A new oil rush endangers the Gulf of Mexico and the planet

[marmar]

from TomDispatch, via Grist:



A new oil rush endangers the Gulf of Mexico and the planet
by Michael T. Klare

18 May 2010 2:21 PM


Yes, the oil spewing up from the floor of the Gulf of Mexico in staggering quantities could prove one of the great ecological disasters of human history. Think of it, though, as just the prelude to the Age of Tough Oil, a time of ever increasing reliance on problematic, hard-to-reach energy sources. Make no mistake: we're entering the danger zone. And brace yourself, the fate of the planet could be at stake.

It may never be possible to pin down the precise cause of the massive explosion that destroyed the Deepwater Horizon drilling rig on April 20, killing 11 of its 126 workers. Possible culprits include a faulty cement plug in the undersea oil bore and a disabled cutoff device known as a blow-out preventer. Inadequate governmental oversight of safety procedures undoubtedly also contributed to the disaster, which may have been set off by a combination of defective equipment and human error. But whether or not the immediate trigger of the explosion is ever fully determined, there can be no mistaking the underlying cause: a government-backed corporate drive to exploit oil and natural gas reserves in extreme environments under increasingly hazardous operating conditions.

The new oil rush and its dangers

The United States entered the hydrocarbon era with one of the world's largest pools of oil and natural gas. The exploitation of these valuable and versatile commodities has long contributed to the nation's wealth and power, as well as to the profitability of giant energy firms like BP and Exxon. In the process, however, most of our easily accessible onshore oil and gas reservoirs have been depleted, leaving only less accessible reserves in offshore areas, Alaska, and the melting Arctic. To ensure a continued supply of hydrocarbons -- and the continued prosperity of the giant energy companies -- successive administrations have promoted the exploitation of these extreme energy options with a striking disregard for the resulting dangers. By their very nature, such efforts involve an ever increasing risk of human and environmental catastrophe -- something that has been far too little acknowledged.

The hunt for oil and gas has always entailed a certain amount of risk. After all, most energy reserves are trapped deep below the Earth's surface by overlying rock formations. When punctured by oil drills, these are likely to erupt in an explosive release of hydrocarbons, the well-known "gusher" effect. In the swashbuckling early days of the oil industry, this phenomenon -- familiar to us from movies like There Will Be Blood -- often caused human and environmental injury. Over the years, however, the oil companies became far more adept at anticipating such events and preventing harm to workers or the surrounding countryside. ............(more)

The complete piece is at: http://www.grist.org/article/2010-05-18-a-new-oil-rush-endangers-the-gulf-of-mexico-and-the-planet/

[tavalon]

1. Welcome to the other side of peak oil

I knew this intellectually but this Gulf disaster makes it visceral.

[tavalon]

2. dupe

[FBI_Un_Sub]

3. Klare's conclusion

While BP may prove to be the principal villain in this case, other large energy firms -- egged on by the government and state officials -- are engaged in similar reckless drives to extract oil and natural gas from extreme environmental locations. These companies and their government backers insist that, with proper precautions, it is safe to operate in these conditions, but the Deepwater Horizon incident shows that the more extreme the environment, the more unlikely such statements will prove accurate.
[br />The Deepwater Horizon explosion, we assuredly will be told, was an unfortunate fluke: a confluence of improper management and faulty equipment. With tightened oversight, it will be said, such accidents can be averted -- and so it will be safe to go back into the deep waters again and drill for oil a mile or more beneath the ocean's surface.

Don't believe it. While poor oversight and faulty equipment may have played a critical role in BP's catastrophe in the Gulf, the ultimate source of the disaster is big oil's compulsive drive to compensate for the decline in its conventional oil reserves by seeking supplies in inherently hazardous areas -- risks be damned.

So long as this compulsion prevails, more such disasters will follow. Bet on it.] www.grist.org/article/2010-05-18-a-new-oil-rush-endangers-the-gulf-of-mexico-and-the-planet

[swilton]

4. Imagine

If we invested as much in renewables (solar and wind) as we invested in big oil - such a dramatic action has been long overdue.