The Deepwater Horizon drilling rig leased by British Petroleum in the Gulf of Mexico which exploded, collapsed and is leaking crude oil in the waters of the Gulf has dominated the news the last several days. The potential threat of this spill is still not clear according to officials as of this writing. The coast line, beaches, wildlife, the seafood industry and a way of life could all possibly be affected big time if the spill can not be controlled or contained.
To make matters worse some people are already predicting that this spill will be Obama's Katrina. Never mind that Katrina was a major happening spawned by mother nature and the spill was man made. There are those who still want to see the President fail and be blamed for what ever happens in the Gulf. So far British Petroleum's people said it was an equipment failure but the truth will not be know until a full investigation is completed. Human failure is obviously a possibility.
What happened in the Gulf is a reminder that drilling in the Gulf or on land for oil and gas is still a hazardous operation and that tragic consequences can happen despite all the claims of new advanced safe drilling technology and training. Accidents are caused by human error and faulty equipment.
This latest spill has identified that after over 40 years of drilling in the Gulf and on land the Oil and Gas Industry still have not developed a timely system or operation to answer the call. That is pathetic and should be unacceptable. Their attitude seems to be, we will just mosey along until the states and federal governments step in. The oil companies do not like being liable for anything they do.
Future drilling in the Gulf should be put on hold until the oil and gas industry comes up with a workable plan that answers the call timely when such accidents happen. They should also have to demonstrate they have the equipment and personnel available on hand to answer the call at any time and do the necessary job.
In order to secure our country's energy needs until alternate energy comes on line, the federal government and state governments should insist that the oil and gas industry make known how much acreage they own, lease or rent and have yet to drill on and why. They should also have to disclose how many wells they have shut in that could be producing and how much of that production is being shut in. That is the only way to find out the real story about what is going on in the industry and the only way for future planning. I believe if the above answers were truly known, both governments and the people would be shocked to find out how much oil and gas is being with held from the market and the potential of new production that drilling on those lands being held out of service would produce. It is past time to find out.
This offshore spill should make state government aware that the same problem could happen with on shore drilling and make sure precautions and a workable response are in place.
