Gulf oil spill and its threat to environment
Gov. Bobby Jindal of Louisiana declared a state of emergency Thursday afternoon, saying that the vast oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico “threatens the state’s natural resources.” Federal officials were concerned that the slick could reach the Mississippi River Delta marshes by Thursday evening.
The leak from the oil well, caused by an explosion on a drilling rig about 50 miles off the Louisiana coast, which left 11 workers missing and presumed dead, is estimated at 5,000 barrels of oil a day. Such a disaster is very rare, but the financial and environmental costs are clearly high when it occurs. Last month, President Obama proposed opening more areas of the Gulf coastline to oil and natural gas drilling.
Florida Gov. Charlie Crist declared a state of emergency in six counties Friday as a result of the Gulf Coast oil spill, the governor’s office said.
Crist joins Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal, who declared a state of emergency in his state Thursday.
Crist said the oil spill “threatens the state of Florida with a major disaster.” He declared an emergency in Escambia, Santa Rosa, Okaloosa, Walton, Bay and Gulf counties.
Officials anticipate Venice and Port Fourchon, Louisiana, will be the first places affected Friday when the massive oil spill caused by last week’s rig explosion reaches shore, said Mike Abendhoff, a spokesman for BP, which owns the ruptured well where oil continues to leak.
The Coast Guard was conducting a flyover Friday to see if oil had reached Louisiana’s coastline as federal, state and local officials scrambled to avert a natural disaster threatening to surpass the Exxon Valdez disaster 20 years ago in Alaska.
President Obama on Friday ordered Interior Secretary Ken Salazar “to conduct a thorough review” of the explosion of the Deepwater Horizon rig and subsequent oil spill.
Speaking at the White House, Obama said Salazar will report back in 30 days on any “precautions in technologies” needed to prevent such accidents in the future.
“We’re going to make sure that any leases going forward have those safeguards,” Obama said. “We’ve also dispatched teams to the Gulf Coast to inspect all deep-water rigs and platforms to address safety concerns.”
Obama said domestic oil production continues to be “an important part of our overall strategy” but said “it must be done responsibly for the safety of our workers and our environment.”
But how should we balance the benefits of offshore drilling against the possible environmental damage? Are there technological advances that could be put in place?
