There have been several interesting developments in the Gulf. None of the news is good. For starters, the GOP Gusher may mot be not be the only drilling rig there leaking crude.
The Deepwater Horizon is not the only well leaking oil into the Gulf of Mexico for the last month.
A nearby drilling rig, the Ocean Saratoga, has been leaking since at least April 30, according to a federal document.
While the leak is decidedly smaller than the Deepwater Horizon spill, a 10-mile-long slick emanating from the Ocean Saratoga is visible from space in multiple images gathered by Skytruth.org, which monitors environmental problems using satellites.
Federal officials did not immediately respond when asked about the size of the leak, how long it had been flowing, or whether it was possible to plug it.
Skytruth first reported the leak on its website on May 15. Federal officials mentioned it in the May 1 trajectory map for the Deepwater Horizon spill, stating that oil from the Ocean Saratoga spill might also be washing ashore in Louisiana.
The only other mention the Press-Register was able to find of the spill in federal documents occurred in a May 17 transcript of a U.S. Coast Guard media conference. In that transcript, Admiral Mary Landry said that she was unaware there was another drilling rig leaking oil in the Gulf…
Inserted from <AL.com>
Researching this further, I learned that Diamond Offshore drilling owns the rig. They claim that they are closing down an Old well damaged last year when a hurricane destroyed the production platform on the site. They claim it is no longer leaking.
More evidence surfaced that there was a conflict over problems on the platform, before the well blew.
A prominent Houston attorney with a long record of winning settlements from oil companies says he has new evidence suggesting that the Deepwater Horizon’s top managers knew of problems with the rig before it exploded last month, causing the worst oil spill in US history. Tony Buzbee, a lawyer representing 15 rig workers and dozens of shrimpers, seafood restaurants, and dock workers, says he has obtained a three-page signed statement from a crew member on the boat that rescued the burning rig’s workers. The sailor, who Buzbee refuses to name for fear of costing him his job, was on the ship’s bridge when Deepwater Horizon installation manager Jimmy Harrell, a top employee of rig owner Transocean, was speaking with someone in Houston via satellite phone. Buzbee told Mother Jones that, according to this witness account, Harrell was screaming, "Are you fucking happy? Are you fucking happy? The rig’s on fire! I told you this was gonna happen."
Whoever was on the other end of the line was apparently trying to calm Harrell down. "I am fucking calm," he went on, according to Buzbee. "You realize the rig is burning?"
At that point, the boat’s captain asked Harrell to leave the bridge. It wasn’t clear whether Harrell had been talking to Transocean, BP, or someone else… [emphasis added]
Inserted from <Mother Jones>
I speculate that the conversation was with BP, because we know Harrell argued with BP about the unsafe practice of replacing the heavy mud with seawater, and that BP had overruled him, because they wanted to save $750,000 per day.
I’m also hearing speculation from Senator Nelson that the well casing may be damaged underground. This may or may not be true. If it is, it will further complicate stopping the flow by means of a relief well.
On top of all that, the Obama administration is releasing new safety guidelines for the resumption of shallow water drilling.
US authorities Tuesday ordered offshore drilling rigs to implement new safety measures in the wake of the disastrous Gulf of Mexico oil spill.
The new directive from the Interior Department allows shallow-water drilling — in depths of up to 500 feet (150 meters) — to continue if rigs are in compliance with the safety rules.
The new rules call for certification from a professional engineer before beginning any new drilling operations.
They also call for new procedures for well casing and cement and at least two independent tested barriers for the well, and third-party verification of the blowout preventer — the device that failed in the BP-operated Deepwater Horizon operation.
"Oil and gas from the Outer Continental Shelf remains an important component of our energy security as we transition to the clean energy economy, but we must ensure that offshore drilling is conducted safely and in compliance with the law," said Interior Secretary Ken Salazar.
He noted that the six-month deepwater drilling moratorium — affecting new wells at depths over 500 feet — will remain in place but that "shallow water drilling may continue under the stronger safety requirements that we are implementing today."
The new rules also call for a secondary control system for subsea blowout preventers with remote operated vehicle (ROV) intervention capabilities.
The subsea blowout preventer "must have an emergency shut-in system in the event of lost power," the rules say, along with additional safety protections…
Inserted from <Raw Story>
While I’m not necessarily in favor of a permanent moratorium on shallow water drilling, I think we’re rushing into this. Certifications from a professional engineer mean nothing. BP can buy dozens to say whatever they tell them to say. I also see nothing about requiring acoustic triggers for blowout preventers, the standard for most of the world. And I see no provision requiring a simultaneous relief well. These provisions are too weak.
6 Responses to “More Gulf News”
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TC
Nice job doing this story. When BP was doing it’s Top Kill, casing failing was a major concern. I’m told the probable reason they stopped it early was they suspected failure of the sub-standard casing. The clue was that the Mud was spewing out in cracks where it shouldn’t have been. Again the truth is to slow to come out. Bp as far as I know, have not confirmed this story. Between a whistle blower and independent scientist is how this story evolved.
Thanks Tim. I have heard nothing more about it, yet.
TC, I don’t think we need a relief well in shallow drilling (but WTF do I know, I’m a fucking accountant, not an engineer). These engineers certifying compliance must be independent of the oil industry (hey, there are probably some out of work right now). It would do no good to send MMS down there, because they appear to know less about oil rigs than I do.
Further, drilling relief wells for all the rigs in the Gulf (about 30K) puts a lot more holes in a sensitive area; don’t forget, these relief wells could blow too. And I don’t trust BP to drill relief wells on all those rigs and not fuck it up.
Lisa, maybe we don’t. I don’t lnow either. The engineers must be not only be independent, but also, appointed by someone outside the oil industry. If Bg Oil gets to choose their own engineers, only those with rubber stamps will get work. If I undertstand it correctly, relief wells are drilled short of oil production strata and only completed if there’s a need.
Never mind who else is spilling.
The splashes from the spill are starting to hit President Obama in the eye.
He believed BP and the Coastguard, its mouthpiece.
The solution to this maga-problems should have been supplied yesterday.
1) Tell those compromised dicks and twats at the Coas Guard to move over.
1) Bring in the navy and put their experts on the case. If you can do modern naval warfare you can plug a hole.
I’m sure trained Seals can do the job. Damn. Maybe ever real seals.
Seal-bottom seal!
Ivan, I’m afraid seals are limited to a depth of about 150 ft., maximum.