Oil rig disaster could soon be worse than Exxon Valdez

[ProSense]

Oil rig disaster could soon be worse than Exxon Valdez

<...>

By today, about 7 million gallons will have been spilled, taking the Deepwater Horizon disaster more than halfway to the 1989 wreck of the Exxon Valdez, which dumped 11 million gallons into Alaska’s Prince William Sound — one of the nation’s worst environmental disasters. This catastrophe — which occured as Halliburton was cementing the well — will exceed the scale of the Exxon Valdez within a week.

The sea of oil spewing from the mangled pipeline is already larger than 31 nations. After the Montara oil platform blew up in Australia’s Timor Sea last August, it took 10 weeks to stop the flow of oil. If recent history is any guide, it may be months before the sea of oil stops growing.

On April 22, the U.S. Coast Guard estimated the flow rate to be 336,000 gallons of crude a day, but BP officials claimed on Sunday that the rate was only 42,000 gallons a day. By Thursday, officials admitted that the disaster is increasing at least 210,000 gallons a day, much closer to the Coast Guard’s original estimate. Amos called that estimate a “bare-bones limit.”

more

When will the media focus on BP culpability?

[Jennicut]

1. No, are you kidding?

Of course corporations like BP and Halliburton will not get the blame. It will be shifted elsewhere as always...

[boppers]

2. Uhm, what?

http://www.businessweek.com/news/2010-05-01/bp-s-response-to-oil-spill-lacking-officials-say-update1-.html
http://articles.latimes.com/2010/apr/30/business/la-fi-gulf-bp-20100501
http://www.thedailyinquirer.net/bp-ceo-says-theyll-pay-for-oil-spill/0513711
http://www.theepochtimes.com/n2/content/view/34470/
http://www.epa.gov/bpspill/
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/05/01/us/01gulf.html
http://blogs.wsj.com/washwire/2010/04/30/its-now-the-bp-spill/
...

Here:
http://news.google.com/search?q=BP%20spill
"Results 1 - 10 of about 4,300,000 for BP spill. (0.15 seconds)"

4.3 million isn't enough?

[ProSense]

4. NYT: "BP Is Criticized Over Oil Spill, but ...

U.S. Missed Chances to Act"

NEW ORLEANS — Officials in the Obama administration began for the first time Friday to publicly chastise BP America for its handling of the spreading oil gusher in the Gulf of Mexico, calling the oil company’s current resources inadequate to stop what is unfolding into an environmental catastrophe.

WSJ: It’s Now the ‘BP Spill’

Just in case you needed a reminder as to where the Obama administration fixes responsibility for the Gulf of Mexico oil spill, the Environmental Protection Agency on Friday unveiled this new Web site to display information on the unfolding catastrophe: www.EPA.gov/bpspill.

Yeah, the Obama administration is criticizing BP. Sure, I'll take it. Where is the media criticism of BP?

The fact that the media put so much effort, including a few articles and an editorial in the NYT, lambasting the federal response is typical. You can find reports about anything online, but the vast majority of broadcast reporting and punditry is focused on the ludicrous Katrina comparison.

[girl gone mad]

6. Plenty of blame to go around.

The administration chose to lie with dogs - the dogs on Wall Street and the dogs of Big Oil - so they shouldn't feign surprise now that the shit is clinging to them, too.

[ProSense]

7. "The administration chose to lie with dogs" What utter nonsense.

The administration issued an energy plan. What the hell does that have to do with BP's negligence?

[girl gone mad]

8. "What the hell does that have to do with BP's negligence?"

"I don’t agree with the notion that we shouldn’t do anything. It turns out, by the way, that oil rigs today generally don’t cause spills. They are technologically very advanced. Even during Katrina, the spills didn’t come from the oil rigs, they came from the refineries onshore."

Not only does this quote look ridiculous in hindsight, it wasn’t true at the time, as Brad Johnson points out:

Obama’s claim that oil rigs did not cause any spills during Hurricane Katrina is simply false, as the Wonk Room reported in June, 2008, when Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) and other conservatives made the same false claim:

Hurricanes Katrina and Rita Caused 124 Offshore Spills For A Total Of 743,700 Gallons. 554,400 gallons were crude oil and condensate from platforms, rigs and pipelines, and 189,000 gallons were refined products from platforms and rigs.

Hurricanes Katrina and Rita Caused Six Offshore Spills Of 42,000 Gallons Or Greater. The largest of these was 152,250 gallons, well over the 100,000 gallon threshhold considered a “major spill.”

If this President wants to be an apologist for big oil to the point of outright distortions and revisionism, and when he promotes a significant expansion of offshore drilling permits granted to these reckless corporations, then he deserves a share of the culpability for their colossal failure.

He chose a side in this battle. Too bad for him, and for us, he chose to side with big oil, against the environment and against the people who must always suffer the consequences.

[denimgirly]

3. What baffles me is why Obama just didnt stick with his Ideals about No Offshore Drilling...

It seems when he keeps jumping ship to give anything the right wants he ends up shooting himself in the foot....every time....if he just would stick to his core beliefs (the stuff he campaigned on) he would be loved and respected by his base instead of getting confusion and depression from it. And after all this talk and appeasement for the right they still hate him and call him socialist, which apparenrtly drives him more right.

I just hope this spill makes Obama more tough to follow liberal ideals and get this country back on track because once again this right decision making has screwed him.

I am happy now that this disaster has finally rid offshore drilling from energy talks but seeing the pattern of things i think the Democrats and ESPECIALLY the whitehouse will just scrap Energy reform entirely instead of making it tougher ... and no reform is always the ideal for the Energy sector, even though offshore drilling would have been a sweet offer to them.

[boppers]

5. "No Offshore Drilling" was his "Ideal"?

Link please? I seem to recall him being big on "blended energy", combining drilling for oil, newer coal technology, and expanding nuclear, wind, geothermal, biofuel, solar.

Here's a bit of a hindsight moment, to look back at and reflect upon:
http://www.cnn.com/2010/POLITICS/03/31/obama.energy/index.html

[Jennicut]

9. Yup, he was always for that.

Not that I totally agreed with it, but once again, he never changed his mind.

[tekisui]

12. He was always wrong. No it is proven.

[Bluenorthwest]

10. Culpability doesn't generally happen

What with all the modern safeguards and all.

[tekisui]

11. Dang, I bet Obama regrets this quote:

“Oil rigs today generally don't cause spills,” Mr. Obama insisted on April 2, two days after he announced he would allow drilling in the Atlantic Ocean from Virginia to Florida and in the eastern Gulf of Mexico. “They are technologically very advanced. Even during Katrina, the spills didn't come from the oil rigs; they came from the refineries on shore.”

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/world/oil-spill-threatens-to-sink-obamas-energy-plan/article1554337/

This is exactly why Dems should not take repuke positions. While oil rigs 'generally don't cause spills', when they do, they really fuck it all up.

ETA: Oh yeah, this will also kill the energy bill. Maybe we can get a better one?