US clears more deepwater oil drilling in Gulf

[Cali_Democrat]

Source: Associated Press

On Saturday March 12, 2011, 1:09 pm EST

NEW ORLEANS (AP) -- The U.S. government is allowing deepwater drilling to resume on another Gulf of Mexico well as the region recovers from BP's devastating oil spill.

BHP Billiton PLC said Saturday that the permit will allow it to get back to work in its Shenzi field, located about 120 miles off Louisiana's coast. The well, about 4,300 feet below the surface, began production in March 2009, but drilling stopped last year amid the backlash to an April 2010 blowout of a BP PLC well in the Gulf of Mexico. The explosion resulted in the worst offshore oil spill in U.S. history, raising questions about the safety of deepwater drilling.

This is the second deepwater permit that the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, Regulation and Enforcement has issued in the Gulf within the past two weeks. Noble Energy Inc. had already received clearance to resume drilling on a well about 70 miles southeast of Venice, La.

They're the first permits to be granted in the Gulf since the agency imposed a moratorium on exploration in waters deeper than 500 feet last June. The moratorium was lifted in October, but deepwater drilling couldn't resume without government clearance.

Read more: http://finance.yahoo.com/news/US-clears-more-deepwater-oil-apf-1644611204.html?x=0&sec=topStories&pos=2&asset=&ccode=

[Demeter]

1. Why Not? It's not like the Gulf Is Going to Recover in our Lifetimes

[Autumn]

2. Yay!!! Cheap gas.

:rofl: :rofl: :rofl: I almost want to cry. Can we destroy the Gulf any more than what has already been done?

[Auntie Bush]

4. As Obama says, "Yes we can!"

[boppers]

36. Well, the Gulf isn't highly radioactive yet....

So, there's that.

[fascisthunter]

3. fucking sick

[glinda]

5. major fucking sick

[Fuddnik]

6. It's campaign fundraising season!

[Owl]

7. Oy veh

[ProSense]

8. "This is the second deepwater permit

<...>

This is the second deepwater permit that the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, Regulation and Enforcement has issued in the Gulf within the past two weeks. Noble Energy Inc. had already received clearance to resume drilling on a well about 70 miles southeast of Venice, La.

They're the first permits to be granted in the Gulf since the agency imposed a moratorium on exploration in waters deeper than 500 feet last June. The moratorium was lifted in October, but deepwater drilling couldn't resume without government clearance.

<...>

This is surprising. The moratorium was lifted in October and since then, only two companies have been given permits to resume drilling.

Everyone knew drilling would resume once the moratorium was lifted, didn't they?

[white cloud]

13. Now the Big Oils can apply for permits

Meeting the requirements for permits

http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/editorial/outlook/7458626.html

[tekisui]

26. We knew it would resume, that's why we called bullshit at the time.

It can never be made safe enough for the level of risk assumed.

[OhioChick]

9. Disturbing n/t

[ReggieVeggie]

10. Sure! Let's make sure the entire gulf is destroyed

long as we can haz us some cars! :mad:

[robcon]

11. Good idea. The Gulf is no more dangerous than any other area.

n/t

[ReggieVeggie]

12. but far more polluted

due to government incompetence and lack of oversight

[JJW]

14. Drill Obama, Drill

[DeSwiss]

19. Hmmmm.....

...well there they go again. Censoring my comments because some can't stand the truth. I had posted in agreement with your comment, however, it would appear that I'm a marked man whose words and pictures must be censored and filtered lest they cause someone to...... think for themselves. I just know that if this were 2007 instead of 2011, Bush's name would be plastered all over this thread.

Oh well, it won't matter in the end.

K&R (again)

[wordpix]

25. this also pissed me off about him today: $38 billion in proposed giveaways to nuke industry

Letter from Greenpeace:

Our thoughts are with our colleagues, friends and all the people of Japan as they continue to deal with the aftereffects of yesterday’s earthquake and tsunami. And now those living near the nuclear power plant in Fukushima have been evacuated because of the possibility of a nuclear meltdown.

In the past 24 hours, the situation in Fukushima has gone from bad to worse. Reports out of Japan are suggesting that the cooling units on a number of reactors at the plant could fail at anytime. The simple truth is that no matter how advanced the technology and how prepared a country might be to deal with a disaster it doesn’t change the fact that nuclear power is inherently dangerous and always will be.

That hasn’t stopped President Obama from putting $38 billion in giveaways to the nuclear industry in his latest budget proposal to Congress. But it’s not too late. Congress and the President can still take this money out of the final budget but they’re not going to do it if they don’t hear from you.

Tell the President and your members of Congress that there is no place for taxpayer giveaways to the nuclear industry in this year’s budget.

Wall Street refuses to invest in new nuclear plants. Investors know the risks and have decided it’s simply not worth it. That’s why these nuclear companies are turning to the federal government for money to build new plants.

The American people actually agree with Wall Street on this one. In fact, 57% of the public named nuclear subsidies as their most popular spending cut in a recent Wall Street Journal poll. Unfortunately, the events in Japan are a reminder that the risks of nuclear power are not merely financial.

No matter what the industry tries to tell you, disasters like this are going to happen. Let’s hope the worst is avoided in Japan and tell our elected officials that there’s no place for nuclear giveaways in this year’s budget.

No Nukes,
Jim Riccio

Greenpeace Nuclear Policy Analyst

[Name removed]

15. Deleted message

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[Name removed]

16. Deleted message

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[Marblehead]

17. we are a 3rd world nation now

[wordpix]

27. you just figured that out? Yes, we are

[orleans]

18. great. just want we wanted. putting the gulf at risk again so we can

get our oil up on the WORLD MARKET.

ugh!

[AtheistCrusader]

20. QUICK, WHILE EVERYONE'S LOOKING AT JAPAN

let's burn more fossil fuels!

[eowyn_of_rohan]

21. stupid greedy disgusting fuckers

[wordpix]

24. +1

[Kip Humphrey]

22. Actually, the Noble permit was rescinded pending rollout of an approved cap&flow containment system.

[wordpix]

23. "as the region recovers"---tell that to 7000 dead marine animals in Gulf by end of '10

including the recent baby dolphins :grr:

http://www.csmonitor.com/Environment/Wildlife/2011/0304/Baby-dolphin-die-off-in-Gulf-Cold-water-not-oil-spill-the-culprit

Dauphin Sea Lab researchers haven't discounted the possibility that there may be other causes for the dolphin deaths, including the presence of oil in the food chain. Skeptics say the cold water theory is unlikely, because pregnant dolphins should have been able to swim away from the area and into warmer waters.

By the end of last year, about 7,000 dead marine animals had been collected from the oil spill area. That compares with some 250,000 dead animals recovered after the Exxon Valdez ran ashore in Alaska in 1989.

[Bluesbreaker]

28. To hell with this sell-out administration

Most politicians, aside from the Bernie Sanders, Al Frankens and Henry Waxmans in Congress, strive to serve their corporate contributors, not their constituents. They could care less about the future of this country, the environment, and the financial welfare of the middle class, as long as the big money keeps coming in. Corporations and the wealthy will continue to win the day, at the expense of the middle class, as long as Obama and his ilk in Congress are in control.

[indimuse]

29. This can't be..has Obama lost his mind??

knr!


Who's looking out for America? This is truly sad and VERY telling..

[dixiegrrrrl]

30. BP via Feinberg is still NOT paying damages; oil has been found in seafood,

people are getting very sick all along the coast, and hardly any of this has been reported except in local papers.

The US government is buying up the Gulf seafood to feed to the army! while independent labs report very high amounts of oil IN the seafood.

The Mobile Press Register and the Pensacola News Journal and the New Orleans papers all have online sites,
EVERY day there are stories about all of the problems.

al.com
pnj.com
nola.com

[Overseas]

31. Sad K&R. //nt

[wordpix]

32. run, Bernie, run!

[defendandprotect]

33. Time to end this insanity of capitalism and corporate fascism ...

it is taking our planet from us --

and debasing human life -- what's left of it!!

Capitalism, Corporate money and Corporations should be seen as the evil they are !!

And those who support it, as well!!

[Matariki]

34. Because what could possibly go wrong?

[robcon]

35. The delays on oil drilling are ridiculous.

"Former President Bill Clinton said Friday that delays in offshore oil and gas drilling permits are “ridiculous” at a time when the economy is still rebuilding, according to attendees at the IHS CERAWeek conference.

Clinton spoke on a panel with former President George W. Bush that was closed to the media. Video of their moderated talk with IHS CERA Chairman Daniel Yergin was also prohibited. …

Clinton said there are “ridiculous delays in permitting when our economy doesn’t need it,” according to Noe and others."
http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0311/51150.html