Oil Rig Explosion Sinks Ship on Earth Day
Earth Day Sinking is a Grim Reminder
Past Oil Rig Explosions
Oil rig blowouts are common. An AP report cites a federal Minerals Management Service report as stating state there's been 858 explosions and fires since 2001. The explosion which sank the state of the art offshore oil rig on Earth Day 2010 was a big one. It was estimated by Rear Adm. Mary Landry of the Coast Guard to be spilling 13,000 gallons per hour according to The New York Times.
One of the best known oil rig explosions was the July 6, 1988 Piper Alpha disaster in the North Sea. It was initiated by a gas leak, killing 167 people according to CNN.com. 1990 brought the Barge Cibro Savannah spill with an estimated 200,000 gallons of oil spilled. The cause of this explosion was never determined. The explosion that resulted in the largest spill to date was the Exon I which dumped about 600,000 tons of oil into the Gulf of Mexico according to J.R. McNeil's environmental history book "Something New Under the Sun."
Environmental Effects of Oil Rig Explosions
Oil rigs and tankers are subject to spills caused by other incidents other than explosions. These include: running aground-like the infamous Exxon Valdez tanker, collisions with other vessels and icebergs, capsizing due to high winds-as did the Ocean Ranger oil rig in 1982, and terrorist acts like those done by Iraq in the 1991 Gulf War.
Ecological affects linger for decades. They are caused both by the burning off of the oil and any associated spills. Images of birds and marine animals being smothered by oil slicks have made this consequence well known. Animals- and humans- suffer from the accumulation of oil related chemicals in their bodies. Sulfur dioxide and nitrogen oxides form when oil burns, and when there are millions of gallons of crude burning, that correlates to a lot of these compounds. Carbonic, sulfuric and nitric acid formation lead to "acid rain". Volatile organic chemicals (VOC's) are high in crude oil. Among other problems, VOC's help form ground level ozone, which is not good for anything living. Crude oil has heavy metals such as cadmium, lead and nickel. Breathing cadmium can lead to lung damage and when in drinking water can damage kidneys. Detailing all environmental harm from oil rig explosions would take an entire book.
Earth Day Sinking, a Pivotal Moment?
Economic effects of the West's oil dependency are known. No method of energy production and storage is benign, but those associated with oil are perhaps the worst. The plunging of the oil rig on Earth Day is equity for those pushing for cleaner energy production and storage. With all the problems of oil, who needs climate change for motivation to change our ways? Environmentalists should take this opportunity to discuss all the issues surrounding fossil fuels. This could be a pivotal event that helps turns Earth day into every day.
References:
CNN: http://archives.cnn.com/2001/WORLD/americas/03/20/oil.accidents/index.html.
NY Times on Earth Day sinking: http://www.nytimes.com/2010/04/23/us/23rig.html
Published by Don A Shepard
Don writes for numerous online sources while conducting research for a Master's in Natural Resources/Environmental Management. He enjoys working on his urban homestead with his family, outdoor activities, mo... View profile
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18 Comments
Post a CommentJoshua, good to have some insight from somone in the industry and to know BP has multiple control systems. I think the real issue is that when something like this happens the consequences are far too distatrous. Oil and coal are just too dirty from their extraction to thier use. No energy source known is completely environmentally benign at this point, but most any alternative is better than oil and coal. We need to develop other energy and this event should serve as just one reminder.
*In fact the info does not mean they are related to blow outs. Sorry my typing is not up to par nor my proof reading.
Though those numbers may seem high when spread out over six years they are very small compared to other indusrtries. Also what is considered to be and injury can very from very severe to a small cut needing a couple of stitches. All are reported in the same manner. The same goes for oil spills as all spills from the one we see on t.v. to a spill of a few ounces must be reported in the same manner. Also not all oil that is spilled is hazardous to the environment. Most equipment that operates in the water like the BOP functions on environmentally safe oil similar to vegetable oil. But when it is leaked or spilled it must be reported. As for the BOP and their control system failures, how many is numerous and what constitutes a failure. As the Bop has multiple control systems and a failure of one does not result in a blow out. In fact of the info does not mean that they are related to blow outs. Which was my point. I was not stating that people do not get hurt only that the actual event of
Thanks for the comment Joshua, not sure about that however, it seems there have been known problems with blowout preventors for sometimes This is from the New York Times referring to the MMS "Agency records show that from 2001 to 2007, there were 1,443 serious drilling accidents in offshore operations, leading to 41 deaths, 302 injuries and 356 oil spills." It also states that between 2004 and 2009 "numerous blowout preventers and their control systems have failed". They just don't recieve the attention until one that is unusually large or close to the U.S. happens.
Blowouts are not common events. The reports of fire and explosions are related to all events on offshore vessels and not specific to just drilling.
this is a horrible disaster.
Well written. Every morning, when we watch the news, we're always going to wonder.... what's next? Oil spills, floods, tornadoes, volcanoes, etc. Thanks for the update.
Horrific, and ironic all the same time.
And the spill is worse than originally thought...whoulda thunk it?
The irony, eh? Great reporting.