Entry 6

Topic: Gulf Oil Spill

The recent oil spill that has occurred near the Gulf coast has had a great effect on today’s world. The oil has affected the wildlife and marine life near the Gulf coast, it is said that the damage to the ecosystem could probably be irreplaceable. The oil spill from the ocean floor has been reported to be much larger than initial reports. Ships are placing miles of booms that will suck up the oil from the water trying to separate the land from the water, even though the booms are there, there is still oil leaking though to some parts of coast as well as Louisiana.

Article 1: UK

Us warns it may “push BP aside” on Gulf oil clean-up

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/world/us_and_canada/10145011.stm

The oil firm BP may be pushed out of the way if it fails to perform in the Gulf of Mexico oil disaster clean-up. The interior Secretary Ken Salazar said the British company had missed deadline after deadline in its effort to seal a blown-out oil well. But he said B had agreed to pay clean-up costs beyond the current US $75m liability limit. The interior Secretary Mr. Salazar is due to visit the disaster with various other officials. The oil leak began more than a month ago, when a drilling rig operated on behalf of BP exploded, killing 11 people. Tens of thousands of barrels of oil has spewed into the ocean 5000 ft beneath the surface. This oil spill has reached Louisiana and is threatening Florida and Cuba

Article 2: USA

Gulf Coast oil spill could eclipse Exxon Valdez

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20100429/ap_on_bi_ge/us_louisiana_oil_rig_explosion

The oil slick could become the nations worst environmental disaster in decades, threatening hundreds of species of fish, birds and other wildlife along the Gulf Coast. The leak from the ocean floor proved to be far bigger than initially reported. Cade Thomas a fishing guide in Venice says that BP lied and came out and said it was leaking 1,000 barrels when it was much more. The Coast Guard worked with BP which operated the oil rig that exploded and sank last week, to deploy floating booms, skimmers and chemical dispersants and set controlled fires to burn the oil off the waters surface.

Article 3: Australia

Gulf oil reaches powerful ocean current

http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2010/05/20/2904264.htm

According to private forecasters at AccuWeather, tendrils from the massive rust-colored oil slick have already entered the powerful Loop Current curling around the Florida Peninsula, which could take it east to the Florida Keys and possibly to Miami and Cuba within eight to ten days. BP has marked some progress at siphoning some of the oil from the 1.6 kilometer deep well to an ocean vessel on the surface. BP is now siphoning about 3,000 barrels per day of oil says the assistant interior secretary Tom Strickland. B declined to comment on Mr. Strickland’s new estimate which is up from about 2,000 barrels a day that BP said it is capturing.

Reflection

I think that the people in charge of the oil clean-up should double their efforts so help the current situation, many creatures have been affected by this oil spill such as birds and fish that depend on the ocean to survive. Possibly in the future a company such as BP can be able to provide a faster more efficient plan to clean-up oil spills that can be put to action as soon as one occurs or come up with a solution to possibly make a way to prohibit any form of this occurring again.