened hundreds of top scientists and engineers from around the world. This is the largest response to an environmental disaster of this kind in the history of our country.

We have also ordered BP to pay economic injury claims, and this week, the federal government sent BP a preliminary bill for $69 million to pay back American taxpayers for some of the costs of the response so far. In addition, after an emergency safety review, we are putting in place aggressive new operating standards for offshore drilling. And I have appointed a bipartisan commission to look into the causes of this spill. If laws are inadequate, they will be changed. If oversight was lacking, it will be strengthened. And if laws were broken, those responsible will be brought to justice.

These are hard times in Louisiana and across the Gulf Coast, an area that has already seen more than its fair share of troubles. The people of this region have met this terrible catastrophe with seemingly boundless strength and character in defense of their way of life. What we owe them is a commitment by our nation to match the resilience they have shown. That is our mission. And it is one we will fulfill.

Thank you,

President Barack Obama

[mecch]

I would like either the Obama team, or the BP team, to explain the difference between their assurances that they are doing as much as possible ---- and the many big network news shows who are all reporting form the gulf and seeing NO CLEAN UP ON THE SHORES AND MARSHES for miles and miles and miles.

[J.R.E.]

HHmmmm....      


 Seems I read somewhere,( very recently) that BP holds the main contract with the US Govt. , that supplies the fuels/oil for our military machine.  Anyone know anything about that? So, between Haliburton and BP....


Ray

[WillyWump]

That is why, from the beginning, we have worked to deploy every tool at our disposal to respond to this crisis. Today, there are more than 20,000 people working around the clock to contain and clean up this spill. I have authorized 17,500 National Guard troops to participate in the response. More than 1,900 vessels are aiding in the containment and cleanup effort. We have convened hundreds of top scientists and engineers from around the world. This is the largest response to an environmental disaster of this kind in the history of our country.

Thank you,

President Barack Obama

MR. Obama! Where are these 37,000 people you cite?? How come the beaches on Pensacola are devoid of cleanup crews? I understand that you in Washington consider LA. to be a third world country and yall are content with letting it die, but what about Alabama, MS, FL?
How come when you go to LA you go to a beach that is already cleaned up? Why wont you get in a boat and tour the marshes where the oil is choking out life, where you can look a dying Pelican in the eyes?.... Oh that's right, a picture of you surrounded by an oily mess and dying birds is not in your "best political interest".

I bet when your rich constituents from Florida start screaming about the oil there will miraculously be an army of cleanup crews scouring every inch of Florida's beaches while those in LA, MS, AL all wither away.



*sigh*

[red_Dragon888]

A Billion People for "NO MORE OFFSHORE OIL DRILLING" (snowball effect)

http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=114093341964208

[red_Dragon888]

http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20100608/ts_nm/us_oil_spill

Obama has strong words as Gulf spill spreads

By Anna Driver and JoAnne Allen Anna Driver And Joanne Allen – 2 hrs 4 mins ago
VENICE, La/WASHINGTON (Reuters) – President Barack Obama said he wanted to know "whose ass to kick" over the Gulf of Mexico oil spill, adding to the pressure on energy giant BP Plc as it sought to capture more of the leak from its gushing well.

"I don't sit around just talking to experts because this is a college seminar. We talk to these folks because they potentially have the best answer so I know whose ass to kick," Obama said in an interview with NBC News' "Today" to air on Tuesday.

They were the angriest words yet about the catastrophe from Obama, who has been criticized for his response to the worst oil spill in U.S. history. Obama reiterated that all those affected should be adequately compensated.

In London, BP's share price lost 3.6 percent after Obama's remarks, reversing the previous day's gains. The company's shares are down more than a third from mid-April.

The stakes remain high for all involved -- from Gulf Coast communities devastated by the disaster to Obama and his domestic standing to BP and its battered reputation with the public and investors.

A Washington Post/ABC poll found that 69 percent of Americans believe the government had done a "not so good" or "poor" job handling the spill. Just over 1,000 people were surveyed in the poll, conducted between June 3 and 6.

BP's shares closed down slightly in London on Monday. It has lost about a third of its value since the crisis erupted in late April and it took another blow as Goldman Sachs downgraded its rating on BP to "neutral" from "buy."

While a complete halt to the flow of oil is not expected until August at the earliest, BP reported an increase in the amount of oil it is capturing from the well in its latest containment effort.

Coast Guard Admiral Thad Allen, who leads the government's relief effort, said London-based BP hoped to collect 20,000 barrels (840,000 gallons/3.18 million liters) per day in its latest effort.

BP said it had collected 7,541 barrels of oil in the first 12 hours of Monday. If it collected the same amount the rest of the day, the total for Monday would be more than 15,000 barrels, about 35 percent higher than the amount collected on Sunday.

Neither Allen nor BP gave an estimate of how much oil is still flowing into the Gulf. BP's latest attempt involves placing a containment cap on top of the gushing pipe on the ocean floor.

POLITICAL HEAT

Away from the action in the Gulf, the political heat remains intense in Washington with yet another congressional hearing set to bring BP and its peers under renewed scrutiny.

The Senate Judiciary Committee holds a hearing at 10:00 EDT (1400 GMT) on Tuesday titled: "The Risky Business of Big Oil: Have Recent Court Decisions and Liability Caps Encouraged Irresponsible Corporate Behavior?" Democrats in Congress have been looking at lifting such caps.

The Senate hearing follows one in Chalmette, Louisiana, where two women who lost their husbands in the April 20 rig explosion that unleashed the crisis urged members of Congress to hold BP accountable.

"I am asking you to please consider harsh punishments on companies who choose to ignore safety standards before other families are destroyed," said Courtney Kemp, whose husband, Wyatt, was one of the 11 workers killed in the explosion.

The gravity of the spill was spelled out by Admiral Allen, who said its environmental consequences could last for years.

"Dealing with the oil spill on the surface is going to go on for a couple of months" once the well is plugged, he said. "Long-term issues of restoring the environment and the habitats ... will be years."

The spill has now affected 120 miles of coastline.

After fouling wildlife refuges in Louisiana and barrier islands in Mississippi and Alabama, oil has hit some of the famous white beaches of Florida, where the $60 billion-a-year tourism industry accounts for nearly 1 million jobs.

Images of birds struggling through oil-soaked waters ringing Louisiana's ecologically fragile barrier islands and marshes have added to the public outcry and pressure on Obama.

One-third of the Gulf's federal waters, or 78,000 square miles (200,000 square km), remains closed to fishing, and the toll of dead and injured birds and marine animals is climbing.

(Writing by Ed Stoddard; editing by Mohammad Zargham)

[red_Dragon888]

http://www.marinij.com/opinion/ci_15275359

Marin Voice: What would Jacques Cousteau say?
Staff Report
Posted: 06/11/2010 12:36:45 AM PDT


STEVEN MACHTINGER
IF he were still alive, the celebrated undersea explorer Jacques-Yves Cousteau would turn 100 on June 11. On the occasion of this milestone, he would undoubtedly be asked to comment on the BP oil disaster, one of the most significant injuries humans have ever inflicted on the ocean environment.

What would Cousteau say about the spillage of over 37 million gallons of petroleum into the Gulf of Mexico, an area whose river system he explored in one of his last expeditions? What would he say about our destruction of fragile wetlands, beaches, endangered species and deepwater coral reefs?

Perhaps Cousteau would reflect on the irony that his first success as a filmmaker was made possible by financial support from British Petroleum, whose president was his wife's cousin. The year was 1953, and a best-selling book, "The Silent World," had just been written about Cousteau's explorations with his newly invented underwater breathing apparatus, the Aqua-Lung. Cousteau was not yet a true environmentalist. While he appreciated the wonders of the sea, he also welcomed the opportunity it presented for industrial exploitation.

[J.R.E.]

I am still hearing talk on CNN, about nuking it !    Right!...


Ed and I Are heading down to Fort Desoto park, in just a little bit.  Thought we'de get a swim in the Gulf before it's too late :

I can't imagine this area/ any area,  saturated with oil.   


http://www.pinellascounty.org/park/05_ft_desoto.htm


Ray

[Jeff G]

I just got home today from visiting my brother who lives on the beach near Gulf Shores Alabama . The first few days it was as beautiful as it ever was and we swam and went crabbing like we always do . Yesterday while at the beach the oil arrived and covered the beach . Within an hours time I saw that stretch of beach go from paradise to a stinking polluted mess .

There were shrimp boats trying to corral the oil and remove it but there is only so much they can do . Very sad .  

[J.R.E.]

http://www.baynews9.com/content/36/2010/6/13/629855.html?title=Men+find+what+they+think+is+oil+off+Pinellas+beach


Men find what they think is oil off Pinellas beach

The substance will be tested to see if it is oil from the BP spill.
A sample will be taken to a lab and analyzed.

PINELLAS COUNTY - Two men spotted what they think could be oil from the BP disaster off a Pinellas County beach while returning home from a fishing trip Sunday morning.

The men, Steve Weiss and David Mokotoff, said they were about four to five miles off Pass-a-Grille beach when they spotted what they believed was an oil sheen on the water.

"We saw this ribbon of orange brown material," Mokotoff said. "Steve initially thought it might be discharge from somebody's boat, but then when we got closer it was so long, even though it wasn't wide we thought about the oil spill and decided to take a closer look at it."

The men also said they smelled the substance.

"It smelled like oil, so we went back to investigate and, unfortunately, it felt like oil," Weiss said. "We touched it; you couldn't get it off your hands."

The men filled a bottle with some of the water and brought it home. Representatives from the Coast Guard and Department of Environmental Protection pick up the sample.

The agencies said they do not believe it's oil, but the sample will be taken to a lab and analyzed.

"It's green in color and doesn't appear to be oil," said Kelly Smith, a marine science technician with the U.S. Coast Guard. "But we'll be able to verify that 100 percent whenever we can get this back and have somebody actually look at it."

The Coast Guard said they've been getting a lot of calls and reports from people with similar concerns, but so far they haven't tested anything that's actually been oil from the BP spill. They said most of the samples they've tested have turned out to be algae or other plant life.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Pass-a-Grille beach is about 20 or so miles south of Clearwater beach.

Ray

[Miss Philicia]

STUNNING NEW DEVELOPMENT IN GOVERNMENT/CORPORATE COLLUSION

[Hellraiser]

This guy is pure genius.  Is he protesting as an army of one?

[red_Dragon888]

 "Sell crazy some place else -- we're all stocked up here."  

[J.R.E.]

http://www.baynews9.com/content/36/2010/6/13/629855.html?title=Men+find+what+they+think+is+oil+off+Pinellas+beach


Men find what they think is oil off Pinellas beach

The substance will be tested to see if it is oil from the BP spill.
A sample will be taken to a lab and analyzed.

By the way, the substance the fisherman had was determined not to be oil from the leak,

At least not this time.

I 'l Be watching this today :

http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0610/38259.html



Ray

[alliance]

So I wonder what it was they found if it wasn't oil?

[Miss Philicia]

Ah!  Living the Libertarian Dream!

Nigerians don't see what all the fuss is about in the Gulf and think you folks should just man up!

[J.R.E.]

So I wonder what it was they found if it wasn't oil?

I should have saved the link, now I can't find it.  Apparently it was algae growth.

Ray

[J.R.E.]

What a Fucknut!...


Joe Barton ( Republican from Texas apologizes to BP)


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gv0siXm2cpc


Ray

[WillyWump]

IF YOU CANT KILL THE TURTLES BY DROWNING THEM IN OIL, JUST BURN 'EM ALIVE!! THAT'LL LEARN 'EM!

Apparently BP believes not enough turtles are dying....

http://www.myfoxtampabay.com/dpp/news/oil_spill/is-bp-burning-sea-turtles-alive-06222010

Can this spill get any more disgusting

-Will

[Hellraiser]

IF YOU CANT KILL THE TURTLES BY DROWNING THEM IN OIL, JUST BURN 'EM ALIVE!! THAT'LL LEARN 'EM!

Apparently BP believes not enough turtles are dying....

http://www.myfoxtampabay.com/dpp/news/oil_spill/is-bp-burning-sea-turtles-alive-06222010

Can this spill get any more disgusting

-Will

Those turtles were all pedophiles.

[WillyWump]

Those turtles were all pedophiles.

Thanks Heck, it officially just got more disgusting.

-Will

[Jeff G]

I like turtle soup but trying to cut back on salty oily food .

[red_Dragon888]

I was easedropping on some West Indian men, maybe Jamaicans, talking about the oil spill back from where they came from.  I didn't get the whole story, but I heard one man say "Man, oil up to here (I assume his hip)."  And he said, "It must be oil man, what else could it be"  I fear for the whole Carribean Sea, its ecosystem and its inhabitants.

[mecch]

Kevin Costner is supposed to have the fix. 

[skeebo1969]

Kevin Costner is supposed to have the fix. 

Great, just what we need, another Waterworld .

[J.R.E.]

And as the oil continues to gush,  Evacuation plans are now in place for the Tampa Bay area, should/when the oil arrives:


http://www.examiner.com/x-17299-Hernando-County-Political-Buzz-Examiner~y2010m5d9-Gulf-Oil-Spill-2010-Plans-to-evacuate-Tampa-Bay-area-expected-to-be-announced


Florida Gulf oil spill: Plans to evacuate Tampa Bay area are in place
May 9, 8:56 PMHernando County Political Buzz ExaminerMaryann Tobin



UPDATED: June 14, 2010
Gulf Oil Spill 2010: Plans to evacuate Tampa Bay area are in place

Gulf oil spill 2010 called weapon of mass destruction: BP fights back with garbage

Deepwater Horizon oil slick moving in on Florida & Atlantic Ocean for disaster of epic proportion

Is Florida drinking water supply threatened by BP Gulf oil spill? (Video)

NOAA projections for BP oil spill is world wide catastrophe (Video)

Deepwater Horizon sub-sea blowout:Expert says oil spill ‘doomsday scenario’ may have already begun

BP oil spill wildlife dying by the thousands (Video, Photos)

Florida BP oil spill UPDATE: Oil spill map moves slick closer to Tampa Bay area
 

 

UPDATED: June 14, 2010

Gulf Oil Spill 2010: Plans to evacuate Tampa Bay area are in place

As FEMA and other government agencies prepare for what is now being called the worst oil spill disaster in  history, plans to evacuate the Tampa Bay area are in place.

The plans would be announced in the event of a controlled burn of surface oil in the Gulf of Mexico, or if wind or other conditions are expected to take toxic fumes through Tampa Bay.

This practice has been used by the US Forestry service, when fire and smoke threaten the health and well being of people.

The elderly and those with respiratory problems would be more susceptible to health risks, in the event of a controlled burn.

Estimates of the rate of BP's Deepwater Horizon oil spill have varied. Independent scientists now suggest that the true spill rate, before the riser pipe was cut off in June, was between 20,000 and 50,000 barrels a day.

Since the April 20th explosion, which resulted in the sinking of the Deepwater Horizon rig, there have been more than a million gallons of chemicals poured into the Gulf of Mexico in efforts to break up the spill. The chemicals have come under scrutiny  because of their own toxic nature.

It is not certain if the massive slick will have to be set on fire near Tampa Bay, but the possibility has not been ruled out.

BP has been using controlled burns as a way to contain the oil spill since the crisis began.  Plans to do additional controlled burns around the well site were announced by Coast Guard Admiral Thad Allen at a briefing in early June.


A couple of weeks ago, we received memo's at work regarding this, since many of our residents have respiratory, and other health issues.


Ray

[red_Dragon888]

I should have saved the link, now I can't find it.  Apparently it was algae growth.

Ray

yeah, sure. 

[fearless]

Ah!  Living the Libertarian Dream!

Nigerians don't see what all the fuss is about in the Gulf and think you folks should just man up!

A nice bit of perspective, Philly.

[WillyWump]

What wears well with oil???

With Alex in the Gulf Revving up (predicted to be upwards of Cat 3 hurricaine) I feel it prudent as a gay man to be fashionally prepared when the "Oilicane" comes ashore. Should I go with a Traditional Polo? or perhaps a vintage pearl snap plaid??

All light heartedness aside, let's keep our fingers crossed that Alex doesnt take a further turn north and take aim on LA and Drench New Orleans with goo...it would be an epic disaster.

As a South Texan I'm willing to take one for the team and for once I can say I hope a hurricaine hits Texas (and not further east).

-Will

[skeebo1969]

Ah!  Living the Libertarian Dream!

Nigerians don't see what all the fuss is about in the Gulf and think you folks should just man up!

Wow, now that is extremely sad... destroy the earth for profit and greed.

[mecch]

Whats with the doomsayer scenarios that the sea floor is about to blow out with many holes around the original drill site.  Never to be capped or contained.

[fearless]

i've heard that too Mecch. Can't find the link but will try today. It's a very, very scary prospect though. The article I read 'hinted' that there were already several plumes spewing oil from a number of cracks in the sea floor, and that the sea floor in the area was fractured beyond repair.

[WillyWump]

i've heard that too Mecch. Can't find the link but will try today. It's a very, very scary prospect though. The article I read 'hinted' that there were already several plumes spewing oil from a number of cracks in the sea floor, and that the sea floor in the area was fractured beyond repair.

Here's one explanation of it, not sure of it's veracity however...

http://madmikesamerica.com/2010/06/the-bp-doomsday-scenario/

-Will

[J.R.E.]

BP admits that the wellhead is tilting :

http://www.saveourgulf.net/?p=153


Ray

[red_Dragon888]

I can't believe it is still not plugged up yet. 

[mecch]

That is one mighty grim doomsday scenario.  I think I need a temesta after reading that

[Miss Philicia]

BBC News: BP says oil has stopped leaking

[Hellraiser]

BBC News: BP says oil has stopped leaking

Hold on one moment let me put that through the "Publicity/Spin Filter"...Ok it looks like in reality it will actually stop leaking in the year 2037

[WillyWump]

BBC News: BP says oil has stopped leaking

YAY!!! the oil has stopped leaking! ohhhhhhhhh, The gulf Is still Dead

-Will

[J.R.E.]

http://www.baynews9.com/article/news/2010/july/123639/BP:-48-hour-cap-testing-window-closes-Saturday



By Jonathan Petramala, Reporter
Last Updated: Saturday, July 17, 2010 6:31 AM
More Info

   

NEW ORLEANS --

It's a wait and see situation for BP engineers this weekend.

They're working around the clock to figure out why pressure readings aren't rising as much as expected.

According to U.S. Coast Guard officials, the reservoir of oil could have run out, or there may be another leak.

Higher pressure readings mean the well is containing oil, while lower pressure could mean oil is escaping.

Saturday afternoon will mark two full days since BP stopped oil from leaking into the Gulf of Mexico and entered the pressure-testing phase.

BP's senior vice-president Kent Wells said the testing window is about to come to a close, and engineers should know whether the new containment cap will be a long term solution.

"Every six hours, we are going to look at everything we know and make the right decision to move forward," said Wells in a teleconference. "And so, no decision has been made yet at what we'll do at the end of 48 hours. And I can equally say no decision has been yet what we are going to do in the next six hours, 12 hours, whatever. But, what we will do is try to make the best decision that minimizes pollution and avoids risk. That's what we're committed to doing."

Engineers plan to reopen the cap, review the data collected from the tests, then decide their next step.

This is the first time in nearly three months that no oil is gushing into Gulf waters.

[J.R.E.]

  


According to U.S. Coast Guard officials, the reservoir of oil could have run out, or there may be another leak.

Higher pressure readings mean the well is containing oil, while lower pressure could mean oil is escaping.

Hate to even think it...


I would guess the second, I don't believe the reservoir ran out.  I sure hope there is no other leak !

Ray