A massive Gulf oil spill is finally being contained after more than 14 years

[Rhiannon12866]

Up to 1,000 gallons of oil per day are being removed from the site of the Taylor Energy spill, says the owner of company that installed a containment system.

The U.S. Coast Guard said Thursday that it is finally containing and collecting oil from a massive 14-year spill in the Gulf of Mexico, the longest offshore disaster in U.S. history.

More than 30,000 gallons of oil have been collected over several weeks since a containment system was installed about 12 miles off the coast of Louisiana, the Coast Guard said. Capt. Kristi Luttrell, who is overseeing work performed by a contractor, the Couvillion Group, called the containment a major milestone that could significantly reduce the impact of the spill, which will enter its 15th year in September.

Luttrell entered into a contract with Couvillion last year after the company responsible for the spill, Taylor Energy, failed to follow her orders to do so on its own.

The system’s success could be a serious setback to Taylor Energy’s efforts to stop the containment effort. The company filed a federal lawsuit in December, claiming that Couvillion lacked the expertise to install a system to capture oil leaking from its wells. They broke open when Hurricane Ivan caused the walls of a deep sea canyon to collapse and sink an oil platform.

In a separate lawsuit, the company also claimed that Luttrell’s order to mount a more aggressive response to the spill was rash. It came a day after The Washington Post revealed an expert analysis that contradicted Taylor Energy’s claims that almost no oil was present at the site.

The analysis by Oscar Garcia-Pineda, a geoscience consultant who specializes in impacts from oil spills, estimated that 1.5 million to 3.5 million barrels spilled into the gulf from the Taylor Energy site over more than 14 years. Acting on that finding, as well as other scientific reports, the Coast Guard issued Taylor Energy an ultimatum to hire a company to build a device to contain the oil or face a fine of up to $40,000 per day.

Weeks of monitoring by the Coast Guard shows that Couvillion’s containment system is working, Luttrell said Thursday. The system was completed and fully operational April 29, but Couvillion started collecting oil 12 days before that.


Much more: https://www.washingtonpost.com/climate-environment/2019/05/16/massive-gulf-oil-spill-is-finally-being-contained-after-more-than-years/?noredirect=on&utm_term=.6efe05baae92



The drillship Rowan Resolute in the Gulf of Mexico during a flight out of New Orleans in July 2018. (Bonnie Jo Mount/The Washington Post)

[sprinkleeninow]

1. Hello, dear heart!

Been following this from time to time.

Makes one quite ill.

How you be?

You always in my 💛.

[Rhiannon12866]

2. Thanks!

And this is my 3rd or 4th post on this spill that's been ignored for almost 15 years!

And I'm hanging in there, just having issues staying awake - it's been a long week. And I will post the Michael Bennet interview when it's available - I thought he was quite good, and he does have a sense of humor! Seth Meyers' "A Closer Look" is always available before it actually airs, but the guest interviews take much longer...

Good to hear from you, my friend! And I sure hope that things are looking up for you - it's been a rough year for you, I know...

[sprinkleeninow]

3. 😘