Friday, June 4, 2010

BP Oil Spill

Has anyone out there noticed that gasoline prices have dropped since the Deepwater Horizon oil spill? I don't usually comment on financial markets since I lack expertise to comment on the stock market. But, I have been watching the price fall at the pump and thought this was rather curious, so I did a little research. The very short answer to a globally complicated question is: there appears to be lower global demand for oil at the moment. Here is a report from Northwestern University's Medill School of Journalism. We know this is temporary. Right?


Even so, it is hard for me to wrap my brain around the fact that oil prices are falling while oil is slipping away and destroying our coastline. Oil is a commodity; one not easily found or extracted. I cannot think of crude oil without thinking "black gold"; it doesn't just bubble up out of the ground a la Beverly Hillbillies. So for me, it begs the question: Why hasn't Big Oil, (especially 20 years following the Exxon Valdez spill) figured out a way to retrieve all that black gold, before it drains into and destroys entire ecosystems, and keep the money in their own pockets? Better yet, why haven't they come up with better technology to cap such spills?


In May we learn that Kevin Costner, along with his lawyer partner John Houghtaling has spent 15 years and $24 million on a contraption to separate oil from sea water. Costner bought the technology after the Valdez disaster. As of two weeks ago, BP agreed to test the machines developed by Costner and his company, Ocean Therapy Solutions. You may view news clips on how it works on the law firm web page of John Houghtaling. According to an article in the NY Daily News, Costner has 300 models of his invention in different sizes. "The largest, at 2 1/2 tons, is able to clean water at a rate of 200 gallons a minute - faster than the well is leaking, Houghtaling noted". I have looked for updates on the success of the test of the Ocean Therapy machines. I have been looking for headlines proclaiming, "Robin Hood Saves Gulf!" or "The Postman Delivers Oil". But the headlines remain grim.



The bad spill news could continue through fall. According to an article yesterday in the Financial Times, it will be August before two relief wells are drilled and finished that will presumably stop the spill. That is not the end of the story by any means. There is talk of class action against BP. There is evidence that BP did not prepare properly. In another FT article reporting on the exploration plan and environmental impact analysis prepared by BP, Robert Wiygul (an environmental lawyer based in Mississppi), contends the reports lack evidence that BP addressed the appropriate technology necessary to manage a spill at 5,000 feet."The point is, if you're going to be drilling in 5,000 feet of water for oil, you should have the ability to control what you're doing."





If I learn more from Costner's Ocean Therapy Solutions, I will be sure to let you know. I looked at the web site and it is oddly secretive. I registered to receive "updates" and I will share any that are interesting or relevant. In the mean time, to learn more about the long term effects of oils spills, here is a short list of books and a DVD available in the library:


Degrees of Disaster: Prince William Sound: How Nature Reels and Rebounds / Jeff Wheelwright / 363.7382 W52d

In the Wake of the Exxon Valdez: The Devastating Impact of the Alaska Oil Spill / Art Davidson / 363.7382 D38i

Crude DVD 628.16833 C77

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