Wednesday, February 9, 2011

Oil Drilling News


GULF OIL DISASTER


Drilling oversight criticized

"Government oversight of offshore drilling has been underfunded, sluggish and repeatedly undercut by oil industry campaigns to weaken proposed safety mandates, according a report released Tuesday by the presidential oil spill commission."


Oil Dispersants Still Linger

"...a new study reveals that the chemical dispersants used against the oil are lingering longer than expected. What the long-term implications of that will be, exactly, is unclear, but researchers say the chemicals are not degrading as rapidly as it was first believed. 

About 771,000 gallons of dispersant was injected near the sea floor, directly into the oil flow. Researchers monitored one specific component of the dispersant, an anionic surfactant called dioctyl sodium sulfosuccinate, or DOSS, which made up about 10% of the total dispersant. Measuring DOSS at the time of the injection and again a couple of months after dispersant was applied, they found very little biodegradation of the chemical. It had, however, dispersed as the plume drifted away from the wellhead, so that instead of being present in parts per million when applied, it is now detected in the parts-per-billion range."

The Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, Regulation and Enforcement (BOEMRE) to Hold Hearings on New Leasing Plan


Hands Across the Sand Facebook page
The Hands Across the Sand event (in which more than 100,000 people in 40 countries gathered last year) is set for June 25th.

FLORIDA


Crist, Sink to unite against offshore drilling