Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill Update

The flow of oil may have stopped, but the Deepwater Horizon oil spill disaster will have implications for the Gulf of Mexico for perhaps decades to come.  There is not only the environmental effects to be studied and mitigated, the legal circus surrounding the disaster has only just begun.  Here are the latest developments:

December 17, 2010: As planned and in coordination and consultation with state and local partners, the federal government’s response framework for the Deepwater Horizon BP oil spill  transitioned on Friday, allowing for long-term response operations to be overseen by regional U.S. Coast Guard units rather than surge forces.

Additionally, in conjunction with the transition, a scientific report identifying the location and distribution of subsurface oil was provided to the Federal On-Scene Coordinator on December 16th.   The report, produced by the interagency Operational Science Advisory Team, provides findings based on more than six months of subsurface monitoring in the Gulf, and gives the response organization detailed information about where recoverable oil remains to guide efforts moving forward.

The report includes chemical analysis of nearly 17,000 water and sediment samples collected between May and October. In the very near shore, scientists observed oil mats or indications of oil mats in shallow, sub-tidal areas. Traces of oil were also found in deepwater sediments near the wellhead. Based on this information, the FOSC has directed response teams to focus assessment and recovery efforts on the potentially recoverable near-shore oil.

December 15, 2010 -  The United States filed a civil lawsuit in U.S. District Court in New Orleans against nine defendants.    The defendants named in the lawsuit include:

• BP Exploration and Production Inc.;
• Anadarko Exploration & Production LP;
• Anadarko Petroleum Corporation;
• MOEX Offshore 2007 LLC;
• Triton Asset Leasing GMBH;
• Transocean Holdings LLC;
• Transocean Offshore Deepwater Drilling Inc.;
• Transocean Deepwater Inc.; and
• QBE Underwriting Ltd./Lloyd’s Syndicate 1036.   

In the complaint, the United States alleges violations of federal safety and operational regulations, including:  

• Failure to take necessary precautions to secure the Macondo Well prior to the April 20th explosion;
• Failure to utilize the safest drilling technology to monitor the well’s condition;
• Failure to maintain continuous surveillance of the well; and
• Failure to utilize and maintain equipment and materials that were available and necessary to ensure the safety and protection of personnel, property, natural resources, and the environment.

The U.S. Government  intends to prove that these violations caused or contributed to this massive oil spill, and that the defendants are therefore responsible – under the Oil Pollution Act – for government removal costs, economic losses, and environmental damages. 

The U.S. Government  is also seeking civil penalties under the Clean Water Act, which prohibits the unauthorized discharge of oil into the nation’s waters.   They allege that the defendants named in this lawsuit were in violation of the Act throughout the months that oil was gushing into the Gulf of Mexico.   And they intend to hold them fully accountable for their violations of the law.

December 9th, 2010:      The Deepwater Horizon Joint Investigation Committee (joint because is it being conducted by the jointly by the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management and The Coast Guard) concluded their  third and final day of the sixth session of hearings.  The joint investigation is conducting the hearings in sessions. Session one was held May 11-12, 2010, and investigated the circumstances surrounding the fire, explosion, pollution and sinking of the MODU. The team has been given eleven months, from the date of the convening order (April 27, 2010),  to submit the final report.

• December 17, 2020: U.S. District Judge Carl Barbier in New Orleans directed the Vernier, Switzerland-based Transocean to turn over records pertaining to any other rigs or vessels it had in the gulf on the accident date.  The U.S. sued to obtain the records on Nov. 23. “Information contained in the requested documents will help the joint board of investigation identify gaps in existing laws” as well as tighten international standards “to prevent the occurrence of similar casualties in the future,” U.S. Attorney Jim Letten of New Orleans said when the suit was filed.  Transocean’s attorneys had been trying to prevent the release the documents.

Short URL: http://www.oceanpowermagazine.net/?p=2912

Posted by admin on Dec 20 2010. Filed under Featured Articles. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed.