The Deepwater Horizon oil spill (also referred to as oil leak BP / leakage , BP oil disaster, Gulf of Mexico oil spill , and Macondo explosion ) is an industrial disaster that began on April 20, 2010, in the Gulf of Mexico at the Macondo Prospect operated by BP, is considered the largest marine oil spill in the history of the petroleum industry and is estimated to be 8% to 31% larger than the previous volume, the Ixtoc I oil spill. The US government estimates total discharge of 4.9 million barrels (210 million US gal; 780,000 m 3 ). After several failed attempts to contain the flow, the well was declared sealed on September 19, 2010. The report in early 2012 indicates that the well site is still leaking.
Massive response occurred to protect beaches, wetlands and estuaries from oil dispersed using ship skimmers, floating booms, controlled burns and 1.84 million gallons (7,000 m 3 ) of oil dispersant. Due to months of spills, along with the adverse effects of response and clearance activities, extensive damage to marine and wildlife habitats as well as the fishing and tourism industries are reported. In Louisiana, 4.9 million pounds (2,200 tons) of oily materials have been removed from shore in 2013, more than double the amount collected in 2012. Oil cleaning crews work four days a week at 55 miles (89 km) from the shoreline Louisiana throughout 2013. Oil continues to be found far from the Macondo site as the waters off Florida Panhandle and Tampa Bay, where scientists say oil blends and dispersants are embedded in the sand. In April 2013, it was reported that dolphins and other marine life continue to die in large numbers with dolphins infants who die at six times the normal rate. One study released in 2014 reported that tuna and amberjack exposed to oil from spills developed a deformed heart and other organs that were expected to be fatal or at least a shortening of life and other studies found that cardiotoxicity may have been widespread in the life of spill-affected animals.
A number of investigations explore the causes of explosions and record leaks. The September 2011 government report points to the defective cement at the well, which mostly blames BP, but also rig operator Transocean and Halliburton contractors. Earlier in 2011, the White House commission also blamed BP and its partners for a series of inefficient cost-cutting and security system decisions, but also concluded that spills resulting from "systemic" root causes and "no significant reforms in both industry practices. " and government policies, may recur. "
In November 2012, BP and the United States Department of Justice settled federal criminal charges with BP pleading guilty to 11 counts of premeditated murder, two minor offenses, and numerous crimes for lying to Congress. BP also agreed to four years of government monitoring of its safety practices and ethics, and the Environmental Protection Agency announced that BP would be temporarily banned from new contracts with the US government. BP and the Justice Department agreed to record $ 4.525 billion in fines and other payments. In February 2013, civil and criminal settlements and payments to the trust funds had cost the company $ 42.2 billion.
In September 2014, a US District Court judge ruled that BP was primarily responsible for the oil spill due to his gross negligence and careless behavior. In July 2015, BP agreed to pay a $ 18.7 billion fine, the largest corporate settlement in US history.
Video Deepwater Horizon oil spill
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Deepwater Horizon Drilling rig
The Horizon Deepwater is a semi-submersible, mobile, floating, dynamically positioned 10-year dynamic drilling rig that can operate in waters up to 10,000 feet (3,000 m) deep. Built by a South Korean company, Hyundai Heavy Industries and owned by Transocean, the rig is operated under the Marshallland comfort flag, and leased for BP from March 2008 to September 2013. It's drilling deep exploration wells, 18,360 feet (5,600 m) below sea level , at approximately 5,100 feet (1,600 m) of water. The well is located at Macondo Prospect in Mississippi Canyon Block 252 (MC252) Gulf of Mexico, in the exclusive US economic zone. The Macondo well is found approximately 41 miles (66 km) off the coast of Louisiana. BP is Macondo Prospect's main operator and developer with 65% share, while 25% is owned by Anadarko Petroleum Corporation, and 10% by MOEX Offshore 2007, Mitsui unit.
Explosion
At about 9: 45 ° C, CDT , on April 20, 2010, high-pressure methane gas from the well expanded into the drilling riser and climbed into the drilling rig, where it was ignited and exploded, struck the platform. At that time, 126 crew members were on board: seven BP employees, 79 from Transocean, and employees from various other companies. Eleven lost workers were never found despite a three-day search operation in the US Coast Guard (USCG) and are believed to have been killed in the blast. Ninety-four crew members were rescued by lifeboats or helicopters, 17 of whom were treated for injuries. The Deepwater Horizon sank on the morning of 22 April 2010.
Maps Deepwater Horizon oil spill
Volume and oil spill rate
Oil leak was discovered on the afternoon of April 22, 2010 when large oil began to spread on the former rig site. Oil flows for 87 days. BP initially estimated the flow rate of 1,000 to 5,000 barrels per day (160 to 790 m 3 /d). The Flow Rate Technical Group (FRTG) estimates the initial flow rate is 62,000 barrels per day (9,900 m 3 /d). The total volume of leaking oil is estimated at about 4.9 million barrels (210 million million gallons, 780,000 m 3 ) with plus or minus 10% uncertainty, including oil collected, making it the largest accidental spill in the world. BP challenged a higher number, saying that the government is exaggerating the volume. An internal email released in 2013 indicates that one BP employee has an approximation that matches the FRTG, and shares data with the supervisor, but BP goes on to a lower amount. The company believes that government figures do not reflect more than 810,000 barrels (34 million US dollars, 129,000 m 3 ) of oil collected or burned before it can enter the Gulf waters.
According to satellite imagery, the spill is directly impacting the 68,000 square miles (180,000 km 2 ) ocean, which is comparable to Oklahoma size. In early June 2010, oil had been stranded at 125 miles (201 km) of coastal Louisiana and along the coastline of Mississippi, Florida, and Alabama. Oil sludge appears on the Intracoastal Waterway and in Pensacola Beach and Gulf Islands National Seashore. At the end of June, oil reached Park Estates Bay, her first appearance in Mississippi. In July, the tar reached the Grand Isle and the shores of Lake Pontchartrain. In September, a new oil surge suddenly coated the 16 mile (26 km) coastline of Louisiana and the western swamps of the Mississippi River at Plaquemines Parish. In October, oil crops reached Texas. In July 2011, some 491 miles (790 km) of coastlines in Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama and Florida were contaminated by oil and a total of 1,074 miles (1,728 km) had been oiled since the spill began. As of December 2012, 339 miles (546 km) of coastline remain the target of evaluation and/or cleaning operations.
Concerns arise about the emergence of water under the sea, extending horizontally from dissolved oil. The researchers concluded that dissolved oil and gas clusts would likely remain confined to the northern Gulf of Mexico and that peak impact on dissolved oxygen would be delayed and long-lasting. Two weeks after the well's head was ended on July 15, 2010, surface oil appears to have been lost, while an unknown number of subsurface oils remain. The residual estimate ranges from the NOAA 2010 report which claims about half of the oil remains below the surface for an independent estimate of up to 75%.
That means that more than 100 million US gallons (380 Ml) (2.4 million barrels) remain in the Gulf. In January 2011, tar balls, oil gleaming lanes, wet swamp swamps and beach sand are still visible. The subsurface oil remains offshore and in fine mud. In April 2012, oil is still found along the 200 miles (320 km) of the Louisiana coastline and tar balls continue to wash on the barrier islands. In 2013, scientists in the Gulf of Mexico Oil Spill and the Ecosystem Science Conference say that as much as one-third of oil may be mixed with deep-sea sediments, where it risks damaging commercial ecosystems and fisheries.
In 2013, more than 4,600,000 pounds (2,100 tt) of "greasy material" was removed from the Louisiana coast. Although only the amount of "minute" oil continues to wash in 2013, tarball patches are still being reported almost daily from Alabama and Florida Panhandle beaches. A routine cleaning patrol is no longer considered correct but cleaning is done on a required basis, in response to public reports.
First thought that oil has not reached as far as Tampa Bay, Florida; However, a study conducted in 2013 found that one of the dissolved oil clumps had reached a rack 80 miles (130 km) from the Tampa Bay area. According to the researchers, there is "some evidence that might lead to lesions in fish caught in the area".
Efforts to stem oil flow
Short-term effort
First BP failed to try to close the blast prevention valve at the well head with a remote underwater vehicle operated. Next he puts a 125 ton (280,000 pound) containment dome on top of the biggest leak and delivers the oil to the storage vessel. While this technique has worked in shallow water, it fails here when the gas is combined with cold water to form methane hydrate crystals that block the opening at the top of the dome. Pumping heavy drilling fluid into blowout prevention to restrict oil flow before permanently closing it with cement ("top kill") also fails.
BP then inserts an insertion tube into the pipe and a washing machine such as a stopper around the tube that is pinned at the riser end and diverts the flow to the insertion tube. The accumulated gas is burned and the oil is stored on board the Discoverer Enterprise drillship . Before the tube was removed, it collected 924,000 gallons of US (22,000 bbl; 3,500 m 3 ) oil. On June 3, 2010, BP lifted the damaged drill drill from the top of the blast prevention and closed the pipe with a lid connecting it to the other risers. On June 16, a second detention system connected directly to the blowout preventer began carrying oil and gas to the service ships, where it was consumed in a clean burning system. Estimates of the US government say that hats and other equipment capture less than half of the leaking oil. On July 10 the detention cover is removed to replace it with a more fit cap ("Top Hat Number 10"). Mud and cement are then pumped in through the top of the well to reduce the pressure inside which does not work as well. The final device was made to install larger-diameter booths from flowing pipes with flanges that sped up to the top of the blast prevention and set the manual valve to close the flow once installed. On July 15, the device is secured and the time taken closes the valve to ensure the attachment under increasing pressure until the valve is closed completes a temporary measure.
Considerations using explosives
In mid-May, US Energy Secretary Steven Chu assembled a team of nuclear physicists, including the director of the hydrogen bombs Richard Garwin and Sandia National Laboratories, Tom Hunter. Oil expert Matthew Simmons stated that the nuclear explosion was the only way BP could permanently shut down a successful Soviet effort and successfully seal a gas well that fled with a nuclear explosion. A spokesman for the US Department of Energy said that "neither Energy Minister Steven Chu nor anyone else" has ever considered this option. On May 24, BP ruled out conventional explosives, claiming that if the explosion failed to clog the well, "we will reject all other options."
Well declared "dead effectively"
Transocean's Development Driller III began drilling the first relief well on May 2, 2010. Development of GSF Driller II started drilling second aid on May 16, 2010. On August 3, 2010, the first test of oil and then drilling mud is pumped at a slow rate of about 2 barrels (320 liters per minute into the wellhead). Pumping continued for eight hours, at the end of that time the well was declared "in a static condition." On August 4, 2010, BP started pumping cement from the top, sealing part of the flow channel permanently.
On September 3, 2010, 300-tonnes of failed flushing preventors were ejected from wells and surge prevention replacements were installed. On September 16, 2010, the aid well reached its destination and pumped cement to close the well. On September 19, 2010, National Incident Commander Thad Allen declared the well "to die effectively" and said that it did not pose any further threat to the Gulf.
Recurrent or continuous leak
In May 2010, BP acknowledged that they had "discovered damaged things beneath the surface" during a "top kill" attempt.
Oil slips are reported in March and August 2011, in March and October 2012, and in January 2013. Recurrent scientific analysis confirms that sheen is a chemical match for oil from Macondo well.
The USCG initially said oil was too scattered to recover and pose no threat to the coastline, but then warned BP and Transocean that they may be financially responsible for cleaning up new oil. USGS director Marcia McNutt stated that the riser pipe can withstand at most 1,000 barrels (160 m 3 ) because it is open at both ends, making it impossible to withstand the amount of oil observed.
In October 2012, BP reported that it had discovered and removed the leaking oil from a failed dome of detention, now abandoned about 1,500 feet (460 m) from the main well. In December 2012, USCG conducted a subsea survey; no oil derived from a well or ruins was found and the source is still unknown. In addition, white, milk-like substances are observed seeping from the wreckage. According to BP and USCG, it is "not oil and it is harmless."
In January 2013, BP said that they are continuing to investigate the possible sources of oil sheen. Chemical data implies that the substance may be the rest of the oil leaking from the wreckage. If that proves to be the case, the sheen can be expected to eventually disappear. Another possibility is that formation oil escaping from the subsurface, using Macondo worm wells as flow channels, may intersect with naturally occurring errors, and then follow it to escape on the surface some distance from the wellhead. If it proves to be oil from below the surface, then it could indicate the possibility of unlimited oil release. The slick oil is comparable to the natural size that oozes oil and is not large enough to pose a direct threat to wildlife.
Detention, collection and use of dispersant
The basic strategies for dealing with spills are containment, dissemination and disappearance. In the summer of 2010, some 47,000 people and 7,000 ships were involved in the project. As of October 3, 2012, the cost of a federal response was $ 850 million, largely replaced by BP. Until January 2013, 935 personnel are still involved. At that time, cleaning has cost more than $ 14 billion.
It is estimated with a plus-or-minus 10% uncertainty that 4.9 million barrels (780,000 m 3 ) oil is released from the well; 4.1 million barrels (650,000 m 3 ) oil goes into the Gulf. The report led by the Ministry of Home Affairs and NOAA said that "75% [oil] has been cleansed by Humans or Mother Nature"; However, only about 25% of the released oil is collected or removed while about 75% of the oil remains in the environment in one form or another. In 2012, Markus Huettel, a benthic ecologist at Florida State University, stated that while much of BP's oil is degraded or evaporated, at least 60% is still undiscovered.
In May 2010, the locals set up a network for people to volunteer to help them clean up the beach. The boat captains are given the opportunity to offer the use of their boats to help clean up and prevent the oil from spreading further. To assist the efforts the captains had to register their vessels with Vessels of Opportunity, but problems arose when more boats were registered than actually participating in cleanup efforts - only a third of the boats were registered. Many local supporters were disappointed by BP's slow response, prompting the formation of the Florida Key Environmental Coalition. This coalition has had a significant influence in cleaning up the oil spill to try and gain control over the situation.
Containment
The 4,200,000-foot (1,300 km) containment boom is deployed, either to flood oil or as a barrier to protect marshes, mangrove forests, shrimp/crabs/oysters or other ecologically sensitive areas. The boom extends from 18 to 48 inches (0.46-1.22 m) above and below the water surface and is only effective in relatively quiet and slow moving waters. Including one-time use of the sorben boom, a total of 13,300,000 feet (4,100 km) of explosive deployed. The boom was criticized for washing on the beach with oil, allowing oil to escape above or below the boom, and for ineffectiveness in more than three to four feet (90-120 cm) of waves.
The Louisiana barrier island plan was developed to build barrier islands to protect the Louisiana coast. The plan was criticized for its cost and poor results. Critics allege that the decision to pursue the project is political with little scientific input. The EPA expressed concern that the explosion would threaten wildlife.
In the meantime, a group called Matter of Trust, on the grounds of insufficient availability of produced oil-absorption boom, was campaigned to push hair salons, dog grooms and sheep breeders to donate haircuts, feathers and wool, filled with stockings or tights, to helps with oil. near the affected coast, the technique dating back to Exxon Valdez disater.
Use of Corexit dispersant
Spills are also important for the volume of Corexit oil dispersant used and for "purely experimental" application methods. Overall, 1.84 million US gallons (7,000 m 3 ) of the dispersants were used; of the 771,000 US gallons (2,920 m 3 ) are released at the wellhead. Subsea injection has never been tried before but because of the unprecedented nature of BP along with USCG and EPA decided to use it. More than 400 sorties are flown in to release the product. Although the use of dispersants is described as "the most effective and fast-moving tool to minimize the impact of shoreline", this approach continues to be investigated.
The 2011 analysis conducted by Earthjustice and Toxipedia shows that dispersants may contain cancer-causing agents, harmful toxins, and endocrine disruptive chemicals. Environmental scientists have expressed concern that dispersants add to the spillage toxicity, increasing threats to bluefin tuna and tuna. The danger is even greater when poured into the source of the spill, as they are taken up by the current and wash through the Gulf. According to BP and federal officials, the use of dispersant stops after the cover is there; However, marine toxicologist Riki Ott wrote in an open letter to the EPA that the use of Corexit continued after that date and the GAP investigation stated that "[a] the majority of GAP witnesses cite indications that Corexit was used after [July 2010]."
According to the NALCO guidance obtained by GAP, Corexit 9527 is "eye and irritation of the skin. Repeated or excessive exposure... may cause injury to red blood cells (hemolysis), kidney or liver." Manual adds: "Excessive exposure can cause central nervous system effects, nausea, vomiting, anesthesia or the effects of narcotics." He advises, "Do not get to the eyes, on leather, clothing," and "Wear suitable protective clothing." For Corexit 9500, users are advised, "Do not let eyes, on skin, clothing," "Avoid breathing vapors," and "Wear suitable protective clothing." According to FOIA requests obtained by GAP, neither protective nor manual equipment is distributed to Gulf oil spill cleaning workers.
Corexit EC9500A and Corexit EC9527A are the main variants. Both of these formulations are not toxic, or most effective, among the approved EPA dispersants, but BP says they chose to use Corexit because of the available week of rig blasts. On May 19, the EPA gave BP 24 hours to select a less toxic alternative to Corexit from the Product Schedule of the National Contingency Plan, and begin to apply it within 72 hours of EPA approval or provide detailed reasons why no approved products meet the standards. On May 20, BP decided that no alternative product met all three criteria of availability, non-toxicity, and effectiveness. On May 24, EPA Administrator Lisa P. Jackson ordered the EPA to conduct its own evaluation of alternatives and ordered BP to reduce the use of dispersants by 75%. BP reduced the use of Corexit by 25,689 to 23,250 US gallons (97,240 to 88,010Ã, L) per day, a 9% decrease. On August 2, 2010, the EPA says dispersants are no more harmful to the environment than to oil and that they stop large quantities of oil from reaching the coast by breaking it down faster. However, some independent scientists and EPA experts themselves continue to voice concerns about the approach.
Corexit's underwater injection into leaks may have created a clump of oil found beneath the surface. Since the dispersant is applied to the depth, much of the oil never rises to the surface. One of the plume is 22 miles (35 km) long, over 1 mile (1,600m) wide and 650 feet (200 m). In a major study on the plume, experts are very concerned about the slow rate at which oil has been damaged in the cold, 40Ã, ° F (4Ã,  ° C) water at a depth of 3,000 feet (900 m).
By the end of 2012, a study from Georgia Tech and Universidad Autonoma de Aguascalientes in the journal Environmental Pollution reported that Corexit used during the BP oil spill has increased the oil toxicity by 52 times. The scientists concluded that "Mixing oil with dispersant increases the toxicity of the ecosystem" and makes the oil spill of the bay worse. "
Deletion
Three basic approaches for removing oil from water are: combustion, offshore filtration, and collection for further processing. USCG said 33 million US gallons (120,000 m 3 ) of contaminated water were found, including 5 million US gallons (19,000 m 3 ) of oil. BP says 826,800 barrels (131,450 m 3 ) have been found or burned. It is estimated that about 5% of leaking oil is burnt on the surface and 3% is taken skim. On the most demanding day 47,849 people were assigned to job responses.
From April to mid-July 2010, 411 controlled fires were remediated at about 265,000 barrels (11.1 million US Gal; 42,100 m 3 ). Fires remove small amounts of toxins, including cancer-causing dioxins. According to the EPA report, the amount spent was not enough to pose additional cancer risk to workers and coastal populations, while the second research team concluded that there was little additional risk.
Oil is collected from water using a skimmer. A total of 2,063 various skimmers are used. For offshore, over 60 open water skimmers are deployed, including 12 specially built vehicles. EPA regulations prohibit skimmers leaving more than 15 parts per million (ppm) of oil in the water. Many large scale scimmers exceed the limit. Because of the use of Corexit, the oil is too scattered to be collected, according to a spokesman for TMT boat owners. In mid-June 2010, BP ordered 32 engines separating oil and water, with each machine capable of extracting up to 2,000 barrels per day (320 m 3 /d). After one week of testing, BP began processing and on June 28, it had removed 890,000 barrels (141,000 m 3 ).
After the well is captured, beach cleaning becomes the main task of the response work. The two main types of affected coast are sandy beaches and swamps. On the beach, the main technique is sorting sand, dumping tar balls, and digging tar mats manually or by using mechanical devices. For swamps, techniques such as vacuum and pumping, low pressure watering, vegetation cutting, and bioremediation are used.
Oil-eating microbe
Dispersants are said to facilitate the digestion of oil by microbes. Mixing dispersants with oil at the wellhead will store some oil beneath the surface and in theory, allowing the microbes to digest the oil before it reaches the surface. Risks are identified and evaluated, in particular that increased microbial activity can reduce subsea oxygen levels, threatening fish and other animals.
Several studies have shown that microbes manage to consume some of the oil. In mid-September, another study claimed that microbes primarily digest natural gas rather than oil. David L. Valentine, a professor of microbial geochemistry at UC Santa Barbara, says that the ability of microbes to break down leaking oil has been greatly exaggerated. However, biogeochemistry Chris Reddy, says natural microorganisms are a big reason why the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico is not much worse.
Genetic engineering Alcanivorax borkumensis is added to water to speed digestion. The method of sending microbes to oil fillings is proposed by the Russian Agency for Ecological Research and Development and Sustainable Natural Resource Utilization.
Access restricted
On May 18, 2010, BP was appointed as the "Responsible Party" leader under the Oil Pollution Act of 1990, meaning that BP has operational authority in coordinating responses.
The first video image was released on May 12, and further video images were released by members of Congress who have been given access to them by BP.
During spill response operations, at the request of the Coast Guard, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) implements a 900-mile (2,300 km 2 ) 900-mile interim flight zone above the operating area. The limit is to prevent civilian air traffic from interfering with aircraft that assist response efforts. All flights in the area of ​​operation are prohibited except the flights permitted by air traffic control; regular flights that support offshore oil operations; federal, state, local and military aviation operations support spill response; and air ambulances and law enforcement operations. Exceptions to these restrictions are given on a case-by-case basis depending on security issues, operational requirements, weather conditions, and traffic volume. No flights, except aircraft carrying out airborne chemical dispersal operations, or to land and take off, are allowed under 1,000 meters (3,300 feet). Despite the restrictions, there are 800 to 1,000 flights per day during operation.
Local and federal authorities citing BP authorities deny access to members of the press who are trying to document spills from the air, from ships, and on land, blocking access to areas open to the public. In some cases, photographers are given access only to BP officials guarding them with BP boats and aircraft. In one instance, the US Coast Guard stopped the Jean-Michel Cousteau boat and allowed it to continue only after the Coast Guard was assured that no journalists were present. In another example, the CBS News crew was denied access to oil-covered beaches in the spill area. The CBS crew was notified by the authorities: "this is a BP regulation, not ours," while trying to film the area. Some members of Congress criticized the restrictions placed on access by journalists.
The FAA rejects that BP employees or contractors make decisions about aviation and access, saying that the decision was made by the FAA and Coast Guard. The FAA recognizes that media access is limited to chartered planes or helicopters, but is arranged through the Coast Guard. The Coast Guard and BP deny having a policy of restricting journalists; They noted that members of the media have been attached to the authorities and allowed to cover response efforts early on in the effort, with more than 400 embedded ships and aircraft to date. They also said that they wanted to provide access to information while maintaining security.
Cleanup
On April 15, 2014, BP claimed that coastal clearance was substantially complete, but the Coast Guard responded by stating that much work was left. Using a physical barrier like a floating boom, the cleaning worker's goal is to keep the oil from spreading further. They use skimmer boats to remove most of the oil and they use sorbents to absorb the rest of the oil like a sponge. Although the method does not remove oil completely, chemicals called dispersants are used to accelerate the degradation of oil to prevent oil from further damage to marine habitats beneath the surface of the water. For the Deep Horizon oil spill, cleaning workers use 1.4 million gallons (5,300,000 liters 1,200,000 gallons) of various chemical dispersants to decompose further oil.
The State of Louisiana is funded by BP to conduct routine tests on fish, shellfish, water, and sand. Preliminary tests regularly show detectable levels of dioctyl sodium sulfosuccinate, a chemical used in cleaning. Testing over the past year has been reported by GulfSource.org, for pollutants tested have not produced results.
Consequences
Environmental impact
The spill area has 8,332 species, including more than 1,270 fish, 604 polychaetes, 218 birds, 1,456 molluscs, 1,503 crustaceans, 4 sea turtles and 29 marine mammals. Between May and June 2010, spilled water contains 40 times more polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) than before the spill. PAHs are often associated with oil spills and include carcinogens and chemicals that pose various health risks to humans and marine life. PAHs are most concentrated near the Louisiana Coast, but levels also jump 2-3 times in areas outside Alabama, Mississippi and Florida. PAHs can harm marine species directly and the microbes used to consume oil can reduce ocean oxygen levels. Oil contains about 40% methane by weight, compared to about 5% found in typical oil deposits. Methane has the potential to strangle marine life and create "dead zones" where oxygen is depleted.
A 2014 study of the effects of an oil spill on blue fin tuna funded by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Stanford University and the Monterey Bay Aquarium and published in the journal Science found that the toxicity of the oil spill can causing an irregular heartbeat that causes heart attacks. Calling around the spill "one of the world's most productive marine ecosystems", the study found that even at very low concentrations "PAH cardiotoxicity is potentially a common form of injury among various species around the oil." Other peer-reviewed studies, released in March 2014 and conducted by 17 scientists from the United States and Australia and published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, found that tuna and amberjack exposed to oil from spills develop deformities of the heart and other organs that are expected to be fatal or at least shortening life. Scientists say that their findings are likely to apply to other large predatory fish and "even to humans, who have a heart that develops in many similar ways." BP responded that the oil concentrations in this study were rarely seen levels in the Gulf, but the New York Times reported that BP's statement contradicts the research.
The Corexit oil disperser, previously only used as a surface application, was released underwater in unprecedented quantities, with the intention of making it more easily decomposed by natural microbes. Thus, the oil that usually rises to the surface of the water is emulsified into small droplets and remains suspended in water and on the seafloor. The mixture of oil and dispersant permeate the food chain through zooplankton. Signs of oil mixture and dispersion are found under the shell of small blue crab larvae. A study of insect populations in coastal swamps affected by the spill also found a significant impact. Chemicals from spills are found in migratory birds as far as Minnesota. Pelican eggs contain "petroleum and Corexit compounds". Dispersant and PAHs from oil are believed to have caused "disturbing numbers" of mutated fish observed by scientists and commercial fishermen in 2012, including 50% of shrimp found lacking eye and eye sockets. Fish with abrasions and flowing lesions were first recorded by fishermen in November 2010. Before the spill, about 0.1% of Gulf fish had lesions or wounds. A report from the University of Florida says that many locations show 20% of fish with lesions, while subsequent estimates reach 50%. In October 2013, Al Jazeera reported that the gulf ecosystem was "in crisis", citing the decline in the catch of marine fish, as well as deformities and lesions found in fish.
In July 2010 it was reported that the spill "has had a damaging effect on marine life in the Gulf". Damage to the ocean floor is threatened with extinction, especially in Louisiana pancake batfish whose range is fully contained within the affected area. In March 2012, a definitive relationship was found between the deaths of the Gulf coral community and the spill. According to NOAA, the cetacean Unusual Mortality Event (UME) has been recognized since before the spill started, NOAA is investigating possible factors contributing to the ongoing UME from the Deepwater Horizon spill, with possible criminal allegations finally filed if the spill is proven to be connected. Some estimates of only 2% of the carcass of killed mammals have been found.
In the first dawn season for dolphins after spillage, baby dolphins die swept along the coastline of Mississippi and Alabama about 10 times the normal amount. A NOAA/BP study conducted by colleagues revealed that nearly half of the bottle nose dolphins tested in mid-2011 in the Western Gulf ofaria, a highly oiled region, were in "guarded or worse" conditions, "including 17 percent who did not expected to survive ". BP officials denied that the condition of the disease was related to the spill, saying that dolphin deaths were actually beginning to be reported before BP's oil spill. In 2013, more than 650 dolphins were found stranded in the oil spill area, a four-fold increase above the historical average. The National Wildlife Federation (NWF) reports that sea turtles, mostly threatened by the leatherback Kemp, have been stranded at a high level. Before the average spill there were 100 strands per year; since the number of spills has soared to around 500. NWF senior scientist Doug Inkley notes that the unprecedented and high rates of sea deaths occur in the food chain, strongly suggesting there is "something wrong with the Gulf ecosystem". In December 2013, the journal Environmental Science & amp; Technology published the research findings that of 32 dolphins that were briefly captured from a 24-km stretch near southeastern Louisiana, half were seriously ill or dying. BP said the report was "inconclusive due to spill-related causes".
In 2012, tar balls continue to wash along the Gulf coast and by 2013, tar balls can still be found on the Mississippi and Louisiana coasts, along with oil sheen in swamps and signs of severe erosion on coastal islands, which brought by the death of trees and swamp grass from exposure to oil. In 2013, former NASA physicist Bonny Schumaker recorded a "scarcity of marine life" within a radius of 30 to 50 miles (48 to 80 km) around the well, having flown over the area many times since May 2010.
In 2013, researchers found that the oil at the bottom of the seabed did not seem to be degrading, and observed a phenomenon called "dirty snow storm": the oil in the water column began to clump around suspended sediments, and fell to the bottom of the ocean in "underwater rain from oily particles. " The result can have long-term effects because oil can remain in the food chain for generations.
A study of bluefin tuna of 2014 at Science found that oil that has been broken down by wave action and chemical dispersants is more toxic than fresh oil. A study of 2015 on the relative toxicity of oil and dispersants to corals also found that dispersants are more toxic than oil.
A 2015 study by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, published in PLOS ONE, links the sharp increase of dolphin death to the Deepwater Horizon oil spill.
On April 12, 2016, the study team reported that 88 percent of the approximately 360 infants or dead dolphins in the spill area "have abnormal or underdeveloped lungs", compared with 15 percent in other areas. The study was published in April 2016 Disease of Water Organism .
Health consequences
As of June 2010, 143 cases of spill exposure have been reported to the Louisiana Department of Health and Hospital; 108 of those who engaged workers in a clean-up attempt, while 35 were reported by residents. Chemicals from oil and dispersant are believed to be the cause; it is believed that the addition of dispersants makes the oil more toxic.
The US Department of Health and Human Services organized the GuLF Study in June 2010 in response to these reports. The research is run by the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, and will last at least five years.
Mike Robicheux, a Louisiana doctor, described the situation as "the biggest public health crisis of chemical poisoning in the country's history." In July, after testing the blood of BP's cleansing workers and residents in Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, and Florida for volatile organic compounds, environmental scientist Wilma Subra said he "found the number 5 to 10 times more than 95 percent"; he said that "the presence of these chemicals in the blood shows exposure." Riki Ott, a sea poison expert with an Exxon Valdez oil spill experience, advised families to evacuate the Gulf. He said that workers from the Valdez spill have suffered long-term health consequences.
After 26 May 2010 hospitalized seven fishermen working in the cleaning crew, BP requested that the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health Evaluate Health Hazards. This to cover all offshore cleaning activities, BP then requested a second NIOSH investigation of coastal cleaning operations. Tests for chemical exposure on seven fishermen were negative; NIOSH concluded that hospitalization is most likely caused by the heat, fatigue, and terpena used to clear the deck. A review of 10 later inpatients found that exposure to heat and dehydration was a consistent finding but could not form a chemical exposure. NIOSH personnel conduct air monitoring around sea-cleansing workers, on land, and during Corexit implementation. The concentration of air from volatile organic compounds and PAHs never exceeds the permissible levels of exposure. The limitation of their methodology is that some VOCs may have evaporated from the oil before they begin the investigation. In their report, they show the possibility that respiratory symptoms may be caused by high levels of ozone or reactive aldehydes in the air, possibly resulting from photochemical reactions in the oil. NIOSH notes that many of the personnel involved do not wear personal protective equipment (gloves and protective clothing) because they have been instructed and emphasize that this is an important protection against the chemical transdermal absorption of oils. Heat stress is found as the most pressing security issue.
Workers report that they are not allowed to use a respirator, and that their work is threatened if they do so. OSHA says "cleaning workers receive" minimal "exposure to air toxins... OSHA will require BP to provide certain protective clothing, but not a respirator." ProPublica reports that the worker is being photographed while working without protective clothing. Independent investigations for Newsweek indicate that BP does not share the legally required safety manual for use with Corexit, and is not provided with safety training or protective equipment.
A 2012 survey of the health effects of spills on cleansing workers reported "irritation of the eyes, nose and throat, respiratory problems, blood in urine, vomiting and rectal bleeding, seizures, nausea and severe episodes of vomiting lasting for hours, skin irritation, burning and lesions, short-term memory loss and confusion, liver and kidney damage, central nervous system effects and nervous system damage, hypertension, and miscarriage.) Dr. James Diaz, writing for the American Journal of Disaster Medicine the disease appears in the Gulf reflecting those reported after the previous oil spill, such as Exxon Valdez.Herz warned that "adverse chronic health effects, including cancer, liver and kidney disease, mental health disorders, birth defects and developmental disorders should be anticipated amongst the sensitive population and those most exposed. "Diaz also believes neurological disorders should be expected.
Two years after the spill, a study initiated by the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health found a biomarker that matched the oil from the spill in the body of the cleaning worker. Other studies have reported various mental health problems, skin problems, respiratory problems, cough, and headaches. In 2013, for three days of the "Gulf Oil Spill & Ecosystems Mexico", the findings discussed included "significant percentages" of Gulf residents who reported mental health problems such as anxiety, depression, and PTSD. These studies also show that the former body of a spill cleaning worker brings biomarkers from "many chemicals contained in oil".
A study investigating the health effects among children in Louisiana and Florida who live less than 10 miles from the coast found that more than a third of parents reported physical or mental health symptoms among their children. The parents reported "vague symptoms among their children, including ear bleeding, nose bleeding, and early menstruation among women," according to David Abramson, director of the Columbia National Center for Disaster Preparedness.
A cohort study of nearly 2200 Louisiana women found "high physical/environmental exposure was significantly associated with all 13 physical health symptoms surveyed, with the strongest association to burn in the nose, throat or lung, sore throat, dizziness and wheezing. suffering from high-level economic disruptions as a result of the spill is significantly more likely to report wheezing, headache, watery, burning, itchy eyes and nasal congestion, itchy, watery.
Economy
The spill has a strong economic impact on BP as well as the Gulf Coast economic sector such as offshore drilling, fisheries and tourism. The estimated loss of tourism dollars is projected to finance the coastal economy of the Gulf up to 22.7 billion by 2013. In addition, Louisiana reported that visitor spending losses by the end of 2010 totaled $ 32 million, and losses by 2013 are estimated at $ 153 million in this country alone. The commercial fishing industry of the Gulf of Mexico is estimated to have lost $ 247 million as a result of the post-ship fishery closure. One research project states that the overall impact of commercial fisheries, recreation, and aquaculture lost or degraded in the Gulf can reach $ 8.7 billion by 2020, with a potential loss of 22,000 jobs within the same timeframe. Spill BP expenditures include spill response costs, containment, drilling of boreholes, grants to Gulf countries, paid claims, and federal costs, including fines and penalties. As of March 2012, BP estimates the total cost associated with the spill of the company does not exceed $ 37.2 billion. However, with some estimates the penalties that BP may be required to pay have reached as high as $ 90 billion. In addition, in November 2012, the EPA announced that BP would be temporarily banned from seeking new contracts with the US government. Due to a loss of market value, BP has fallen from the second to the fourth largest of the four major oil companies by 2013. During the crisis, the BP gas station in the United States reported a sales decline of between 10 and 40% due to opposition to the company.
Local officials in Louisiana expressed concern that an offshore drilling moratorium enacted in response to the spill would further jeopardize coastal community economies because the oil industry directly or indirectly employs about 318,000 Louisiana residents (17% of all jobs in the state). NOAA has closed 86,985 square miles (225,290 km 2 ), or about 36% of Federal waters in the Gulf of Mexico, for commercial fishing that cost $ 2.5 billion for the fishing industry. The US Travel Association estimates that the economic impact of the oil spill on tourism along the Gulf Coast over a three-year period may exceed about $ 23 billion, in a region that supports more than 400,000 travel industry jobs generating $ 34 billion in revenues each year.
Offshore drilling policy
On April 30, 2010 President Barack Obama ordered the federal government to hold a new offshore drilling lease and an official investigation of 29 oil rigs in the Gulf in an effort to determine the cause of the disaster. Then offshore drilling for six months (under 500 feet (150 m) of water moratorium imposed by the US Department of the Interior.The moratorium suspended work on 33 rigs, and a group of affected companies formed a Coalition Back to Work On June 22, a judge United States federation in the United States District Court for Louisiana Eastern District Martin Leach-Cross Feldman when ruling in this case Hornbeck Offshore Services LLC v. Salazar, raised the moratorium's invention was too broad, arbitrary and unjustified The ban was lifted in October 2010.
On April 28, 2010, the Canadian National Energy Council, which arranges offshore drilling in the Canadian Arctic and along the British Columbia Coast, issued a letter to oil companies asking them to explain their arguments against safety regulations requiring the same recovery well. On May 3, California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger withdrew his support for the proposed plan to allow the expansion of offshore drilling projects in California. On July 8, Florida Governor Charlie Crist called for a state-specific legislative session to draft state constitutional amendments that prohibit offshore drilling in state waters, rejected by the legislature on July 20.
In October 2011, the United States Interior Minerals Management Service Department was dissolved after it was determined that it had undertaken a poor oversight of the drilling industry. Three new bodies are replacing them, separating their respective regulatory, rent, and revenue-raising responsibilities, between the Bureau of Environmental Safety and Enforcement, the Marine Energy Management Bureau, and the Office of Natural Resources.
In March 2014, BP was again allowed to bid for oil and gas leases.
Reaction
AS. reaction
On April 30 President Obama sent the Secretary of the Department of Home Affairs and Homeland Security, as well as the EPA and NOAA Administrators to the Gulf Coast to assess the disaster. In a June 15 speech, Obama said, "This oil spill is the worst environmental disaster ever faced by Americans... Make no mistake: we will fight this spill with everything we have as long as it takes.We will make BP pay for the damage caused by the company and we will do whatever is necessary to help the Gulf Coast and its people recover from this tragedy. "Home Secretary Ken Salazar stated," Our task is basically to maintain a boot on the neck of British Petroleum. " Some observers say the Obama administration is too aggressive in its criticism, which some BP investors consider an attempt to fend off criticism over its own crisis. Rand Paul accuses President Obama of being anti-business and "un-American".
Public opinion polls in the United States are generally critical of the way President Obama and the federal government deal with disasters and they are very critical of BP's response. In the US, thousands participated in dozens of protests at gas stations of BP and other locations, reducing sales at several stations by 10% to 40%.
The industry claims that disasters are rare and that these spills are isolated incidents and deny claims of loss of industrial credibility. The American Petroleum Institute (API) states that the offshore drilling industry is important for job creation and economic growth. The CEOs of the top five oil companies all agree to work harder to improve safety. API announced the creation of an offshore safety agency, separate from API lobby operations.
The Organization for International Investments, a Washington-based foreign investment advocate based in Washington, USA, warned that hot rhetoric could potentially damage the reputation of British companies by operating in the United States and could trigger a wave of US protectionism that would restrict the British Company from government contracts, political donations, and lobby.
UK reaction
In the UK, there is outrage in the American press and news outlets for the abuse of the term "British Petroleum" for companies - names that have not been used since British Petroleum joined American company Amoco in 1998 to form BP. It is said that the US is 'throwing' the blame on the British people and there is a call for British Prime Minister David Cameron to protect British interests in the United States. The British pension fund manager (who owns a large stake in BP and rely on his dividend) accepts that while BP should pay compensation for spills and environmental damage, they argue that the cost to the company's market value of President Obama's criticism far outweighs the cost of a direct clean-up.
Initially BP downplayed the incident; Its CEO, Tony Hayward called the amount of oil and dispersants "relatively small" compared to "a very large ocean." Later, he drew up a criticism when he said that the spill was a nuisance for the inhabitants of the Gulf and he added, "You know, I want my life back." Chief Operating Officer of BP, Doug Suttles, opposed an underwater plumic discussion stating, "It may depend on how you define what is proud here... Oil that has been found in very small quantities." In June, BP launched a PR campaign and successfully bid for some search terms related to spills on Google and other search engines so that the first sponsored search results link directly to the company's website. On July 26, 2010, it was announced that CEO Tony Hayward would resign and be replaced by Bob Dudley, who is an American citizen and previously worked for Amoco.
Hayward's involvement in Deepwater Horizon has made him a highly controversial public figure. In May 2013, he was honored as a "top leader" by the University of Birmingham, but his award ceremony was stopped on several occasions with ridicule and walk-out and the protest focus of People & A member of Planet.
In July 2013, Hayward was awarded an honorary degree from Robert Gordon University. It was described as a "very serious mistake of judgment" by Scottish Friends of the Earth, and a "joke of pain" by the President of the University's students.
International reaction
The US government declined the offer of cleanup assistance from Canada, Croatia, France, Germany, Ireland, Mexico, Netherlands, Norway, Romania, South Korea, Spain, Sweden, United Kingdom, and the United Nations. The US State Department recorded 70 aid deals from 23 countries, all of which were initially rejected, but then, 8 were accepted. The USCG is actively requesting skimming boats and equipment from several countries.
Legal and settlement aspects
Investigation
In the United States the Deepwater Horizon investigation included several investigations and commissions, including reports by the USCG National Incident Commander, Admiral Thad Allen, BP Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill and Offshore Drilling National Commission, Marine Energy Management Bureau, Regulation and Enforcement (BOEMRE), National Academy of Engineering, National Research Council, Government Accountability Office, National Oil Spill Commission, and Chemical Safety and Danger Investigation Agency. Marshall Islands Maritime Islands Administration conducts separate investigations on sea casualties. BP conducts its internal investigation.
Investigations about possible explosion causes were launched on April 22, 2010 by USCG and Mineral Management Services. On May 11 the US government requested the National Academy of Engineering conduct an independent technical investigation. The National Commission on the BP Deepwater Horizontal Oil Spill and Offshore Drilling was established on May 22 to "consider the root causes of the disaster and offer safety options and environmental precautions." Investigation by US Attorney General Eric Holder was announced on June 1, 2010. Also the United States Committee of Energy and Commerce Council conducted a number of hearings, including Tony Hayward's hearing and head of exploration unit Anadarko and Mitsui. According to a US congressional investigation, the rig bursting device, built by Cameron International Corporation, has a hydraulic leak and a failed battery, and therefore failed.
On September 8, 2010, BP released a 193 page report on its website. The report puts several mistakes for the accident at BP but also at Halliburton and Transocean. The report found that on April 20, 2010, managers misread pressure data and gave their approval to rig workers to replace drilling fluids in wells with seawater, which were not heavy enough to prevent leaking gases into the well from firing pipes to rigs, causing an explosion. The conclusion is that BP is partly to blame, like Transocean, who has a rig. In response to the report, Transocean and Halliburton put all the blame on BP.
On November 9, 2010, a report by the Oil Spill Commission said there was a "busyness to finish" on the well and criticized poor management decisions. "There is no safety culture on the rig," said the joint chairman.
BP Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill and Offshore Drilling released the final report on January 5, 2011. The panel found that BP, Halliburton, and Transocean had attempted to work cheaper and thus helped trigger the next explosion and leak. The report states that "whether intentional or not, many of the decisions BP, Halliburton, and Transocean made that increased the risk of Macondo's explosion clearly saved those companies significant time (and money)." BP released the statement in response to this, saying, that "even before the conclusion of a commission investigation, BP instituted significant changes designed to further strengthen safety and risk management." Transocean, however, blamed BP for making decisions before the actual explosion took place and government officials to allow the decision. Halliburton stated that it was only acting on BP's orders when it injected cement into the wall of the well. It criticized BP for failing to run the cement bond log test. In the report, BP is accused of nine mistakes. One is that it does not use a diagnostic tool to test the strength of cement. Others ignore the failed stress tests. Still others did not install pipes with cement. However, the study did not blame one of these events. Instead, he concludes that "regardless of these inherent risks, the April 20 crash could have been avoided" and that "it resulted from a clear error made in the first instance by BP, Halliburton and Transocean, and by government officials who, too relying on industry the safety statement of their operations, failed to create and implement regulatory oversight programs that would minimize the risk of deepwater drilling. "The panel also noted that government regulators lacked sufficient knowledge or authority to pay attention to this cost-cutting decision.
On March 23, 2011, BOEMRE (formerly MMS) and USCG published a forensic examination report on blowout prevention, prepared by Det Norske Veritas. The report concludes that the main cause of failure is that the blind shear twist fails to completely seal and seal because part of the buckling drill is between the sliding blocks.
The US government report released in September 2011 stated that BP was ultimately responsible for the spill, and that Halliburton and Transocean shared several mistakes. The report stated that the main cause was a defective cement job, and Halliburton, BP and Transocean, in different ways, were responsible for the accident. The report states that, although the events leading to the sinking of the Deepwater Horizon are set to be motion by failure to prevent a well explosion, the investigation revealed many system shortcomings, and acts and omissions by its Transocean and Horizon Deepwater crews, which adversely impacted its ability to prevent or limit the magnitude of the disaster. The report also stated that the main cause of the explosion was the failure of a cement barrier that allowed hydrocarbons to flow over the wellbore, through the riser and into the rig, resulting in an explosion. The loss of life and pollution of the Gulf of Mexico is the result of poor risk management, last-minute plan changes, failure to observe and respond to key indicators, inadequate control response of wells, and emergency response training by firms that inadequate. and individuals responsible for drilling at Macondo wells and for the operation of drilling platforms.
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On June 16, 2010, after BP executives met with President Obama, BP announced and established the Gulf Coast Claims Facility (GCCF), a $ 20 billion fund to settle claims arising from the Deepwater Horizon spill. These funds are set aside for damage to natural resources, state and local response costs, and individual compensation, but can not be used for fines or penalties. Prior to establishing the GCCF, emergency compensation was paid by BP from the initial facility.
The GCCF is administered by lawyer Kenneth Feinberg. The facility began accepting claims on August 23, 2010. On March 8, 2012, after BP and the team of plaintiffs' lawyers approved the settlement of a class action lawsuit, Patrick Juneau's court-controlled administrator took charge of adm
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