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How Big is the Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill?

cdiver

May 10, 2010

Elena Egawhary

BBC News

Thousands of tonnes of oil have poured into the Gulf of Mexico after the disaster at the Deepwater Horizon oil rig over two weeks ago. But how does this leak compare with the largest offshore spills on record?

The current size of the Deepwater Horizon spill is hard to measure exactly, but attempts can be made to estimate it.

Based on oil flow calculations from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Dr Simon Boxall, a marine pollution expert, says a total current spill can be estimated at about 7,000 to 10,000 tonnes of oil. (See factbox below for how this was worked out.)

But such estimates should always carry a caveat, he says, as these can be affected by factors such as the condition of the rig, the well and the quality of information available.

In terms of lives lost (11 workers died in the rig explosion), financial cost and environmental damage, the Deepwater Horizon incident is clearly serious. But it is not one of the world’s largest spills in terms of size alone.

In fact, based on the estimate above, it would not register in the largest 50 single incident, offshore oil spills that have occurred worldwide. Even the 1989 Exxon Valdez spill – despite the controversy and coverage – is not in the top 10.

However the potential for damage caused by Deepwater Horizon is apparent when looking at the events of June 1979 in the Bay of Campeche, also in the Gulf of Mexico.

In that spill, the exploratory oil well Ixtoc 1 suffered a blowout and wasn’t capped until more than nine months later, having released 461,000 tonnes of oil in total.

With the current situation in the Gulf of Mexico still uncertain, Dr Boxall, of the University of Southampton, points out reasons for optimism.

A plan to place a giant funnel over the leak could change things dramatically, he says.

“They reckon they will reduce the flow by 80% to 90%. And while there is no such thing as a good oil spill, the environment can cope much better with 70 tonnes a day than with 700 tonnes a day.”

Only two of the spills in our list of the world’s largest originated from oil rig explosions, the rest are tanker-related.

The largest of these came also in 1979, from the Atlantic Empress. It collided with the Aegean Captain in the Caribbean sea, spilling 287,000 tonnes of oil.

But far bigger than any of these peacetime accidents is the amount of oil spilled in the immediate aftermath of the first Iraq War, 1991. Although not a single offshore spill, it saw massive oil leaks that easily dwarf Ixtoc 1 with an estimated 1.4 million to 1.5 million tonnes of oil released into the Persian Gulf by Iraqi forces as they retreated from Kuwait.

1. Ixtoc 1: 476,000 tonnes Bay of Campeche, Gulf of Mexico

2. Atlantic Empress: 287,000 tonnes Off Tobago, West Indies

3. Nowruz Oil Field: 272, 000 tonnes Persian Gulf

4. ABT Summer: 260,000 tonnes 700 nautical miles off Angola

5. Castillo de Bellver: 252,000 tonnes Off Saldanha Bay, South Africa

6. Amoco Cadiz: 223,000 tonnes off Brittany, France

7. Haven: 144,000 tonnes Genoa, Italy

8. Odyssey: 132,000 tonnes 700 nautical miles off Nova Scotia, Canada

9. Torrey Canyon: 119,000 tonnes Scilly Isles, UK

10. Sea Star: 115,000 tonnes Gulf of Oman

Exxon Valdez: 37,000 tonnes Prince William Sound, Alaska, US

Deepwater Horizon: 7,000 to 10,000 tonnes Gulf of Mexico

The biggest leaks are not necessarily the most environmentally destructive.

The tanker Exxon Valdez, which ran aground on Bligh Reef, Alaska, in 1989, caused serious damage to the environment, killing thousands of seabirds as well as seals, sea otters, whales and fish. The remote location in sheltered waters only accentuated the problems.

The overall impact of an oil spill cannot be measured solely on size; weather conditions, the type of oil and the time it takes to stem the flow are just some of the many factors that also need to be considered.

The Ongoing Administration-Wide Response to the Deepwater BP Oil Spill

cdiver

May 5, 2010

Posted by Heidi Avery on May 05, 2010 at 05:55 AM EDT

Since the Deepwater Horizon explosion the night of April 20, federal authorities, both military and civilian, have been working onsite and around the clock to respond to and mitigate the impact of the resulting BP Oil Spill in the Gulf of Mexico.

We have compiled this chronology in the spirit of transparency so the American people can have a clear understanding of what their government has been and is doing to respond to the massive and potentially unprecedented environmental disaster.

Heidi Avery is White House Deputy Homeland Security Advisor

NIGHT OF TUESDAY, APRIL 20

Search and Rescue

The U.S. government response to the BP Oil Spill began immediately after the explosion on the night of April 20 as an emergency search-and-rescue mission. At approximately 10:30 p.m. that night, notification was received that Mobile Offshore Drilling Unit (MODU) Deepwater Horizon had exploded and was on fire. The rig was located 45 miles southeast of Venice, La.

Establish Command Center to Address Potential Environmental Impacts

Concurrently, the administration also quickly establishes a command center on the Gulf Coast to address the potential environmental impact of the event and to coordinate with all state and local governments. Since this point, the administration has continuously anticipated and planned for a worst-case scenario.

NOAA Mobilizes to Provide Trajectory Support

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) mobilizes within three hours of the explosion and started to provide trajectory support and coordinated scientific weather and biological response services. The NOAA weather forecast office in Slidell, La., also provided weather information to the Coast Guard at its request shortly after the explosion to support initial search-and-rescue operations.

The President is Alerted

The President is alerted to the event and he begins actively monitoring the situation. At the time, it was known that 126 people were on the rig when the explosion occurred.

Assets Deployed To Date

Total response vessels: Two Coast Guard cutters

Total response aircraft: Four helicopters and one rescue plane

WEDNESDAY, APRIL 21

Deputy Secretary of Interior David Hayes is Deployed to the Gulf Coast

The morning after the explosion, Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar deployed Deputy Secretary David J. Hayes to the Gulf Coast to assist with coordination and response to the event, and provide hourly reports to Secretary Salazar and other administration officials.

Interagency Coordination Begins Across the Government, Federal On-Scene Coordinator is Named and Regional Response Team is Stood Up

Interagency coordination begins immediately among federal partners—including the Coast Guard; the Departments of Homeland Security (DHS), Commerce (DOC), Interior (DOI); and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)—providing federal assets and overseeing BP’s response. Pursuant to the National Contingency Plan, Rear Admiral Mary Landry was named the Federal On-Scene Coordinator and a Regional Response Team was stood up that included the U.S. Coast Guard, DHS, DOC/NOAA, DOI and the EPA, as well as state and local representatives. The Regional Response Team immediately began developing plans, providing technical advice and access to resources and equipment from its member agencies, and overseeing BP’s response.

The Administration Oversees BP’s Response

The administration begins holding meetings and regular calls with BP leadership to discuss BP’s response effort, as well as federal oversight and support, and urged BP to leverage additional assets to help respond to this event.

Interagency Joint DHS-DOI Investigation Begins

Secretary Salazar and Secretary Napolitano direct that a joint investigation begin into the cause of the event. The investigation, jointly led by the U.S. Coast Guard and the Minerals Management Service (MMS), are given subpoena power, will hold public hearings, and call witnesses. MMS and USCG begin interviewing rig personnel.

National Park Service Plans Contingencies to Protect Vulnerable Parks Along Gulf Coast

The National Parks Service (NPS) Spill Response Coordinator, Regional Emergency Services Coordinator, and Deputy Chief of Emergency Services begin strategic planning of contingencies to protect potentially vulnerable national parks along the Gulf Coast.

MMS Establishes Ops Center and Deploys Staff to BP and Transocean Command Posts

MMS establishes an Emergency Operations Center at its Gulf of Mexico Regional Office in New Orleans, and deployed employees to the BP Incident Command Post (ICP) and the Transocean ICP in Houston.

NOAA Selects Scientific Support Coordinator and Deploys Him to USCG Command Post

NOAA Environmental Scientist Charlie Henry arrive on site at the Coast Guard’s Command Post in Morgan City, La., to serve as NOAA’s Scientific Support Coordinator. NOAA issued the initial trajectory advice and began providing them twice daily.

The President is Briefed

The President monitors the response and is briefed throughout the day by the White House Situation Room

Search and Rescue Continues

Of the 126 total people on the rig at the time of the event, 115 crew members were accounted for. The Coast Guard continued to actively search for all 11 individuals still missing through the night, with multiple units, vessels and aircraft responding.

Daily Response On-Site Press Briefing Begins

The first in a daily series of press briefings was conducted between the Minerals Management Service (MMS), the Coast Guard, BP and Transocean.

Assets Deployed To Date

Total response vessels: Two Coast Guard cutters

Total response aircraft: Four helicopters and one rescue plane

Response Photos:

http://cgvi.uscg.mil/media/main.php?g2_itemId=836364

http://cgvi.uscg.mil/media/main.php?g2_itemId=836361

http://cgvi.uscg.mil/media/main.php?g2_itemId=835864

http://cgvi.uscg.mil/media/main.php?g2_itemId=837369

THURSDAY, APRIL 22

Deepwater Horizon Oil Rig Sinks

At approximately 10:22 a.m., the oil rig sank with approximately 700,000 gallons of diesel fuel on board.

The National Response Team (NRT) is Activated

On the afternoon of April 22, the National Response Team (NRT) convenes its first daily meeting with leadership from across the federal government, including the White House, U.S. Coast Guard, the Department of Defense, DHS, DOC, DOI and EPA, among others. The NRT is an organization of 16 federal departments and agencies responsible for coordinating emergency preparedness and response to oil and hazardous substance pollution events. During this event, NRT meetings have been run by Secretary Napolitano.

The President Convenes a Principal Level Meeting: “Treat This Response as The Number One Priority”

The President convenes a meeting in the Oval Office with principals across the government to discuss the situation and ongoing response efforts, and ordered that the administration use every single available resource at its disposal to respond to the event and investigate its cause. A readout was issued to press stating: “The President made sure that the entire federal government was offering all assistance needed in the rescue effort as well as in mitigating and responding to the environmental impact and that this response was being treated as the number one priority. The President asked the responding departments to devote every resource needed to respond to this incident and investigate its cause.”

The NRT Holds Second Meeting of the Day to Implement President Obama’s Instructions

Following the Oval Office meeting, the NRT holds a second evening meeting—again including the Coast Guard, the Department of Defense, DHS, DOC, DOI and EPA, among others.

No Apparent Leak

Air and sea restriction zones are established around the sink site for safety purposes. The Coast Guard conducted overflights and multiple unsuccessful dives were made with remote operated marine vehicles to find the wellhead. No leak was apparent.

Dispersants Are Pre-Positioned In Case Situation Worsens

Despite a lack of apparent leak, 100,000 gallons of dispersants are already pre-positioned between Stennis, Miss., Houma and Lake Charles, La., and pre-approved for use by EPA Regions VI and IV Regional Response Teams.

NOAA Begins to Provide Marine Pollution Surveillance Reports

NOAA Satellite and Information Service provides the first experimental marine pollution surveillance report using satellite data, and began providing daily updates.

Search and Rescue Continues

Coast Guard continues to actively search for all 11 missing individuals from the rig through the night, with multiple units responding.

Intergovernmental Calls with Potentially Impacted Gulf Coast Communities Begin

Intergovernmental calls update potentially impacted gulf coast communities the response are communicated to potentially impacted Gulf Coast communities

Daily Response On-Site Press Briefing is Conducted

The next in a daily series of press briefings was conducted between the Minerals Management Service (MMS), the Coast Guard, NOAA, BP and Transocean.

Assets Deployed To Date

Total response vessels: Two Coast Guard cutters

Total response aircraft: Four helicopters and one rescue plane

Response Photos:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/uscgd8/4551846015/in/set-72157623940838176/

http://www.flickr.com/photos/39955793@N07/4545746887/

http://cgvi.uscg.mil/media/main.php?g2_itemId=838790

FRIDAY, APRIL 23

No Apparent Leak

The rig was found—sunken and upside down approximately 1,500 feet northwest of the blowout preventer. An oil sheen was reported with approximately 8,400 gallons estimated on the water and there was no apparent leak discovered.

White House Convened Principal Level Meeting to Discuss Response and Planning In Case Situation Worsens

White House convenes principal level meeting with top officials from across the government including Secretary Napolitano and the NRT in the White House Situation Room to review actions underway and discuss policy considerations and planning in case the situation worsens.

U.S. Government Continues to Mobilize and Move More Resources In Case Situation Worsens

The U.S. government continues to mobilize and move more resources into the gulf to support BP, the responsible party, and apply federal resources to mitigate environmental damage, including moving 8 more vessels to the area

EPA Prepares To Deploy Staff to the Region for Air Monitoring

EPA begins preparations to deploy staff to the region to support the Coast Guard with air monitoring and other activities.

MMS Shuts Down Two Pipelines In the Area To Do Inspection

MMS reports that two pipelines in the vicinity of the sunken rig were shut down until they could be inspected.

Sunken Rig Assessments Continue

Four remote operated marine vehicles continue to monitor the stack, conduct surveys of the riser and pipelines, and assess the stability of the sunken rig.

Unified Area Command is Formally Stood Up

The Unified Area Command is formally and fully stood up in Robert, La., after three days of informal operations and planning.

The President is Briefed

The President monitors the response and is briefed throughout the day by the White House Situation Room

NOAA’s National Weather Service Begins Coordinated Scientific Weather Reports

NOAA’s National Weather Service begins providing coordinated scientific weather and biological response services to federal, state and local organizations.

Search and Rescue Suspends at 5p.m

The Coast Guard continues to actively search for all 11 missing individuals until approximately 5 p.m., when the search was suspended.

Daily Legislative Calls Begin and Daily Response On-Site Press Briefing and Intergovernmental Calls Are Conducted, Deepwaterhorizonresponse.com is Launched

The Coast Guard conducts the next in a daily series of press briefings and intergovernmental calls. A response website with consolidated information was established at http://www.deepwaterhorizonresponse.com.

Assets Deployed To Date—8 More Vessels Arrive

Total response vessels: approximately 10
Oily water recovered: 7,600 gallons
Dispersant used: 1,900 gallons

SATURDAY, APRIL 24

First Oil Leaks Discovered and USCG Elevates Response

For the first time, oil was found to be leaking—one leak from the riser and one leak from the drill pipe. The Coast Guard elevated the response and established a Regional Command Center and Joint Information Center in Robert, La., inviting all partners in the response to join.

NPS Prepares for Potential Oil Spill on national park land along the Gulf Coast

NPS begins cataloging resources and sampling pre-landfall conditions of resources in order to prepare for potential impact of the oil spill on national park land along the Gulf Coast.

MMS Begins to Review BP Applications for Permit to Drill Two Relief Wells

MMS reports that they expected to receive and begin reviewing BP Applications for Permit to Drill (APD) for two relief wells. Four remote operated marine vehicles continued to monitor the stack, conduct surveys of the riser and pipelines, and assess the stability of the sunken rig.

The President is Briefed

The President monitors the response and is briefed throughout the day by the White House Situation Room

Daily On-Site Press Briefing, Legislative and Intergovernmental Calls are Conducted

The next in a daily series of press briefings is conducted between the Minerals Management Service (MMS), the Coast Guard, NOAA, BP and Transocean—this time at the newly-formed Joint Information Center in Robert, La., as well as daily legislative and intergovernmental calls.

Assets Deployed To Date

Total response vessels: approximately 10

Oily water recovered: approximately 40,000 gallons

Response Photos:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/uscgd8/4549418892/

SUNDAY, APRIL 25

Overflights indicated the oil spill size was approximately 48 miles wide by 39 miles long.

Outreach to Potentially Impacted Gulf Coast States, Response Equipment Staging Areas Established

All potentially impacted Gulf Coast states are notified and invited to participate in the command center located in Robert, La. Response equipment staging areas were established in Venice, La., Biloxi, Miss., and Pensacola, Fla.

U.S. Naval Air Station Serves as Staging Facility

At the request of the Coast Guard, the U.S. Navy provides Naval Air Station Pensacola as a staging facility for BP-contractor provided equipment (i.e. containment booms, recovery barges, tractor trailer trucks, various pumps and other related oil response equipment).

20 More Vessels and 500 Responders Are Deployed In Case Situation Worsens

The response continues to mobilize and move more resources into the gulf to support BP, the responsible party, and apply federal resources to mitigate environmental damage, including moving 20 more vessels to the area and deploying 500 responders

MMS Approves Resumption of One of the Two Pipelines Previously Shut Down and Works With BP on Exploration Plan to Drill Relief Wells

MMS approves resumption of one of the two pipelines that were previously shut down to allow for inspection, and continued to work with BP on an exploration plan to drill the two relief wells.

The President is Briefed

The President monitors the response and is briefed throughout the day by the White House Situation Room

Daily On-Site Press Briefing, Legislative and Intergovernmental Calls are Conducted

The next in a daily series of press briefings is conducted between the Minerals Management Service (MMS), the Coast Guard, NOAA, BP and Transocean at the Joint Information Center in Robert, La., as well as daily legislative and intergovernmental calls.

Assets Deployed To Date-20 More Vessels and 500 Responders

Total response vessels: more than 30
Boom deployed: 21,340 feet
Oily water recovered: approximately 42,000 gallons
Dispersant used: 12,600 gallons

Dispersant available: approximately 100,000 gallons
Overall personnel responding: approximately 500

Response Photos:

http://cgvi.uscg.mil/media/main.php?g2_itemId=841178

http://www.flickr.com/photos/uscgd8/4552485336/

MONDAY, APRIL 26

Secretary Salazar Announces Physical Inspections of All Deepwater Rigs

Secretary Salazar directs MMS to commence physical inspections of all deepwater rigs to be concluded with two weeks, followed by physical inspections of all deepwater platforms.

U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Begin Identifying High Priority National Resources for Booming Operations

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service begin working with the Coast Guard and other partners to identify high-priority natural resources (national wildlife refuges) for booming operations along potentially affected Gulf Coast areas.

The President is Briefed

The President monitors the response and is briefed throughout the day by the White House Situation Room

BP Submits Application for Preliminary Drilling

MMS reports that the Application for Preliminary Drilling (APD) for the Development Driller III had been submitted by BP and was currently under review. A total of 15 MMS personnel were deployed to support event response.

Daily On-Site Press Briefing, Legislative and Intergovernmental Calls are Conducted

Assets Deployed To Date- 500 More Responders Deploy

Total response vessels: more than 30
Boom deployed: 21,340 feet
Oily water recovered: 48,384 gallons
Dispersant used: 14,654 gallons
Dispersant available: 119,734 gallons
Overall personnel responding: more than 1,000

Response Photos:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/uscgd8/4557684643/in/set-72157623940838176/

http://www.flickr.com/photos/uscgd8/4558317388/in/set-72157623940838176/

http://www.flickr.com/photos/uscgd8/4558215118/

TUESDAY, APRIL 27

DOI-DHS Announce Formal Investigation Next Steps

Secretary Salazar and Secretary Napolitano announce the formal next steps to their joint investigation underway into the causes of the explosion that left 11 workers missing, three critically injured, and an ongoing oil spill that the responsible party and federal agencies are working to contain and clean up. It is proceeding under a Joint Statement of Principles and Convening Order, which convenes the formal joint investigation, and a Memorandum of Agreement, which lays out roles and responsibilities that relate to each agency’s area of expertise.

White House Meets with BP to Discuss Response Efforts

Numerous top administration officials, including Secretary Napolitano, Secretary Salazar, White House Senior Advisor Valerie Jarrett and Assistant to the President for Energy and Climate Carol Browner hold meetings in Washington with BP executives and received briefings on company efforts to stop the oil flow.

The President is Briefed

The President monitors the response and is briefed throughout the day by the White House Situation Room

Controlled Burn Plans Are Approved

Plans for a controlled burn of contained oil were approved late at night for the following day. Burns of this type are heavily dependent on weather conditions.

Daily On-Site Press Briefing, Legislative and Intergovernmental Calls are Conducted

Assets Deployed To Date-20 Additional Vessels Arrive

Total response vessels: approximately 50
Boom deployed: 29,280 feet
Boom available: 80,900 feet
Oily water recovered: 260,652 gallons
Dispersant used: 29,140 gallons
Dispersant available: 119,734 gallons
Overall personnel responding: more than 1,000

Response Photos:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/uscgd8/4563748656/in/set-72157623940838176/

http://www.flickr.com/photos/uscgd8/4563118299/in/set-72157623940838176/

http://www.flickr.com/photos/uscgd8/4558745875/

http://governor.alabama.gov/gallery/images_detail.aspx?ID=995

WEDNESDAY, APRIL 28

Controlled Burn Is Conducted

A successful controlled, on-location burn is conducted for approximately 30 minutes—a strategy designed to minimize environmental risks by removing large quantities of oil in the Gulf of Mexico following the April 20 explosion. Burns of this type are heavily dependent on weather conditions.

Secretary Salazar Travels to BP Command Center in Houston

Secretary Salazar travels to the BP command center in Houston to review BP’s operations and response efforts.

MMS Approves First Drilling Permit for First Relief Well

MMS reports that the drilling permit for the first relief well had been approved, and that the application for the second relief well was under review.

U.S. Navy Sends Additional Assets

In direct support of the Coast Guard under an existing pollution clean-up and salvage operations agreement, the Navy provides a variety of oil pollution control equipment. The Navy sent thousands of feet of inflatable oil boom with mooring equipment, several skimming systems, related support gear, and personnel to support oil spill response efforts. Naval Air Station Pensacola is serving as a staging facility for Coast Guard contractor-provided equipment.

Daily On-Site Press Briefing, Legislative and Intergovernmental Calls are Conducted

Additional Breach Discovered, President is Briefed and Response Escalates

Late in the day, BP alerted the U.S. government to an additional breach. As soon as the additional breach was discovered, senior officials from across the government already convened in the White House Situation Room immediately briefed the President on Air Force One, and Rear Admiral Landry is sent back out for the second time that day to brief press, this time on the additional breach and the steps the administration is taking to respond, including that the President urged – out of an abundance of caution, and mindful of the new information – that we must continue to pre-position resources to continue to aggressively confront this incident.

Assets Deployed To Date

Total response vessels: approximately 50
Boom deployed: 147,100 feet
Oily water recovered: 400,080 gallons
Dispersant used: 56,000 gallons
Dispersant available: 119,734 gallons
Overall personnel responding: more than 1,000

Response Photos:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/uscgd8/4563719473/in/set-72157623940838176/

http://www.flickr.com/photos/39955793@N07/4566316896/

THURSDAY, APRIL 29

Oil Spill Update During the PDB

The President receives another in depth briefing of the escalating situation in his morning PDB session

Spill of National Significance is Declared and White House Holds Briefing for White House Reporters on The Additional Breach and Corresponding Response Efforts

Senior officials from across the government, including Secretary Napolitano, EPA Administrator Jackson and NOAA Administrator Lubchenco and White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs brief White House reporters in the White House briefing room on the change in the event: the additional breach.

Secretary Napolitano announces that the event would now become designated a Spill of National Significance (SONS), which built on the efforts already underway from day one to leverage the full resources of the federal government to be brought to bear in response to this further escalating event. The SONS designation enabled the appointment of a National Incident Commander to coordinate response resources at the national level. The designation does not provide additional funding or authority—nor was it needed, as that authority already existed and resources were mobilized in case the situation worsened from day one. This is why the day DHS announced the SONS designation, there were already more than 70 vessels in the Gulf of Mexico responding to the spill and approximately 1,100 personnel already deployed and on scene to assist.

The President Orders Secretary Salazar to Deliver Report on Additional Safety Measures for Offshore Operations to be Completed Within 30 Days

Secretary Salazar receives direction from the President to deliver in 30 days a report with recommendations on what, if any, additional safety measures should be required for offshore operations. He then announced that inspections of all deepwater rigs and platforms were underway.

The President Makes Remarks on the Oil Spill’s Escalated Situation

The President updates the American people on the worsening situation in the Gulf of Mexico and states that his administration will continue to use every single available resource at our disposal, including potentially the Department of Defense, to address the incident.

White House Convenes Deputy’s Committee Meeting in Situation Room

The White House convenes a meeting at the deputy secretary level with senior officials from across the government to discuss the escalating situation, the response and to continue planning for worsening situations

DoD Designates Mississippi’s Kessler Air Force Base as Base Support Installation

DOD designates Keesler Air Force Base in Mississippi as a base support installation. The installation will serve as a location where military units conduct logistical operations.

DOI Secretary Salazar Hosts Meeting of Oil and Gas Companies to Urge Them To Help

Secretary Salazar spends the day in Houston reviewing BP’s operations and response efforts. Upon his return from Houston, Secretary Salazar hosts a meeting of oil and gas companies in his office and urged them to make available all available resources to the response.

Daily On-Site Press Briefing, Legislative and Intergovernmental Calls are Conducted

The next in a daily series of press briefings was conducted between the Minerals Management Service (MMS), the Coast Guard, NOAA, BP and Transocean at the Joint Information Center in Robert, La., as well as daily legislative and intergovernmental calls.

Assets Deployed To Date-Additional 25 Vessels Arrive

Total response vessels: approximately 75
Boom deployed: 174,060 feet
Boom available: 243,260 feet
Oily water recovered: 763,560 gallons
Dispersant used: 98,361 gallons
Dispersant available: 75,000 gallons
Overall personnel responding: more than 1,000

Response Photos:

http://cgvi.uscg.mil/media/main.php?g2_itemId=844167

http://cgvi.uscg.mil/media/main.php?g2_itemId=844164

http://www.nasa.gov/images/content/449676main_gulf-spill-full.jpg

FRIDAY, APRIL 30

The President Dispatches Senior Administration Officials to the Gulf Coast

The President dispatches Secretary Napolitano, Secretary Salazar, EPA Administrator Lisa Jackson, Assistant to the President for Energy and Climate Change Policy Carol Browner, and NOAA Administrator Jane Lubchenco to the Gulf Coast.

The President Makes Remarks on the Oil Spill’s Escalating Situation

The President updates Americans on the ongoing federal response to the worsening BP oil spill

National Guard Activation

In response to the BP oil spill, the Secretary of Defense authorizes under Title 32 the mobilization of the Louisiana National Guard to help in the ongoing efforts to assist local communities in the cleanup and removal of oil and to protect critical habitats from contamination.

Secretary of Defense Approves Request for Two C-130 Aircrafts To Respond

The Secretary of Defense approves a request for two C-130 aircraft with Modular Aerial Spray Systems (MASS), which are currently en route to the affected area. The Coast Guard requested assistance from the Department of Defense for these aircraft. These aircraft dispense the same dispersant chemical being used by BP and the federal responders. Each system is capable of covering up to 250 acres per flight with three flights per aircraft per day.

Response Crews Begin Testing New Dispersant Technique

Response crews begin testing a new technique to break up the oil before it reaches the surface—a remotely operated underwater vehicle dispensing sub-surface dispersant at a rate of nine gallons per minute. Nearly 3,000 gallons of subsea dispersants were applied, and BP and NOAA evaluated these tests to determine the feasibility of continued use of subsea dispersants.

EPA Begins Monitoring Water Quality, Administrator Jackson Remains On The Ground

EPA begins monitoring water quality in the Gulf Coast region. EPA Administrator Jackson remains on the ground in the region for the following three days, visiting sites in Louisiana and Mississippi and meeting with community leaders, local industry and elected leaders at the state and local level.

The President is Briefed

The President monitors the response and is briefed throughout the day by the White House Situation Room

DOI Establishes Outer Continental Shelf Safety Oversight Board

DOI establishes the Outer Continental Shelf (OCS) Safety Oversight Board to provide recommendations regarding interim measures that may enhance OCS safety, as well as improving and strengthening the Department’s overall management, regulation and oversight of OCS operations. Secretary Salazar will provide a report to President Obama within 30 days on what, if any, immediate additional precautions and technologies should be required

Senior Federal and State Officials Hold Joint Press Briefing On-Site

Secretary Napolitano, Secretary Salazar, EPA Administrator Jackson, Louisiana Governor Bobby Jindal and BP Chief Operating Officer Doug Suttles conducted a press briefing. Daily legislative and intergovernmental calls were also conducted.

NOAA Provides Additional Resources To Protect Critical Wildlife

Personnel from NOAA’s National Marine Sanctuaries program provided additional resources for both response and assessment efforts to protect critical wildlife.

Sixth Staging Area Stood Up

A sixth staging area is set up in Port Sulphur, La., joining five others in Venice, La., Biloxi, Miss., Pascagoula, Miss., Theodore, Ala., Pensacola, Fla.

Assets To Date—1,000 More Responders Arrive

Total response vessels: approximately 75
Boom deployed: 217,000 feet
Boom available: 305,760 feet
Oily water recovered: 853,146 gallons
Dispersant used: 139,459 gallons
Dispersant available: 51,000 gallons
Overall personnel responding: approximately 2,000

Response Photos:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/usnavynvns/4574068993/

http://www.flickr.com/photos/usnavynvns/4574069413/

http://cgvi.uscg.mil/media/main.php?g2_itemId=844563

http://www.flickr.com/photos/uscgd8/4566787948/

SATURDAY, MAY 1

Secretary Napolitano Names U.S. Coast Guard Commandant Admiral Thad Allen to Serve as National Incident Commander

As part of the designation of the BP Oil Spill as a Spill of National Significance, Secretary Napolitano announces that Coast Guard Commandant Admiral Thad Allen will serve as the National Incident Commander for the administration’s continued, coordinated response— providing additional coordinated oversight in leveraging every available resource to respond to the BP oil spill and minimize the associated environmental risks. Admiral Allen has overseen Coast Guard efforts since the moment this event began, when the agency responded quickly to the April 20 explosion in a search and rescue capacity in order to save lives. With this formal designation Admiral Allen is able to continue to lead and coordinate ongoing federal actions to mitigate the oil spill, for which BP is responsible and required to pay response and cleanup costs.

The President is Briefed

The President monitors the response and is briefed throughout the day by the White House Situation Room

White House Convenes Deputy’s Committee Meeting in Situation Room

The White House convenes a meeting at the deputy secretary level with senior officials from across the government to discuss the escalating situation and the response

White House Homeland Security Advisor and U.S. Coast Guard commandant Brief Reporters Via Conference Call on the Ongoing Response Efforts

White House Homeland Security Advisor John Brennan and Admiral Allen brief media via conference call about ongoing efforts to contain the spill and minimize associated environmental risks.

DoD Airlifts Additional Booms To Better Protect Gulf Coast

To prepare for the possible spreading of the oil slick across the Gulf Coast and in support of the 2nd Unified command Center in Mobile, Ala., the Department of Defense airlifted additional boom materials to Mobile, located on four tractor trailers to expedite transportation on the receiving end.

Eight Staging Areas Begin Operating

Eight staging areas were operating in Venice, La., Biloxi, Miss., Pascagoula, Miss., Theodore, Ala., Pensacola, Fla., Port Sulphur, La., Gulfport, Miss., and Port Fourchon, La.

Assets To Date

Total response vessels: approximately 75
Boom deployed: 275,580 feet
Boom available: 316,470 feet
Oily water recovered: more than 1 million gallons
Dispersant used: 142,914 gallons
Dispersant available: 68,300 gallons
Overall personnel responding: approximately 2,000

Response Photos:

http://cgvi.uscg.mil/media/main.php?g2_itemId=847276

SUNDAY, MAY 2

President Obama Visits Gulf Coast to Inspect Response Effort

President Obama visits the Gulf Coast to inspect response operations firsthand, underscoring the administration’s all-hands-on-deck response to protect the coastline of potentially affected Gulf Coast states.

EPA Posts First Air Monitoring Data Results

EPA posts on its dedicated response website the first air monitoring data it has collected in the area—with no red flags.

NOAA Announces Fishing Restriction

NOAA announces a fishing restriction for a minimum of ten days in federal waters most affected by the BP oil spill, largely between Louisiana state waters at the mouth of the Mississippi River to waters off Florida’s Pensacola Bay. The closure was effective immediately. This order balances economic and health concerns and only closes those areas affected by oil. Details can be found here.

Secretaries Napolitano and Salazar Host Gulf Coast States Conference Call

Secretaries Janet Napolitano and Ken Salazar spoke by conference call to Governors Haley Barbour (MS), Bob Riley (AL), Rick Perry (TX), Charlie Crist (FL) and the Deputy Chief of Staff to Gov. Bobby Jindal (LA). Gov. Jindal was with President Obama. They briefed the Governors on the ongoing response to the BP oil spill in the gulf. They spoke specifically about efforts to stop the oil leaks and about mitigating the oil’s impact on the shorelines of their states. Additionally, they spoke about ways to enhance what has been strong cooperation between the federal government and the states.

30 More Vessels and Additional 1,000 Responders Are Deployed to the Gulf Coast

The response continues to mobilize and move more resources into the gulf to support BP, the responsible party, and apply federal resources to mitigate environmental damage, including moving 30 more vessels to the area and deploying an additional 1,000 responders

BP Begins Accepting Claims

BP begins accepting claims for the Gulf Coast oil spill via BP’s helpline at 1-800-440-0858. A BP fact sheet with additional information is available here. Those who have already pursued the BP claims process and are not satisfied with BP’s resolution can call the Coast Guard at 1-800-280-7118. More information about what types of damages are eligible for compensation under the Oil Pollution Act as well as guidance on procedures to seek that compensation can be found here.

Additional DoD Assets Arrive

Two Modular Aerial Spray System (MASS) aircraft were deployed in support of the event. Both aircraft have multiple missions scheduled daily, contingent on weather. These aircraft can dispense the same dispersant chemical being used by BP and the federal responders. Each system is capable of covering up to 250 acres per flight with three flights per aircraft per day—building on existing dispersant capabilities.

A C-17 aircraft carrying pollution response boom components for support flew from Travis AFB in California and arrived at Mobile International Airport.

MMS Reports that BP Begins Drilling First Deep-Water Intercept Relief Well

MMS reported that BP began drilling the first deep-water intercept relief well. This action is expected to take approximately 90 days.

Assets To Date—30 More Vessels and Additional 1,000 Responders Arrive

Total response vessels: 104
Boom deployed: 243,200 feet
Boom available: 522,821 feet
Oily water recovered: more than 1 million gallons
Dispersant used: 156,012 gallons
Dispersant available: 75,124 gallons
Overall personnel responding: approximately 3,000

MONDAY, MAY 3

The President Dispatches Senior Cabinet Officials Back to the Gulf Coast

The President dispatches the secretaries of Commerce, Interior and Homeland Security, the EPA Administrator and the NOAA Administrator to return to the Gulf Coast this week. Specific details on their travel will come from their departments and agencies, but collectively they will be inspecting the ongoing, coordinated response efforts to mitigate the impact of the spill on public health, the environment and the economy. They will meet with business owners to discuss potential economic impacts of this spill across the Gulf Coast region.

Senior Administration Officials Meet with BP Senior Leadership

Secretary Salazar, Secretary Napolitano, EPA Administrator Jackson and other members of the Obama administration met with BP CEO Tony Hayward and BP America Chairman and President Lamar McKay at the Department of the Interior to discuss ongoing, coordinated response efforts and receive an update on BP’s mitigation plans for potentially impacted Gulf Coast states. This was the most recent in a series of meetings that have taken place between administration leadership and BP leadership.

White House Convenes Deputy’s Committee Meeting in Situation Room

More Than 2,000 Volunteers Are Trained To Assist

More than 2,000 volunteers receive training to assist in the response effort to that date. Volunteer recruitment efforts include outreach to local fishermen with boats, which can be used as vessels of opportunity to assist contractors in deploying boom.

OSHA Ensures Cleanup Workers Receive Necessary Protection

Assistant Secretary of Labor for Occupational Safety and Health Dr. David Michaels visits Louisiana with a team of experienced hazardous materials professionals leading an effort to ensure that oil spill cleanup workers receive necessary protections from the hazards of this work. OSHA is consulting with BP, as well as federal agency partners, to ensure that workers receive appropriate training and protective equipment.

Assets To Date—80 More Vessels Arrive

Total response vessels: 183
Boom deployed: 156,703 feet
Boom available: 530,061 feet
Oily water recovered: more than 1 million gallons
Dispersant used: 156,012 gallons
Dispersant available: 230,138 gallons
Overall personnel responding: approximately 3,000

TUESDAY, MAY 4

Cabinet Officials Brief Members of Congress

Secretary Salazar, Secretary of Commerce Gary Locke, Administrator Jackson, DHS Deputy Secretary Jane Holl Lute and Admiral Allen provided a bi-partisan and bi-cameral briefing to Congress on the administration’s all-hands-on-deck response to the spill. They updated members of Congress on the status of ongoing, coordinated response efforts in the Gulf coast states and delivered an update on BP’s mitigation plans for potentially impacted Gulf Coast states.

Cabinet Officials Host Daily Coordination Calls with the Gulf Coast State Governors

To ensure consistent coordination with the Gulf Coast states, Admiral Thad Allen, Secretaries Janet Napolitano and Ken Salazar, Administrator Lisa Jackson and NOAA Deputy Under Secretary Monica Medina began daily calls with the Governors from the five Gulf Coast states to provide updates on the response to the BP oil spill and answer any questions that arise. Governors Barbour, Crist, Jindal, Perry and Riley have been invited to participate in the daily calls moving forward. These daily calls are a follow up to the calls last Friday and Sunday between the Governors and the agencies involved in the federal response, as well as the calls last week between the President and the Governors and the President’s visit to the region on Sunday. These calls are intended to further the already unprecedented cooperation and focused effort between state and local officials and the federal government in response to this situation.

National Guard Activation

Secretary Gates has authorized use of Title 32 status for up to 17,500 National Guard members in four states: Alabama (3,000), Florida (2,500), Louisiana (6,000) and Mississippi (6,000).

The state of Louisiana has activated approximately 1,200 National Guard members under Title 32 for command and control and sandbagging operations in St Bernard and Plaquemines parishes. Louisiana National Guard personnel are actively manning the Joint Operations Center and Tactical Aviation Cell.

20 More Vessels and 4,500 Responders Are Deployed to the Gulf Coast

Air Quality Monitoring

EPA’s Air Quality Index (AQI) tracks levels of particulate matter and ozone along the Gulf Coast—data available publicly daily at http://www.airnow.gov and http://gulfcoast.airnowtech.org. In addition to these monitors, EPA’s emergency response teams have put up multiple monitoring stations to track larger particulate matter. The location of these monitoring stations is flexible as conditions change during this response.

Assets To Date—20 More Vessels and 4,000 Responders Arrive

Total response vessels: nearly 200
Boom deployed: 367,881 feet
Boom available: more than 1 million feet
Oily water recovered: more than 1 million gallons
Dispersant used: nearly 160,000 gallons
Dispersant available: 230,000 gallons
Overall personnel responding: approximately 7,500

*** This is a general narrative of key actions the U.S. government took to save lives and mitigate the BP oil spill’s impact on public health, the environment and the economy. (Detailed and specific after-action information is still being collected, as with any major event.) ***

http://www.whitehouse.gov/blog/2010/05/05/ongoing-administration-wide-response-deepwater-bp-oil-spill/

Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill Now Size of Delaware, Threatens Four States

cdiver

May 4, 2010

Tuesday, May 4th, 2010

Two weeks after the Deepwater Horizon oil rig exploded in the Gulf of Mexico, a massive oil spill continues to threaten the ecology and economy of the U.S. Gulf Coast. The ever-growing oil slick now measures approximately 130 miles by 70 miles – about the size of the state of Delaware. Four states – Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, and Florida – are under threat from the spill.

According to Reuters, BP, which was leasing Deepwater Horizon from TransOcean LTD, has reported some progress slowing the flow of oil from the leaking well. Crews in Louisiana have finished building the first of three massive steel and concrete containment domes the company plans to lower in place over one of the three leaks on the ocean floor. BP expects to load the dome aboard a ship tomorrow for transport to the site.

BP also has started drilling a relief well that could cap the oil spill, but that effort will take up to three months to complete, Reuters said.

TampaBay.com is reporting that BP was unable to install a shutoff valve at the site of one of the leaks due to rough seas. Heavy winds also damaged miles of floating booms laid out in coastal waters to protect the shoreline from the spreading oil slick. According to the TampaBay.com report, the slick appeared to be drifting toward the Alabama and Florida coasts and the Chandeleur Islands off Louisiana’s southern tip.

There are fears that the slick could be caught up in the Gulf Loop Current. That could carry the oil as far south as the Florida Keys and back up the east coast into the Atlantic.

For now, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) expects the oil slick to spread further east and west. It is not known if it will progress closer to the coast though. One positive note, however, is that stormy weather, which has slowed cleanup and containment, is expected to clear, and better conditions are expected over the next few days.

BP continues to face scrutiny because of the oil spill. Yesterday, the Obama Administration reiterated that the oil company would pay for the disaster. According to Reuters, Attorney General Eric Holder also made comments that seemed to indicate the disaster could eventually be the subject of a criminal probe.

BP acknowledged yesterday that it was “absolutely responsible” for stopping the leak, cleaning up the oil on the water’s surface and any resulting environmental damage. Some experts have put BP’s potential liability at more than $14 billion.

BP is also faced new accusations that it did not do enough to prevent the Deepwater Horizon explosion. The U.K’s Sunday Times reported that the oil company was warned 10 years ago about problems with the type of blowout preventer that led to the disaster. The blowout preventer should close an out-of-control well, but failed on Deepwater Horizon.

According to the Sunday Times, in 2000 TransOcean acknowledged that the blowout preventer on another rig – Discover Enterprise – did “not work exactly right”. BP had issued a “notice of default” to TransOcean over the problem that June, and the equipment was unable to operate for extended periods while it was fixed. The blowout preventer on Deepwater Horizon was fitted at about the same time BP was complaining of problems with its sister vessel, the Sunday Times said.

The New York Times also reported that lawyers for a worker who was on Deepwater Horizon at the time of the April 20 explosion had charged that the rig was drilling deeper than 22,000 feet, even though the company’s federal permit allowed it to go only to 18,000-20,000 feet deep. BP denies the claim.

http://www.newsinferno.com/archives/20059

SeaVision Marine Services LLC: Underwater Inspection in Lieu of Drydocking

Video

cdiver

May 4, 2010

“In order to better operate in the murky waters we often encounter, we are also ulizing a LYYN T38™ Visual Enhancement Tool which helps to ’cut through’ turbid waters in order to improve visibility.“ Jeffrey Z. Snyder, President of SeaVision Marine Services.

At SeaVision Marine Services LLC, we perform a variety of underwater investigations, such as hydrographic surveys, sidescan sonar surveys, marine magnetometer surveys, remote-operated vehicle investigations, and bottom sampling, in order to inspect places and things that are inaccessible to, or imperceptible by, divers.

Drawing upon nearly ten years of experience in marine operations to support diving and salvage operations, underwater surveys, and engineering design and construction projects, SeaVision can provide these services with value-added management solutions that help waterfront and marine clients to better manage their resources.

When a hull inspection is required – such as the two inspections of the outer hull of all sea-going vessels required every ﬁve years by the American Bureau of Shipping (ABS) and the US Coast Guard (USCG) – the solution is normally an expensive dry-dock trip. One of these two inspections can be carried out underwater while the vessel is aﬂoat, a so-called Underwater Inspection in Lieu of Drydocking (UWILD) survey. Divers can often accomplish the task, but ROVs are ideal due to their thoroughness and detailed recordkeeping, not to mention the speed with which Inspections can be carried out, which is becoming important due to the increasing number of ships that need to be inspected.

Inspections with an ROV do not require tagouts intakes and outflows, nor are the safety regulations anywhere near as stringent as those when using divers. ROVs are not subject to physiological constraints – they can dive in water of any quality or temperature – to any depth required for hull inspection – for any length of me and in sea condtions that would preclude the use of divers.

However, divers have the advantage of being able to use tactile feedback to feel their way around a project site. Armed with knowledge of the surroundings prior to a dive, and communication with the surface during a dive, it is possible for divers to overcome poor visibility and use their hands, and other parts of their body, to navigate around a project site.

ROVs, on the other hand, can not provide tactile feedback to the operators. Even if armed with a manipulator arm, it may not be possible for an ROV to “turn around, face your rig, and take up your slack as you come back” in order to free an entangled umbilical. Instead, ROV operators rely on operational strategies and a growing suite of technologies to improve or supplement their spatial awareness in order to operate in environments with poor visibility.

“I recently completed two UWILD inspections on vessels operated by one of the major offshore support vessel companies in the Gulf of Mexico that are homeported in the brown waters of Port Fourchon. We used two inspection class ROVs from SeaBotix, in which the Integrated Control Console was equipped with LYYN™ image-enhancement boards. The LYYN™ visual enhancement was critical to the overall performance. Even after traveling thirty miles offshore we only had about 5 to 8 feet of visibility, but the LYYN™ unit really helped to clear up the imagery.

The inspections were performed in open water, and the ROVs were subject to currents and hull-generated turbulence. The inspections required us to hover adjacent to azimuth thrusters on the vessels and perform 360-degree inspection of the thrusters, which posed signiﬁcant fouling risks. The LYYN™ visual enhancement system helped to increase the stand-off distance to the thrusters (thus helping to minimize the risk of fouling) and also helped to improve the overall video quality so that the ABS and USCG inspectors could assess the condtion of the vessel.

The overall feedback from the inspectors, particularly regarding the improved video quality, has been very positive. The combination of ﬁber-opc video offered by these SeaBox systems, coupled with the integrated LYYN™ units, provides a nice video package for performing these inspections.

This will allow ship owners to make considerable cost savings.”

Jeffrey Z. Snyder, President SeaVision Marine Services LLC

BP Will Pay For Gulf Oil Spill Disaster, CEO Says

cdiver

May 3, 2010

The CEO of petroleum giant BP told NPR on Monday that his company is fully responsible for the cleanup and any “legitimate” claims from an undersea pipeline rupture that threatens to deposit hundreds of thousands of gallons of crude on the U.S. Gulf Coast.

“It is indeed BP’s responsibility to deal with this, and we are dealing with it,” Tony Hayward told Morning Edition’s Steve Inskeep.

“We will absolutely be paying for the cleanup operation. There is no doubt about that. It’s our responsibility — we accept it fully,” he added.

Hayward also said the British oil giant was “mounting a massive response” to what he described as a “tragic accident.”

The Deepwater Horizon offshore drilling rig was hit by an explosion April 20 and sank two days later. More than 90 workers were rescued, but 11 are still missing and presumed dead. BP leased the rig, which lies about 50 miles off the Louisiana coast, from Houston-based Transocean.

The cause of the blast has not yet been determined.

When pressed on whether BP was prepared to pay claims to individuals who lose their livelihoods owing to the spill, Hayward said the company has “made it clear that where legitimate claims are made, we will be good for them.”

“We have a claims process set up. There are small claims today that are being paid instantly,” he said. “[For] bigger claims, we clearly have a process to run through.”

Over the weekend, Alabama Attorney General Troy King said he had told BP representatives to stop circulating settlement agreements among coastal residents that reportedly offered payments of up to $5,000 in exchange for not suing the company.

Hayward called it “an early misstep” involving “a standard contract with the team we’re using that was eliminated very early in the process.”

President Obama has made clear that BP must shoulder the cost of the disaster. “BP is responsible for this leak. BP will be paying the bill,” Obama said Sunday as he toured a Coast Guard staging area in Venice, La.

Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano and Interior Secretary Ken Salazar were expected to meet later Monday with top BP executives to discuss the crisis, including how the company planned to pay for the cleanup. On Sunday, federal officials shut down fishing from the Mississippi River to the Florida Panhandle.

The Coast Guard and BP have said it’s nearly impossible to know how much oil has already gushed since the rig blast. The Guard had estimated the slick to be at least 1.6 million gallons — equivalent to about 2 1/2 Olympic-sized swimming pools. Other experts say they believe far more oil has been released in a spill many fear now may eclipse the 11 million gallons released by the Exxon Valdez. Sheen from the massive slick has already reached parts of the Louisiana coastline.

Officials say it’s likely that oil will continue gushing into the Gulf of Mexico for at least another week as a result of the pipeline rupture 5,000 feet below sea level. A plan to install a device to capture the oil and siphon it to a barge waiting at the surface would take that long, Hayward said.

“We have fabricated and will have on location by next weekend a subsea containment system, with the intention of containing the leak,” he said. Hayward described the device as “a dome … that sits over the top of the wellhead and channels the oil to the surface, where it can be contained.”

Such an operation, he said, had “never been done at 5,000 feet.”

Eight robotic submarines were working around the clock to fix the well’s blowout preventer — a “fail safe” that nonetheless was unable to prevent the spill, Hayward said, adding that the mechanism’s failure was unprecedented.

“No one understands why it failed,” he said.

The company is also in the process of drilling a relief well to isolate the well.

Hayward said 700 fishing vessels had been deployed to support its effort to contain the spill. “In the last 48 hours, we have trained over 3,000 people [who have] signed up on the volunteer program, so there is an enormous effort to work with the local communities,” he said. “I talked with a fisherman who was on the program. He was loading his vessel with oil booms to go and deploy them.”

He declined to say whether he supported a proposal by Sen. Bill Nelson (D-FL) to temporarily halt all offshore oil drilling until the exact cause of the accident is determined.

“We clearly need to understand what has happened here and that will come out with the investigation,” Hayward said.

http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=126468782&ft=1&f=1001

Obama Shelves New Offshore Drilling!

cdiver

April 30, 2010

WASHINGTON – President Barack Obama on Friday directed that no new offshore oil drilling leases be issued unless rigs have new safeguards to prevent a repeat of the explosion that unleashed the massive spill threatening the Gulf Coast with major environmental damage.

Florida Gov. Charlie Crist, meanwhile, declared a state of emergency in the state’s Panhandle coastal counties because of the threat.

“The oil slick is generally moving in a northerly direction and threatens Florida’s coast,” Crist said in the order declaring the emergency in Escambia, Santa Rosa, Okaloosa, Walton, Bay, and Gulf counties.

Obama ordered Interior Secretary Ken Salazar to report within 30 days on what new technologies are needed to tighten safeguards against oil spills from deepwater drilling rigs.

“We are making sure any leases going forward have those safeguards,” said Obama at a White House Rose Garden event.

Obama’s declaration is not expected to have any immediate impact. Under the expanded leasing plan Obama announced a month ago, the first offshore leases would be issued off the Virginia coast in 2012 at the earliest.

It is still unclear what caused the explosion on the BP rig more than 40 miles off the Louisiana coast. About 5,000 barrels of oil a day, 0r 210,000 gallons, are estimated to be spewing from three well leaks on the ocean floor.

Obama said supports domestic drilling for oil and natural gas but that it “must be done responsibly for the safety of our workers and our environment.”

Senior adviser David Axelrod earlier defended the administration’s response to the April 20 accident, saying “we had the Coast Guard in almost immediately.”

He deflected comparisons with the government’s slow response to Hurricane Katrina in 2005, telling ABC’s “Good Morning America” that such speculation “is always the case in Washington whenever something like this happens.”

Axelrod said “no additional drilling has been authorized and none will until we find out what has happened here.”

Coast Guard Rear Adm. Sally Brice-O’Hara also faced questions on all three network television morning shows Friday about whether the government has done enough to push oil company BP PLC to plug the underwater leak and protect the coast.

Brice-O’Hara said the federal response led by the Coast Guard has been rapid, sustained and has adapted as the threat grew since a drill rig exploded and sank last week, causing the spill.

She said crews would be unable to skim oil from the surface or burn it off for the next couple of days because of the weather.

Billions in damages possible
BP, for its part, said Friday it would compensate all those affected by the leak.

“We are taking full responsibility for the spill and we will clean it up and where people can present legitimate claims for damages we will honor them. We are going to be very, very aggressive in all of that,” BP CEO Tony Hayward told Reuters.

The cost to the fishing industry in Louisiana could be $2.5 billion while the impact on tourism along Florida’s Paradise coast could be $3 billion, Neil McMahon, analyst at investment firm Bernstein, said in a research note on Friday.

The spill could also hit Obama’s plans to open some offshore areas of the U.S. where oil exploration is currently barred, to drilling, Hayward acknowledged.

“There may be an industry issue around what may or may not be opened,” he said.

However the CEO hopes an effective response to the spill, including a flotilla of around 80 vessels and several aircraft, would reassure people about the risks from drilling.

“It would be bizarre to say it shouldn’t influence the debate. How the debate will come out, I think ultimately will be judged by the success we have in dealing with this incident.”

Regulations on drilling safety will also come under scrutiny, Hayward predicted.

“Rightly, there will be a reaction. Whenever you have something of this significance, it’s right that regulators should look very hard at what they can do to further ensure that something like this never happens again,” he said.

He said possible changes could relate to testing of equipment like the blow-out preventer on the ocean floor which failed to operate correctly and shut off the flow of oil, although he added it would be impossible to say how testing could be improved until the cause of the accident was known.

Failures of blow-out preventers are extremely rare and the equipment is regularly tested.

The scale of the disaster could also lead to changes in the rules on who is allowed to operate licenses in the deeper waters of the Gulf of Mexico, analysts said.

The government could limit operating licenses to larger companies, like BP, which have the deep pockets and operational capability to mount large cleanup operations.

The oil slick could become the nation’s worst environmental disaster in decades, threatening to eclipse even the Exxon Valdez in scope. It imperils 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 some in Louisiana that the government failed them again, just as it did during Hurricane Katrina in 2005. Obama dispatched Cabinet officials Thursday to deal with the crisis.

Members of Congress on Thursday had also issued new calls for Obama to reconsider his plan to open vast stretches of U.S. coastline to oil and gas drilling.

Worries over jobs
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 government or BP.

“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.”

An emergency shrimping season was opened to allow shrimpers to scoop up their catch before it is fouled by oil.

This murky water and the oysters in it have provided a livelihood for three generations of Frank and Mitch Jurisich’s family in Empire, La.

Now, on the open water just beyond the marshes, they can smell the oil that threatens everything they know and love.

“Just smelling it, it puts more of a sense of urgency, a sense of fear,” Frank Jurisich said.

The brothers hope to harvest all the oysters they can sell before the oil washes ashore. They filled more than 100 burlap sacks Thursday and stopped to eat some oysters. “This might be our last day,” Mitch Jurisich said.

Without the fishing industry, Frank Jurisich said the family “would be lost. This is who we are and what we do.”

In Buras, La., where Hurricane Katrina made landfall in 2005, the owner of the Black Velvet Oyster Bar & Grill couldn’t keep his eyes off the television. News and weather shows were making projections that oil would soon inundate the coastal wetlands where his family has worked since the 1860s.

“A hurricane is like closing your bank account for a few days, but this here has the capacity to destroy our bank accounts,” said Byron Marinovitch, 47.

“We’re really disgusted,” he added. “We don’t believe anything coming out of BP’s mouth.”

Mike Brewer, 40, who lost his oil spill response company in the devastation of Hurricane Katrina nearly five years ago, said the area was accustomed to the occasional minor spill. But he feared the scale of the escaping oil was beyond the capacity of existing resources.

“You’re pumping out a massive amount of oil. There is no way to stop it,” he said.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/36865687/ns/us_news-environment/

Breaking: U.S. Approves First Offshore Wind Farm

cdiver

April 29, 2010

By Brian Merchant, Brooklyn, New York

After nine agonizing years of intense debate and political battles, the first offshore wind farm to be built in the United States has finally been approved. Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar traveled to Cape Cod, Massachusetts to announce that, despite some fierce opposition (from the likes of the Kennedys and Mitt Romney, no less), the 450 megawatt, 130 turbine, $900 million Cape Wind project is becoming a reality.

1,175diggsdigg

This is huge news, as it marks the US’s entry into offshore wind. European nations already have thousands of offshore turbines generating hundreds of megawatts of power, and one study has shown that the United States could meet every last kilowatt of its power demands if offshore wind was properly utilized. In other words, this is very, very good news.

USA Today reports:

Interior Secretary Ken Salazar has approved a controversial plan to build the nation’s first offshore wind farm in Nantucket Sound, the Cape Cod Times reports. The decision to build the 130 wind turbines has followed almost a decade of reviews, challenges and appeals at the local, state and federal level.

The late Sen. Edward Kennedy, whose Hyannisport family compound is on Nantucket Sound, fought Cape Wind and termed it a special-interest giveaway and would mar a pristine landscape

However, 6 governors of east coast states, among them Massachusetts’, all rallied to support the wind farm. Not approving the installation on grounds that it detracted from the area’s aesthetic beauty could have set a dire precedent for the many other proposed offshore wind projects along the eastern seaboard — thankfully, it looks like a future of clean energy has won the day. The industry needs the momentum to stimulate investment around the nation, which is why Cape Wind was seen as a crucial step for renewable energy in general.

http://www.treehugger.com/files/2010/04/breaking-us-approves-first-offshore-wind-farm.php

U.S. Military Joins Gulf of Mexico Oil Spill Effort

cdiver

April 29, 2010

The US Coast Guard and BP gave an update on the crisis

The US military has joined efforts to stop an oil leak in the Gulf of Mexico as fears rise about its scale.

Five times as much oil as previously thought could be leaking from the well beneath where a rig exploded and sank last week, the US Coast Guard says.

Rear Admiral Mary Landry said some 5,000 barrels (210,000 gallons) a day were thought to be gushing into the sea 50 miles (80km) off Louisiana’s coast.

The slick is 45 miles by 105 miles and heading towards the coast.

If the coastguard estimate is correct, the spill could match the 11m gallons spilt from the Exxon Valdez tanker off Alaska in 1989 within two months.

Oil giant BP operated the Deepwater Horizon rig. Its chief operating officer of exploration and production, Doug Suttles, welcomed the US military’s offer of help.

He said the company was using remote operative vehicles (ROVs) to try to find out how much oil was leaking into the sea.

“This is very, very difficult to estimate,” Mr Suttles told reporters.

“Down below the surface we actually can’t meter this oil so we can just observe it… what our ROV pictures show to us on the sea floor hasn’t changed since we first saw the leak… but what we can say based on what we’re picking up on the surface it looks like it is more.”

Mr Suttles estimated something between 1,000 and 5,000 barrels a day was leaking.

Meanwhile, a fire-fighting expert said the disaster may become the biggest oil spill ever.

Mike Miller, head of Canadian oil well fire-fighting company Safety Boss, told the BBC World Service: “Probably the only thing comparable to this is the Kuwait fires [following the Gulf War in 1991].

“The Exxon Valdez is going to pale in comparison to this as it goes on.”

Scientists say only a quarter of local marine wildlife survived the Exxon Valdez disaster.

Controlled burn

The scale of the operation to contain the oil spill and protect both the US coastline and wildlife is unprecedented, with the military and other government agencies collaborating with BP – which had hired the sunken rig – and industry leaders.

Efforts to stem the flow are being complicated by the depth of the leak at the underwater well, which is about 5,000ft (1,525m) beneath the surface.

Weather forecasters have meanwhile warned that changing winds could drive the oil slick ashore by Friday night. Its leading edge is now only 20 miles (32km) east of the mouth of the Mississippi.

A coastguard crew has set fire to part of the oil slick in an attempt to save environmentally-fragile wetlands.

The “controlled burn” of surface oil took place in an area about 30 miles (50km) east of the Mississippi River delta.

But Mr Miller warned that burning off leaking oil was not a long-term solution.

“The object of this game is to shut off the flow,” he said.

Relief well

Engineers are working on a dome-like device to cover oil rising to the surface and pump it to container vessels, but it may be weeks before this is in place.

It is feared that work on sealing the leaking well using robotic submersibles might take months.

BP is also working on a “relief well” to intersect the original well, but this is experimental and could take two to three months to stop the flow.

President Barack Obama had been briefed on the new developments, and BP has welcomed the offer of assistance from the defence department to help contain the spill.

Seventy vessels – oil skimmers, tugboats barges and special recovery boats that separate oil from water – as well as five aeroplanes, were working to spray dispersants and round up oil, BP said.

Burn zone

Eleven workers are missing and presumed dead after the worst oil rig disaster in almost a decade. Louisiana Governor Bobby Jindal said the top priority was “to protect our citizens and the environment”.

With the spill moving towards Louisiana’s coast, which contains some 40% of the nation’s wetlands and spawning grounds for countless fish and birds, it was hoped a “controlled burn” of oil contained by special booms would limit the impact.

Environmental experts say animals nearby might be affected by toxic fumes, but perhaps not as much as if they were coated in oil.

On Wednesday afternoon, BP and coastguard boats swept the thickest concentrations of oil into a fire-resistant boom.

This was then towed to a five-mile “burn zone” set up inside the slick, where it was set alight shortly before nightfall.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/8651624.stm

The Twilight of the Western Oil Majors

cdiver

April 29, 2010

BY LISA VISCIDI | APRIL 27, 2010

Brazil is home to one of the last major oil frontiers in the world — and a case study for how the balance of power in the international oil industry is shifting. In 2007, 10 years after the Brazilian government opened its oil industry to foreign investment, the state oil company Petrobras struck one of the richest oil veins in decades. Western oil companies such as Chevron, Total, and BP, thrilled by the rare prospect of a new exploration opportunity, lined up eagerly to invest.

But the outsiders have been stymied. Brazil, generally one of Latin America’s most investment-friendly countries, is now boosting the state’s role in developing its vast new oil reserves. And it’s doing so with help from China, which has recently provided Petrobas with a massive loan, making the old titans of Big Oil increasingly superfluous.

This situation is not unique to Brazil. It’s just the latest example of a new form of collaboration between China and other national governments with oil resources worldwide that is completely reshaping the industry.

Petrobras’s discovery centered on the Tupi field, part of an enormous oil-rich zone called the presalt, which lies up to 10,000 feet below the sea’s surface under a layer of salt thousands of feet deep. Petrobras refuses to put a figure on total reserves, but independent analysts estimate the presalt region holds roughly 50 billion to 70 billion barrels of reserves. The government reacted to the news by proposing major new reform legislation that won approval in the lower chamber of parliament earlier this year and is now making its way through the Senate.

The legislation would make Petrobras operator of all presalt oil fields, giving it control over day-to-day investment decisions, such as when and where to drill wells. Another measure would give veto power over investments in presalt blocks to Petrosal — a new 100 percent state-owned oil company to be created alongside Petrobras, which is publicly traded on the Sao Paulo and New York stock exchanges.

Private oil companies with interests in Brazil are now voicing concern that the new regulatory model would render them passive investors in oil projects, devoid of power to make operational decisions. The oil majors argue that excluding their expertise and technology will delay development of the complicated oil fields. French oil firm Total, for example, boasted last year that its technical expertise could “bring something new” to presalt development. One oil executive in Brazil said recently that the proposed legislation “is not in the interest of the [state] company. It’s not in the interest of the government recovering taxes or the industry as such.”

This argument is based more on self-interest than fact. Petrobras, perhaps the most competent deepwater operator in the world, insists it has the technical and project management skills to develop the presalt singlehandedly. “Being operator in all presalt blocks will give Petrobras new strength,” CFO Almir Barbassa recently told investors in New York.

The bigger concern, say Petrobras officials and analysts, is the company’s ability to fund the massive project. Despite Petrobras’s good credit rating and access to cheap loans through the Brazilian Development Bank, it remains unclear how the company will secure financing for such a large investment portfolio in the long term. In March, Petrobras announced a huge five-year investment plan of up to $220 billion. Petrobras is projecting 2010 capital expenditures of $47 billion — some 60 percent higher than Exxon Mobil or Royal Dutch Shell, the biggest spenders among the major private oil firms.

Senior Petrobras executives have been traveling the globe, from New York to London, as part of a campaign aimed at assuring shareholders, bondholders, and credit analysts that investing in the company is a good long-term bet. Wall Street analysts, expressing skepticism about the energy reform legislation, have been unconvinced: They fear that an excess of government intervention could ruin investment opportunities.

Meanwhile, Chinese investors seem to have no such qualms and their deep pockets have helped keep Petrobras’s spending plans on track. Last year, the state-owned China Development Bank agreed to lend Petrobras up to $10 billion — over one-third of the total debt the company raised in 2009. The initial agreement between China and Brazil was formed during Chinese Vice President Xi Jinping’s visit to South America last year and was finalized on April 15, when President Hu Jintao met with his Brazilian counterpart Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva. The loan can be repaid in cash but also included an “option to offset the debt with the export of oil … in a volume to be defined in the future.”

Petrobras simultaneously pledged to increase exports to China. It agreed to start delivering 150,000 barrels per day to Chinese state company Sinopec in 2009, an amount that will rise to 200,000 barrels daily over the next nine years. Imports of Brazilian crude have risen from an average of 81,500 barrels a day last year to 187,000 barrels a day in the first two months of 2010, according to Chinese customs data. The agreement also establishes a framework for further partnerships between Petrobras and Chinese companies in the oil industry, and for Chinese firms to supply services, materials, and equipment to Petrobras. Separately, Petrobras signed a deal with China National Petroleum Corp (CNPC), increasing oil exports to 40,000 to 60,000 barrels per day.

China’s loan gives Petrobras some financial breathing room and reduces its need to seek private capital to develop Brazil’s costly oil reserves. This further sidelines the U.S. and European companies that have traditionally dominated private investment in Brazil’s oil industry. With financial support from China, Brazil has no need to hand its reserves over to international oil companies. “The government is keen to keep most of the presalt area in Petrobras’s hands,” notes an industry observer.

China is using all the tools at its disposal, including abundant cash and political influence, to secure long-term oil supplies around the world. In addition to Brazil, China offered a total of $50 billion in loan-for-oil deals last year to Venezuela, Angola, Russia, and Kazakhstan. The allure for China’s partners is cash with no strings attached — in the case of Brazil, China is not requesting an equity stake in the presalt oil blocks, as Western companies nearly always do. Rather than a straightforward business deal, these agreements represent broader political alliances among developing nations pursuing policies of state-led economic growth.

As a result, national oil companies like CNPC are unseating the Exxons and BPs of the world. The Chinese, awash with cash and keen to outbid competitors, have picked up a large share of Kazakhstan’s onshore production. In Angola, loans have helped to lock in assets for its state oil companies. In 2004, for example, the Angolan government obstructed India’s state-owned Oil and Natural Gas Corp.’s efforts to buy a 50 percent stake in an oil block and later awarded it to Sinopec.

China is not along in pursuing this strategy. Russia’s government, for example, has negotiated bilateral energy deals that give its state companies access to oil reserves in politically friendly nations. As these countries spend big to drive profits, Big Oil may be forced to accept contract terms that would have once been considered unacceptable. In Iraq, another of the most important new oil frontiers in the world, majors like Exxon, Shell, and BP accepted service contracts rather than an equity stake for fees of $2 per barrel or lower — terms that are unlikely to generate big cash returns — in Iraq’s postwar bid rounds.

Once the Brazilian government starts awarding new exploration licenses, most Western oil majors will still be able to grab a stake of the presalt resources. But that prize may be a pale substitute for the returns to which they have become accustomed.

http://www.foreignpolicy.com/articles/2010/04/26/the_twilight_of_the_western_oil_majors?page=0,1

SCENARIOS: Possible Political Fall Out From U.S. Oil Spill

cdiver

April 27, 2010

By Ayesha Rascoe

WASHINGTON, April 27 (Reuters) – A massive oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico could undermine support for U.S. offshore drilling, just as lawmakers were warming to the practice, and even upset hopes for winning bipartisan support to U.S. climate legislation.

Last week’s explosion on a deepwater rig finishing a well for BP (BP.L) left 11 workers missing, presumably dead, and a subsequent oil slick that now covers about 28,600 square miles (74,000 sq. km) and could not have come at a worse time for the oil industry.

After a decades-long moratorium on drilling in most areas outside the Gulf of Mexico, the Obama administration last month unveiled a limited expansion plan. [ID:nLDE6350CP] But now the industry faces a spill that may have an impact not seen since the Exxon Valdez disaster in the late 1980s.

The Senate climate change bill was expected to include measures to encourage more offshore drilling, which was seen as crucial to attracting Republican votes.

The well that was being drilled is now leaking about 1,000 barrels of oil per day and the spill could reach land this weekend.

Here’s a look at some of the possible political fall out from the spill.

THE WHITE HOUSE

The Obama administration has stood by its proposal for new offshore oil drilling in the wake of the accident and seems unlikely to change course on the issue any time soon. The president’s plan was already a fairly modest, opening only parts of the U.S. Atlantic coast and Alaska to drilling. [ID:nN31367614]

Obama must also consider that closing more areas to offshore drilling could alienate the Republicans and moderate Democrats he is trying to court to support U.S. action on climate change.

CONGRESS

A lot will depend on the cause and severity of the oil spill, but the outcome could undermine supporters of more oil drilling and embolden lawmakers, particularly from Florida, who dislike the expansion plans.

If the oil reaches land, damaging coastlines and disrupting sensitive ecosystems, public sentiment could turn against the offshore drilling and make it difficult for lawmakers to call for a significant increase in drilling.

In a worse case scenario, where the clean-up takes months and damage is significant, lawmakers may even consider legislation further restricting offshore oil production.

Regardless of how quickly the spill is contained, it will undoubtedly add clout to the arguments of offshore drilling opponents. Lawmakers in coastal states dependent on tourism are already using the accident to question the safety of the offshore oil industry.

Senator Bill Nelson, a Democrat from Florida, has called on the Interior Department to investigate the industry’s safety record over the past 10 years. On Tuesday, the House Energy and Commerce Committee said it will probe the spill and is requesting documents from the companies.

SENATE CLIMATE CHANGE BILL

Offshore drilling was touted as a key component of the climate change compromise bill crafted by Senators John Kerry, Joseph Lieberman, and Lindsey Graham. That bill has been delayed after Graham pulled out for other political reasons, but the accident could have an impact on the legislation.

The infamous Exxon Valdez disaster, which spilled about 11 million gallons of oil off the coast of Alaska in 1989, provided a boost to Clean Air Act amendments enacted after the spill.

But since the Senate bill seeks to expand offshore oil production, the BP accident could put pressure on Democrats to row back on some elements, which in turn could anger some Republicans who have been pushing for more access for drillers. (Reporting by Ayesha Rascoe; Editing by Marguerita Choy)

http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSN2711338320100427

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