DOCSLIB.ORG

Oilgram News/OPR Extra a Special Edition from the Editors of Platts May 10, 2010

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
Oilgram News/OPR Extra a Special Edition from the Editors of Platts May 10, 2010 ] Oilgram News/OPR Extra A special edition from the editors of Platts May 10, 2010 As it has during other crises affecting oil and other energy markets, such as hurricanes Katrina, Rita and Ivan, Platts is produc- ing this special summary of events surrounding the Deepwater Horizon rig disaster in the Gulf of Mexico. This special joint edi- tion of Platts Oilgram News and OPR Extra will be published as frequently as Platts believes necessary to give its readers a quick summary of developments surrounding the leak at the wellhead, the growing footprint of the spill, and the impact these occurrences are having on markets and on US federal energy policy. BP plans its next moves Undaunted by failure of its large 100-ton going from one extreme to the other,” said acknowledged the difficulties of undersea containment dome, BP came out swinging on Wells, comparing the size of the two domes. drilling and said a second rig is en route to multiple fronts May 10 with plans for a mini- The smaller top hat will be connected to the begin drilling another relief well. Transocean, dome dubbed a “top hat” and use of “junk drillship prior to deployment and will use a which was involved in operating the Deepwa- shots” in its continuing battle to stem the methanol pumping system to adjust the ter Horizon, is operating both relief-well rigs. 5,000 b/d crude oil from its runaway Macon- water temperature around its shell. While do exploration well in the Gulf of Mexico. BP BP had expected the larger dome to divert BP increased its estimate of daily costs for CEO Tony Hayward, following failure of the as much as 85% of the Macondo crude flow, the recovery operation to $10 million, up from large containment dome over the weekend, Wells declined to speculate on the projected a previous projection of $6 million, and said a similar attempt will take place with efficiency of the top hat. By using a smaller placed total cost so far at $350 million. In the much smaller barrel-like “top hat” struc- dome, he said BP now will be able to pro- addition, BP is spending another $100 million ture measuring a mere four feet in diameter ceed with the junk shots as a more defini- to drill one relief well as the ultimate solution by five feet in height. BP should deploy the tive means for plugging the faulty BOP as a to the Macondo spill, and Hayward said BP top hat by the end of the week, but the com- first step toward abandoning the well and will spud a second, backup relief well soon to pany also will continue preparing for a anoth- sealing it with cement. In that regard, last make sure that solution succeeds. er strategy known as a junk shot using golf week’s retrieval of the BOP’s control pod or balls, rubber tire chunks and other debris to “brain” emerges as a key for success with Transocean gets ready to defend itself plug the well’s malfunctioning blowout pre- the impending junk shots, Wells said. Transocean’s CEO Steven Newman plans venter by injection into its “choke and kill” to tell US lawmakers May 11 that the “root lines within the next two weeks. At the same BP has another rig heading to the Macon- cause” of the disaster was a “sudden, cata- time, Hayward said the company wants to do oil prospect leak to drill a second relief strophic failure of the cement” on the well continue using subsea dispersants at the well as a backup to the ongoing effort to cap some 5,000 feet below the surface of wellhead to minimize the flow of oil to the drill an initial relief well, a company execu- the water. Newman is slated to appear surface while using booms and dispersants tive told reporters in Washington Monday. before two US Senate committees on May on the surface to contain the spill above. In “The ultimate solution, and the equivalent of 11. In prepared remarks provided by one of a later press conference, US Coast Guard putting a tourniquet on this problem, is to the panels, Newman says problems with the Rear Admiral Mary Landry said the Coast drill a relief well, and we are actually going sub-surface cement work was the main thing Guard would need 24 hours to run further to drill two,” David Nagel, executive vice that caused the Deepwater Horizon semi- tests on the subsea dispersants before president of BP America, told reporters a submersible drilling rig to explode and sub- approving their renewed deployment after day before senior BP executives are to testi- sequently sink. “The one thing we know with two tests last week. fy in Congress about the spill. He addressed certainty is that on the evening of April 20, reporters at the offices of a public relations there was a sudden, catastrophic failure of Elaborating on the top hat and junk shot firm. The first relief well was begun on May the cement, the casing, or both,” Newman technologies, BP’s senior vice president for 5, and is already 4,000 feet under the sea says in remarks released by the Senate E&P, Kent Wells, followed Hayward at the bed, toward its target of 13,000 feet. It Energy and Natural Resources Committee. May 10 press conference and said the new aims to intersect the existing well at that “Therein lies the root cause of this occur- dome’s much smaller size should limit the depth, drill through the casing, and plug the rence; without a disastrous failure of one of amount of freezing sea water trapped inside well to stop oil and gas from escaping. BP those elements, the explosion could not and reduce crystallization of the hydrates in has estimated finishing the relief well will have occurred.” Newman seems to stress in natural gas seeping from the well. “We are take a total of about 90 days. Nagel his testimony that Transocean was not to Oilgram News / OPR Extra ]Director of News: John Kingston This special edition of Platts Oilgram News and Platts OPR Extra is published by Platts, a division of The McGraw Hill Companies. Registered office: Two Penn Plaza, 25th Floor, New York, NY 10121-2298. Officers of the Corporation: Harold McGraw III, Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer; Kenneth Vittor, Executive Vice President and General Counsel; Robert J. Bahash, Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer; John Weisenseel, Senior Vice President, Treasurer. Copyright © 2010 by Platts, The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. Platts is a trademark of The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. The McGraw-Hill Companies SPECIAL EDITION HOME blame for the disaster, emphasizing that the dance with the requirements of the well said. In a note to investors issued earlier, explosion occurred three days after the owner’s well construction plan,” Probert says S&P said “the seemingly out-of-control oil well process to construct BP’s Macondo explo- in his prepared remarks. leak in the Gulf of Mexico was a contributing ration well was completed. bullish factor in the petroleum market by Inspections continuing month-end.” Tim Probert, Halliburton’s president of glob- Inspections of 30 deepwater drilling rigs al business lines as well as the company’s over the past week have found a few minor Background chief health, safety and environmental officer, safety violations, but nothing serious, Lars An explosion ripped through the Deepwater is also slated to testify at the two Senate Herbst, director of the Minerals Management Horizon drilling rig in the Gulf of Mexico on hearings on May 11. According to a copy of Service’s Gulf Region confirmed Saturday. April 20, killing 11 of the 126-person crew. A his prepared remarks, Probert acknowledges Inspections of platforms is under way. fire raged for about 36 hours before a second Halliburton completed the cementing of the blast sank the rig on April 22. The well’s ninth and final production casing string just The BP oil leak led to some bullishness in blowout preventer failed to activate, resulting 20 hours before the explosion tore through the Standard & Poor’s GSCI, though its effect in an oil leak that officials currently estimate the Deepwater Horizon. But Probert said Hal- has since been overshadowed by concerns is occurring at a rate of about 5,000 b/d. The liburton completed the job by the book, and about Europe’s fiscal woes and stock market rig was working BP’s Macondo prospect in that the drilling contractor tested the work jitters, Standard & Poor’s, owner of the GSCI, 4,993 feet of water, about 40 miles offshore and signed off on it. “Halliburton is confident said Monday. “Initially there was a fear factor Venice, Louisiana. BP operates the well and that the cementing work on the Mississippi (from the leak),” Mike McGlone, director of own a 65% stake; partners include Anadarko Canyon 252 well was completed in accor- fixed income and commodity indexing at S&P, (25%) and Japan’s Mitsui (10%). 2 MAY 10, 2010.
Load more

Recommended publications
  • Ocean Science
    BOEMRE Special Edition ThE Deepwater HOrizOn Response December 2010 OCEAN The Science & Technology Journal of The Bureau of ocean energy ManageMenT, SCIENCE regulaTion anD enforceMenT A Unity of Effort at the Unified Area Command Center Loop Current Studies and the Oil-Spill Response Lophelia II Expedition: Keeping Watch over Deepwater Communities Lophelia II Expedition: Diving on GulfOil Studying Cetaceans in the Gulf Listening to the People of the Gulf Coast: Field Surveys Put Boots on the Ground Mapping the Spill with Cooperatively Funded Technology Groovy Drum Skimmer Goes to Work in the Gulf BOEMRE DECEMBER 2010 DECEMBER 2010 Special Edition Special Edition OCEAN THE SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY JOURNAL OF THE BUREAU OF OCEAN ENERGY MANAGEMENT, BOEMRE OCEAN SCIENCE is published SCIENCE REGULATION AND ENFORCEMENT quarterly by the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, Regulation and Enforcement to communicate recent ocean science and technological information and issues of interest related to offshore energy recovery Director’s Note ...........................................................................................3 and ocean stewardship. About This Issue ........................................................................................3 A Unity of Effort at the Unified Area Command Center ......................4 Loop Current Studies and the Oil-Spill Response ...............................5 Lophelia II Expedition: Keeping Watch over Deepwater Communities ....................................6 Please address all questions, comments,
    [Show full text]
  • Environmental Risk Explored Through Oil Spills and Hydraulic Fracturing: Attempting Environmental Protection Through Policy Samantha M
    Union College Union | Digital Works Honors Theses Student Work 6-2012 Environmental Risk Explored Through Oil Spills and Hydraulic Fracturing: Attempting Environmental Protection through Policy Samantha M. Guidon Union College - Schenectady, NY Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalworks.union.edu/theses Part of the Environmental Health and Protection Commons, Oil, Gas, and Energy Commons, and the Sustainability Commons Recommended Citation Guidon, Samantha M., "Environmental Risk Explored Through Oil Spills and Hydraulic Fracturing: Attempting Environmental Protection through Policy" (2012). Honors Theses. 830. https://digitalworks.union.edu/theses/830 This Open Access is brought to you for free and open access by the Student Work at Union | Digital Works. It has been accepted for inclusion in Honors Theses by an authorized administrator of Union | Digital Works. For more information, please contact [email protected]. Guidon 1 Environmental Risk Explored Through Oil Spills and Hydraulic Fracturing: Attempting Environmental Protection through Policy By Samantha Guidon Advisor: Janet P. Grigsby Submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for an undergraduate degree from the Department of Environmental Policy UNION COLLEGE March 2012 Guidon 2 Abstract: History demonstrates the dangers of ignoring the environmental risks that correspond to resource extraction, especially in precarious locations. This project analyzed three cases: (1) the 1989 Exxon Valdez oil spill, (2) the 2010 Deepwater Horizon oil spill, and (3) the current question of hydraulic fracturing in New York’s Marcellus Shale. The case studies assessed whether policies for protecting the environment from the risks of human activity have improved and whether such policies can be made both economically efficient and environmentally less risky.
    [Show full text]
  • Fails to Stop Gulf Oil Leak 30 May 2010, by Allen Johnson
    'Top kill' fails to stop Gulf oil leak 30 May 2010, by Allen Johnson Engineers had spent days pumping some 30,000 barrels of heavy drilling fluid into the leaking well head on the ocean floor in a high-pressure bid to smother the gushing crude and ultimately seal the well with cement. But the effort failed, and when asked specifically why, Suttles had no direct answer. "We don't know that for certain," he said. The announcement marks the latest failure for BP, which despite a series of high-tech operations over the past month has appeared powerless to bring the disaster to heel since an explosion on the BP- leased Deepwater Horizon oil rig April 20 which Oil mixes with water in the Gulf of Mexico off the coast of Venice, Louisiana, May 29. BP's "top kill" operation to killed 11 workers. The rig sank two days later. plug the ruptured well in the Gulf of Mexico has failed in a stunning setback to efforts to stem the worst oil spill in The British energy giant had stressed that "top kill" US history. was the best chance at stopping the leak other than drilling an entirely new relief well, a process that has already begun but is expected to take another two months. BP's "top kill" operation to plug the ruptured well in the Gulf of Mexico has failed in a stunning setback "Obviously, we're very disappointed in today's to efforts to stem the worst oil spill in US history. announcement and I know all of you are anxious to see this well secured," US Coast Guard Rear BP and federal authorities said Saturday they are Admiral Mary Landry told the briefing.
    [Show full text]
  • Deepwater Horizon” in The
    EDWARD R. ZIEGLER, P.E. C.S.P. Professional Engineer Certified Safety Professional OSHA 500 Instructor IN RE: OIL SPILL BY THE OIL RIG “DEEPWATER HORIZON” IN THE GULF OF MEXICO ON APRIL 20, 2010 PHASE II REPORT – SOURCE CONTROL IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE EASTERN DISTRICT OF LOUISIANA MDL NO. 2179 SECTION: J SEAL Professional Engineer F – 8066 TX _________________________________ EDWARD R. ZIEGLER, P.E., C.S.P. MAY 1, 2013 Copyright 2013 By Edward R. Ziegler, P.E., All Rights Reserved 1964 West Gray, Suite 201 Houston, Texas 77019 Tel: 713-850-0960 Fax: 713-850-1235 CONFIDENTIAL TREX-011579R.1 May 1, 2013 Page 2 of 48 EACH EVENT AND FACT SITUATION MUST BE EXAMINED SEPARATELY TO FORM OPINIONS AS TO THE SPECIFIC EVENTS AND RELATIONSHIPS SURROUNDING AN INCIDENT. EXCEPT FOR WHERE INDUSTRY PRACTICES AND STANDARDS ARE SET FORTH, THE ANALYSIS AND OPINIONS WRITTEN HERE DO NOT NECESSARILY APPLY TO ANY OTHER OR DIFFERENT FACTS OR EVENT. CONFIDENTIAL TREX-011579R.2 May 1, 2013 Page 3 of 48 TABLE OF CONTENTS I OPINIONS . 5 II INTRODUCTION . 6 III MY BACKGROUND AND EXPERIENCE . 7 IV METHODOLOGY . 10 V THE INCIDENT - MACONDO WELL BLOWOUT . 11 VI BASIS FOR OPINIONS . 15 A. HAZARD AND RISK ANALYSIS NECESSARY FOR SOURCE CONTROL . 15 B. PRE-PLANNING AVOIDS “ANALYSIS PARALYSIS” OR “UNRESPON- SIVENESS” ONCE THE SOURCE CONTROL EVENT EXISTS . 22 C. SOURCE CONTROL PROCEDURES – WHAT BP DID . 28 D. SOURCE CONTROL PROCEDURES - WHAT BP SHOULD HAVE DONE . 37 E. BP IS SOLELY RESPONSIBLE FOR SOURCE CONTROL AT THE WELL OPERATED BY BP .
    [Show full text]
  • IN the UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT for the EASTERN DISTRICT of LOUISIANA in Re: Oil Spill by the Oil Rig “Deepwater Horizon
    Case 2:10-md-02179-CJB-DPC Document 14021 Filed 01/15/15 Page 1 of 44 IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE EASTERN DISTRICT OF LOUISIANA In re: Oil Spill by the Oil Rig “Deepwater * Horizon” in the Gulf of Mexico, * MDL 2179 on April 20, 2010, * * * SECTION J This Document Applies To: * * No. 10-2771, In re: The Complaint and Petition * JUDGE BARBIER of Triton Asset Leasing GmbH, et al. * * and * MAG. JUDGE SHUSHAN * No. 10-4536, United States of America v. BP * Exploration & Production, Inc., et al. * ——————————————————————————————————————— FINDINGS OF FACT AND CONCLUSIONS OF LAW PHASE TWO TRIAL Case 2:10-md-02179-CJB-DPC Document 14021 Filed 01/15/15 Page 2 of 44 Pursuant to Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 52(a), the Court enters these Findings of Fact and Conclusions of Law relative to the Phase Two trial. If any finding is in truth a conclusion of law or any conclusion stated is in truth a finding of fact, it shall be deemed so, labels notwithstanding. CONTENTS I. Introduction and Procedural History ................................................................................. 3 II. Source Control Segment ....................................................................................................... 5 A. Parties to the Source Control Segment ............................................................................. 5 B. Stipulated Facts; Timeline of Source Control Events ...................................................... 6 i. Terms and Definitions.....................................................................................................
    [Show full text]
  • Deepwater, Deep Ties, Deep Trouble: a State-Corporate Environmental Crime Analysis of the 2010 Gulf of Mexico Oil Spill
    Western Michigan University ScholarWorks at WMU Dissertations Graduate College 8-2012 Deepwater, Deep Ties, Deep Trouble: A State-Corporate Environmental Crime Analysis of the 2010 Gulf of Mexico Oil Spill Elizabeth A. Bradshaw Western Michigan University, [email protected] Follow this and additional works at: https://scholarworks.wmich.edu/dissertations Part of the Criminology and Criminal Justice Commons, Environmental Policy Commons, and the Politics and Social Change Commons Recommended Citation Bradshaw, Elizabeth A., "Deepwater, Deep Ties, Deep Trouble: A State-Corporate Environmental Crime Analysis of the 2010 Gulf of Mexico Oil Spill" (2012). Dissertations. 53. https://scholarworks.wmich.edu/dissertations/53 This Dissertation-Open Access is brought to you for free and open access by the Graduate College at ScholarWorks at WMU. It has been accepted for inclusion in Dissertations by an authorized administrator of ScholarWorks at WMU. For more information, please contact [email protected]. DEEPWATER, DEEP TIES, DEEP TROUBLE: A STATE-CORPORATE ENVIRONMENTAL CRIME ANALYSIS OF THE 2010 GULF OF MEXICO OIL SPILL by Elizabeth A. Bradshaw A Dissertation Submitted to the Faculty of The Graduate College in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy Department of Sociology Advisor: Ronald C. Kramer, Ph.D. Western Michigan University Kalamazoo, Michigan August 2012 THE GRADUATE COLLEGE WESTERN MICHIGAN UNIVERSITY KALAMAZOO, MICHIGAN Date June 29, 2012 WE HEREBY APPROVE THE DISSERTATION SUBMITTED BY Elizabeth A. Bradshaw ENTITLED Deepwater, Deep Ties, Deep Trouble: A State-Corporate Environmental Crime Analysis of the 2010 Gulf of Mexico Oil Spill AS PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OF Doctor of Philosophy Sociology /^^y<^^<^ (Department) Ronald C^ramer, Ph.D Dissertatijzfh Beview Committer Sociology (Program) Gregory J.
    [Show full text]
  • National Commission on the BP Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill and Offshore Drilling
    National Commission on the BP Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill and Offshore Drilling THE AMOUNT AND FATE OF THE OIL ---Draft--- Staff Working Paper No. 3 Staff Working Papers are written by the staff of the National Commission on the BP Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill and Offshore Drilling for the use of members of the Commission. They are preliminary, subject to change, and do not necessarily reflect the views either of the Commission as a whole or of any of its members. In addition, they may be based in part on confidential interviews with government and non-government personnel. The federal government‟s estimates of the amount of oil flowing into and later remaining in the Gulf of Mexico in the aftermath of the Macondo well explosion were the source of significant controversy, which undermined public confidence in the federal government‟s response to the spill. By initially underestimating the amount of oil flow and then, at the end of the summer, appearing to underestimate the amount of oil remaining in the Gulf, the federal government created the impression that it was either not fully competent to handle the spill or not fully candid with the American people about the scope of the problem. Federal government responders may be correct in stating that low flow-rate estimates did not negatively affect their operations.1 Even if responders are correct, however, loss of the public‟s trust during a disaster is not an incidental public relations problem. The absence of trust fuels public fears, and those fears in turn can cause major harm, whether because the public loses confidence in the federal government‟s assurances that beaches or seafood are safe, or because the government‟s lack of credibility makes it harder to build relationships with state and local officials, as well as community leaders, that are necessary for effective response actions.
    [Show full text]
  • Download Testimony
    Senate Energy & Natural Resources Committee Tuesday, May 11, 20101 Written Testimony Lamar McKay Chairman & President, BP America Chairman Bingaman, Ranking Member Murkowski, members of the committee, I am Lamar McKay, Chairman and President of BP America. We have all experienced a tragic series of events. I want to be clear from the outset that we will not rest until the well is under control. As a responsible party under the Oil Pollution Act, we will carry out our responsibilities to mitigate the environmental and economic impacts of this incident. We – and, indeed, the entire energy sector as a whole - are determined to understand what happened, why it happened, take the learnings from this incident, and make the changes necessary to make our company and our industry stronger and safer. We understand that the world is watching and that we and our industry colleagues will be judged by how we respond to these events. Three weeks ago tonight, eleven people were lost in an explosion and fire aboard the Transocean Deepwater Horizon drilling rig, and seventeen others were injured. My deepest sympathies go out to the families and friends who have suffered such a terrible loss and to those in Gulf Coast communities whose lives and livelihoods are being impacted. This was a horrendous accident. We are all devastated by this. It has profoundly touched our employees, their families, our partners, customers, those in the surrounding areas and those in government with whom we are working. There has been tremendous shock that such an accident could have happened, and great sorrow for the lives lost and the injuries sustained.
    [Show full text]
  • Deepwater Horizon Deepwater Horizon
    CAPT Erich M. Telfer, USCG Unlimited Impossibilities “The role of intelligence in support of natural disaster and other non-military activities is an under-researched area of inquiry. Erich Telfer’s research into the role of intelligence during the response to the Deepwater Horizon explosion and sinking and the subsequent loss of control of the Macondo Well provides insight into the art of the possible and the need for doctrine. It is an important contribution to the matura- tion of disaster preparedness and response planning in this country.” Admiral Thad W. Allen, USCG (Ret.) Unlimited Impossibilities: Telfer Intelligence Support to the Deepwater Horizon Response NI-Press NATIONAL INTELLIGENCE UNIVERSITY Unlimited Impossibilities: Intelligence Support to the Deepwater Horizon Response by CAPT Erich M. Telfer, USCG National Intelligence University Washington, DC January 2014 UNLIMITED IMPOSSIBILITIES In Unlimited Impossibilities: Intelligence Support to the Deepwater Horizon Response, CAPT Erich M. Telfer of the U. S. Coast Guard examines the Intelligence Com- munity and Coast Guard response to the 2010 BP oil ex- plosion on Deepwater Horizon, which spilled tons of oil into the Gulf of Mexico. Telfer points out problems that hampered the response and suggests approaches for better communication and coordination in future responses. The goal of the NI Press is to publish high quality, valuable, and timely books on topics of concern to the Intelligence Community and, more broadly, the U.S. government. Books published by the NI Press undergo peer review by senior officials in the U.S. government and outside experts. This publication has been approved for unrestricted distribution by the Office of Security Review, Department of Defense.
    [Show full text]
  • Deepwater Horizon
    Dispersant Monitoring an4 Assessment Directive I. Plume Monitoring and Assessment Plan fpr Subsurface Dispersant Application BP shall implement the approved Dispersed Plyme Characterization Plan for Subsurface Dispersant Application. Part I of the plan is a 1'Proof of.Concept" to determine if subsurface dispersant operation is chemically qispersing the oil plume. Once the "Proof of Concept" test is complete, the results will be, reviewed by the RR T for a decision to proceed or not proceed with Part 2 of the plan. , Part 2 of the plan involves robust sampling to detect and delineate the dispersed ~lume Part 3, entitled nsubsurface Injection of Dispersant", outlines the operationjll procedures. Additional guidance will be provided by the RRT coordination group onfspecific implementation of this directive and that guidance will be considered an adden4um to this directive. At least 24 hours prior to the testing, use andlot application of any subsurface dispersants, BP shalt provide a Dispersant Application Pia~ that identifies the dispersants to be used, describes the methods and equipment. used to i~ject the dispersant. plume model to assure representative sampling, proposed method ofv)sual observation, process for determining the effectiveness of subsurface injection, the s~ific injection rate (i.e., gallons/minute), the total amount to be used for the duration of(he test, the total length of time that dispersant is injected, and the plan for samplin$ and monitoring, as approved by the Unified Cofmand Environmental Unit. Dispersants must be on the approved product schedule an,d suitable for this use. All data shall be provided to the United States ~oast Guard (USCG) Federal On-Scene Coordinator, and the Environmental Protectio~iAgency (EPA) Regional Response Team (RRT) representative within 24 hours of the in ormation being received.
    [Show full text]
  • Deepwater Horizon Response – Crisis Comms and IT Role
    Deepwater Horizon Response – Crisis Comms and IT Role Captain Marcus Woodring Sector Houston-Galveston Prelude April 20th, 2010 – The Transocean Rig, Deepwater Horizon, suffered a major marine casualty and fire. The rig sank a few days later, severing the riser connection, releasing crude oil into the Gulf of Mexico. There were 11 casualties as a result of the fire/explosion. BP took on the role of the “responsible party” for the oil spill response efforts. The USCG and MMS (BOE-MRE) are co-chairing an ongoing investigation into the major marine casualty. Prelude Prelude Prelude Prelude Question #1 What would you name the incident and why?? A. The Transocean Incident B. The Deepwater Horizon Disaster C. The BP Oil Spill D. The Macando 252 BOP Failure H1N1 – Previous names... CITGO Flash Flood Event EXXON VALDEZ 9/11 Other Commands • The first Incident Command Post (ICP) was established in Houma, as the initial event occurred within the Morgan City COTP Zone. This ICP eventually became responsible for the entire State of Louisiana. • Shortly afterwards, an ICP was stood-up in Mobile, to cover the States of Mississippi, Alabama, and the panhandle of Florida. • ICP Florida was established for the State (other than the panhandle). Other Commands • Because of the need to “broker” the resources available between multiple ICPs, i.e. boom and skimmers, a Unified Area Command (UAC) was established in Robert, and eventually relocated to NOLA. • After the declaration of this event as a “Spill of National Significance” (SONS), a National Incident Command (NIC) was also established. • At BP Headquarters in Westlake, the efforts to control the source was named ICP Houston.
    [Show full text]
  • Reforming the Legal Framework for Dispersant Use in Oil Spill Response Efforts in the Wake of Deepwater Horizon Abby J
    Hastings Environmental Law Journal Volume 18 Article 6 Number 1 Winter 2012 1-1-2012 Responding to the Response: Reforming the Legal Framework for Dispersant Use in Oil Spill Response Efforts in the Wake of Deepwater Horizon Abby J. Queale Follow this and additional works at: https://repository.uchastings.edu/ hastings_environmental_law_journal Part of the Environmental Law Commons Recommended Citation Abby J. Queale, Responding to the Response: Reforming the Legal Framework for Dispersant Use in Oil Spill Response Efforts in the Wake of Deepwater Horizon, 18 Hastings West Northwest J. of Envtl. L. & Pol'y 61 (2012) Available at: https://repository.uchastings.edu/hastings_environmental_law_journal/vol18/iss1/6 This Article is brought to you for free and open access by the Law Journals at UC Hastings Scholarship Repository. It has been accepted for inclusion in Hastings Environmental Law Journal by an authorized editor of UC Hastings Scholarship Repository. For more information, please contact [email protected]. Responding to the Response: Reforming the Legal Framework for Dispersant Use in Oil Spill Response Efforts in the Wake of Deepwater Horizon Abby J. Queale* I. INTRODUCTION II. THE SCIENCE BEHIND DISPERSANTS A. Why Use Dispersants in an Oil Spill Response? B. Dispersant Controversy C. Use of Dispersants to Date D. Possible Future Controversy: Nanotechnology III. EXISTING LEGAL FRAMEWORK A. Clean Water Act (1972 Amendments to the Federal Water Pollution Control Act) B. Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act C. Oil Spill Pollution Act of 1990 D. Other Applicable Laws IV. THE DEEPWATER HORIZON OIL SPILL AND THE NEED FOR A NEW LEGAL FRAMEWORK A. The Disaster B.
    [Show full text]