Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill
The world today is in the middle of a war, not in the name of religion or
not for land but for the one thing that is driving this planet – OIL. Oil is
a fungible, international commodity whose ownership and ultimate destination
is determined by market farces once exiting the generating country. No
nation effectively functions; isolating from the changes that this commodity
formulates on the international market.
As the oil reserves start to deplete, nations all around the world are
engaged in acquiring most of it, which is left. In the midst of this
engaging war, we also have to face the challenges and problems that arise
with such continue exhaustation of this natural reserve. One such hazard
that has directed attention all over the world is an oil spill. An oil spill
is the release of this hydrocarbon into the water bodies harming the marine
life and living creatures directly dependent on it. Oil spills are often
released from a tanker, offshore platform, drilling rig or even a large
ship. The results are disastrous and horrendous that have to be managed,
taking up months to clean up.
One such terrifying incident that has recently taken place; called the
Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill (also referred to as the BP oil spill, the Gulf
of Mexico oil spill, the BP oil disaster or the Macondo blowout).
ORIGIN
The Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill is estimated to be amongst the largest of
oil spills in the history of United States of America. The oil spill shooted
from a sea floor oil gusher that resulted from the April 20, 2010 Deepwater
Horizon drilling rig explosion. The explosion killed 11 platform workers and
injured 17 others; another 98 people survived without serious physical
injuries.
DEEPWATER HORIZON DRILLING RIG
Owned by Transocean, this rig was under lease to BP from March 2008 to
September 2013. Constructed 9 years ago, this was a semi-submersible mobile
offshore drilling unit which as stated by the authorities was drilling
exceptionally well at the time of explosion.
THE DEADLY EXPLOSION
It was approximately 09:45 PM CDT on April 20, 2010 when methane gas from
the well, under pressure shot all the way up, ignited and then exploded.
Soon the fire had taken over the entire platform killing 11 workers, assumed
dead after a three day coast guard failed search operation.
After a blazing scenario of almost 36hours, on the morning of April 22, 2010
the Deepwater Horizon sank to the bottom of the ocean off the Louisiana
coast, destroying the drilling riser on the ocean floor, 5,000 feet below
the surface.
THE OIL SLICK
It was the afternoon of April 22, 2010 when large slick of oil began to
emerge at the former rig site. Soon it was announced by the Coast Guard Rear
Admiral Mary Landry that the damaged wellhead was leaking oil into the Gulf.
According to the US Congressional investigation the rig's blowout preventer,
a fail-safe device fitted at the base of the well, built by Cameron
International Corporation, had a hydraulic leak and a failed battery, and
therefore botched.
DEGREE OF OIL SPILL
The Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill has already surpassed the damages bone by
the Exxon Valdez tanker that spilled 11 million gallons of oil into the
ecologically sensitive Prince William Sound in 1989. Unlike being a tanker
holding a finite amount of oil, this tragedy holds a darker truth as the
BP’s rig was tapped into an underwater oil well, and would have continued to
pump oil into the ocean until the leak was plugged.
SPILL REGION
Due to strong southerly winds by April 25, 2010 the oil slick had surrounded
the Chandeleur Islands, Louisiana. Soon the oil started to spread off the
coast of Louisiana and settled around Mississippi and Alabama. Coast Guard
Marine Safety Unit Monday, July 5, 2010, in Texas City, Texas confirmed that
the tar balls discovered recently along the Galveston and Bolivar coastline
are from the Deepwater Horizon oil spill, marking the first time oil from
the spill has been found on Texas beaches.
UNDERWATER OIL PLUMES
On May 15 2010, researchers from the University of Southern Mississippi,
aboard the research vessel RV Pelican, identified oil plumes in the deep
waters of the Gulf of Mexico, including one as large as 10 miles (16 km)
long, 3 miles (4.8 km) wide and 300 feet (91 m) thick in spots.
CONTROL AND CONTAINMENT
- BP engineers have made repeated attempts to control the flow of oil,
multiple attempts by robots to control and cap the damaged pipe and BOP
(Blow Out Protector), oil contamination of living and non-living things, and
underwater oil plumes. BP is also believed to be drilling two relief wells
into the original wells in order to block the continue flow of oil.
- Military Aircrafts were also employed to spray oil - dispersant into the
Gulf of Mexico.
- As of June 21, 2010 Gulf Of Mexico Federal Waters were ordered closed for
fishing and tourism.
- Set of fixes include boomers, skimmers, underwater containment dome,
blowoff preventer, dispersants with detergents, microbes and burn the oil
slick generally considered the last resort.
LATEST ADVANCEMENTS
By July 5, 2010 BP claimed that it had received 95,000 claims out of which
it has already made payments against 47,000 of them.
It stated to have:
- Collected or flared 585,400 barrels
- Skimmed 673,497 barrels
- Control burns for 238,000 barrels of oil.
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