BP Increases Flow Rate of Oil Into Gulf

In BP’s latest assault on the nation they have cut the riser pipe open, dramatically increasing the amount of oil gushing into the gulf every second. The feds say that as a result the leak could now be as much as 20% greater. However, the credibility of federal estimates is severely lacking after they have repeatedly underestimated the size of the leak. I would not be surprised if this cut has increased the leak rate far more than 20%. I hold little confidence that BP’s latest “effort” will actually stop the leak and that the result will simply be more oil in the ocean, although I would love to be proved wrong.

BP’s incompetence is a further reminder that offshore drilling is a huge threat to our nation. All the best minds on the topic are focused on this leak, and yet the news today is still that the new containment dome will likely fail and this cut will simply result in more oil leaked. There are no reliable and effective ways to deal with offshore leaks, and there are no good ways to clean spills up. Most of the oil from this leak will persist in the natural environment for decades or longer.

Remember last week when BP told us that most of the plume we saw shooting out of the pipe was drilling mud? [New York Times]