The Gulf Oil Spill Our Future in Offshore

Oil Spills • Definition: release of crude oil or petroleum into water or on

The Deepwater Horizon Explosion & Oil Spill Timeline • April 20, 2010 – Date

Challenges in the Gulf Oil Spill Clean Up Process • Unlike previous major oil

Challenges in Clean Up Continued • Local scientists believe there’s not enough clean up

Human Effects of the Spill • Local hotel, tourism, and fishing-based industries are taking

Have we learned anything since the Gulf Oil Spill? • Such a devastating disaster

Works Cited Balaguer, Alejandro. "The Black Gulf. " Americas 62. 5 (2010): 6 -11.

Slides: 8

Download presentation

The Gulf Oil Spill: Our Future in Offshore Drilling

Oil Spills • Definition: release of crude oil or petroleum into water or on land (Swain, 1023) • Oil on water’s surface cuts off oxygen supply to marine life below, killing it (Swain, 1023) • Measured in gallons or barrels: 1 barrel = 42 gallons (Swain, 1023)

The Deepwater Horizon Explosion & Oil Spill Timeline • April 20, 2010 – Date of explosion & subsequent oil spill • May 27, 2010 - “Top kill, ” the latest, most promising method used to clog and cap spill fails, a major setback • April 22, 2010 – Deepwater Horizon sinks into ocean following explosion • July 13, 2010 - BP finally places a working cap on the ruptured wellhead • April 24, 2010 – Coast guard discovers Gulf Oil Spill • July 15, 2010 – BP officially declares the oil spill permanently capped • April 30, 2010 – President Obama temporarily stops new offshore drilling by United States • Sep. 18, 2010 – Deepwater Horizon oil well sealed off to future drilling

Challenges in the Gulf Oil Spill Clean Up Process • Unlike previous major oil spills in that spill originates under water • Nature of spill makes oil difficult to track, as it slowly reaches water’s surface (Nijhuis) • Thousands of gallons leaking per day, hundreds of miles to cover • Estimated 2. 3 to 4. 5 million barrels of oil leaked into Gulf (Balaguer, 8)

Challenges in Clean Up Continued • Local scientists believe there’s not enough clean up support (Nijhuis) • Sensitive ecosystems in marshes are being damaged by oil and while being cleaned • Measures scientifically known to absorb oil efficiently are put on hold until the federal government can OK permits for their use (Nijhuis)

Human Effects of the Spill • Local hotel, tourism, and fishing-based industries are taking a huge hit (Balaguer, 8) • Louisiana Governor Bobby Jindal referring to the Golf Oil Spill, “It is threatening our way of life” (Balaguer, 8) Photo by Dave Martin / AP Images • U. S. Government still reflecting on incident and further deep water drilling

Have we learned anything since the Gulf Oil Spill? • Such a devastating disaster as the Gulf Oil Spill should open our eyes to a change in obtaining new energy sources and focus our efforts away from deep water drilling. • “We must create real incentives that motivate and drive the ingenuity of all of us to find a cure, not just a treatment that will help keep America working, traveling, and living” (Mc. Cormick, 46).

Works Cited Balaguer, Alejandro. "The Black Gulf. " Americas 62. 5 (2010): 6 -11. Master. FILE Premier. EBSCO. Web. 30 Nov. 2010. Mc. Cormick, Carolyn. “Offshore Drilling will Hurt Tourist and Fishing Industries. ” Offshore Drilling. Ed. Margaret Haerens. Farmington Hills, MI. : Greenhaven Press, 2010. 41 -46. Print. Nijhuis, Michelle. “A Crude Awakening in the Gulf of Mexico. ” Smithsonianmag. com. Smithsonian Institution, Sep. 2010. Web. 30 Nov. 2010. Swain, Liz. "Oil Spills. " Environmental Encyclopedia. Ed. Marci Bortman, Peter Brimblecombe, and Mary Ann Cunningham. 3 rd ed. Vol. 2. Detroit: Gale, 2003. 1023 -1026. Environmental Encyclopedia. Web. 30 Nov. 2010.