If BP plugs this leak, would you support another attempt to tap this reservoir?

[Junkdrawer]

Remember that answer.

Now if BP cannot plug this leak, would you support "relief" well(s) in this reservoir?

Perhaps THIS is why all the attempts to date to plug the leak have been almost comically inept?

[LakeSamish706]

1. Not a chance in hell! n/t

[cyr330]

2. HELL NO!!!!! NEVER!!!!

[Warpy]

3. Only after a lot of re engineering

It's obvious that both the blowout protector and the process of capping the well for production need a lot of rethinking, now that they know what methane does a mile down when it's heated slightly by setting concrete.

Until then, no way, Jose.

[DURHAM D]

I think you may be confused about the purpose of the relief well.

It/they (two have been started) will be used to plug the existing hole. Sometimes they work and sometimes they don't.

[City Lights]

4. No. nt

[Dappleganger]

5. IMO they lost the right to drill, anywhere.

Land or sea.

[petronius]

6. Aren't they already drilling a relief well?

I would assume that that well would also become a producer - unless a relief well and a normal well are different somehow...

Edit - Never mind, it looks like the relief wells being drilled are not intended to extract any oil after all.

[Feron]

9. They are currently drilling two relief wells.

Relief wells cannot be producing wells.

[Luminous Animal]

22. Yes. They are drilling two relief wells.

According to their OCS Plan Information Form:

They plan to "Drill and temporarily abandon two relief wells concurrently to support well control activities for well No. 001."

Who knows how long that temporary abandonment may last.

[Donnachaidh]

7. oh HELL no! n/t

[tekisui]

8. I do not support any company drilling in the deep oceans.

Clearly we do not the technology to deal with problems at taht depth.

[ljm2002]

18. [phone] n/t

[Johonny]

10. Not without major changes in the operation of our government

which clearly has little or no ability to oversight and regulate these operations.

[RC]

11. If BP weren't so greedy, this never would have happened.

There is a very good reason why oil companies need to be nationalized. That leak, if it did happen, would have been stopped weeks ago. BP did not let anyone with expertise near the well. They just let it sprue. (pun intended)

[Ruby the Liberal]

12. They have stated that they will not redrill *this* well

but not that they will not retap the reservoir.

No. I do not support this at all. They have no contingency plans for deep-well drilling.

[xultar]

13. FUCK NO! It'll be empty by the time they plug it anyway.

[laughingliberal]

14. Fuck, No! nt

[Feron]

15. I'm not against deepwater drilling provided that...

regulators do their job and force drillers to do so safely. That means shutting down a rig if vital paperwork is incomplete or if equipment isn't functioning/maintained properly for example. Serial violators should also risk losing their lease.

In addition there should be an effective plan in place to shut the well in the worst case scenario. No more Titanic thinking that redundant systems will never fail.

Regardless BP has already stated that they want to drill a new production well to tap this particular reservoir. A relief well is not a production well. I want BP to feel a lot of financial pain from this fuckup so no I would not support that at all.

However that reservoir will be tapped again because the oil that is now left is in the harder to reach places.

[jtrockville]

16. No matter to me, I was always against offshore drilling.

I think we should stop digging stuff up out of the ground and burning it.

[ljm2002]

17. Very good point...

...there is indeed an inherent conflict of interest in BP trying to seal this sucker. And if it keeps flowing, we will be glad when a relief well comes online. Whereas if it was capped already no one would want to see that relief well drilled at all.

Sigh. This is so depressing.

[Mojeoux]

19. Not until they invent the 15 story Shop Vac of the Gods!

Fuck these people.

[FBI_Un_Sub]

20. NO

The strata has been damaged. And, I don't think BP has the PetE's and Geologists to dill in that damaged strata environment.

[Swamp Rat]

21. Plug it with BP CEOs and major shareholders forever.

[Incitatus]

23. Yes

when monkeys fly out my butt

[katzenjammers]

24. Would taking out the oil be worse than leaving it down there under enormous pressure

that could break through the seabed at any time? Most people with cars don't really much care about where their gas comes from as long as they can get it. That's the sad truth of the matter.

[Incitatus]

25. It was fine there for millions of years until they drilled 2 miles below the sea floor

[katzenjammers]

26. Yes, of course...but now the question is what to do about it since the hole is there.

Should we just ignore it?