U.S. Says 74 Pct of BP Oil Gone From Gulf Waters
U.S. Says 74% of Spilled BP Oil Gone From Gulf Waters
Derick E. Hingle/Bloomberg
The Transocean Development Driller III leased by BP Plc is seen at sunset as it works to drill a backup relief well at the BP Plc Macondo well site in the Gulf of Mexico.
The Transocean Development Driller III leased by BP Plc is seen at sunset as it works to drill a backup relief well at the BP Plc Macondo well site in the Gulf of Mexico. Photographer: Derick E. Hingle/Bloomberg
Aug. 4 (Bloomberg) -- White House energy and climate adviser Carol Browner talks with Bloomberg's Lizzie O'Leary about a report from the Interior Department and National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration about the effects of the BP Plc oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico and the administration's commitment to the environmental restoration of the region. About 74 percent of the oil that leaked from BP’s damaged well in the Gulf is no longer in the water, according to the U.S. government report released today. (Source: Bloomberg)
Aug. 4 (Bloomberg) -- The "vast majority" of crude from BP Plc’s damaged Gulf of Mexico well is gone and the rest is being broken down by waves and bacteria, reducing the threat of further pollution from the largest maritime oil spill, White House energy adviser Carol Browner said on NBC's "Today" show this morning. Bloomberg's Adam Johnson reports. (Source: Bloomberg)
About 74 percent of the oil that leaked from BP Plc’s damaged well in the Gulf of Mexico has been eliminated or will soon be eaten by bacteria, according to a U.S. government report.
The remaining oil may be on the surface of the water, buried beneath sand and sediment, or was collected from the region’s beaches, according to the report released today by a team led by the Interior Department and National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
An estimated 4.9 million barrels of oil leaked from BP’s Macondo well between April 20 and July 15, according to government scientists. BP was able to capture about 800,000 barrels of crude from the well before it entered the Gulf. The leak began after the Deepwater Horizon drilling rig exploded off the coast of Louisiana, killing 11 workers.
“Less oil on the surface does not mean that there isn’t oil still in the water column or that our beaches and marshes aren’t still at risk,” Jane Lubchenco, administrator of NOAA, said in a press release. “Knowing generally what happened to the oil helps us better understand areas of risk and likely impacts.”
The report on oil in the Gulf comes as London-based BP reported a “significant milestone” today toward plugging the well permanently. Engineers carried out the “static kill” to inject drilling mud over a period of eight hours yesterday to control the well’s pressure.
‘Close’ to End
“The long battle to stop the leak and contain the oil is close to coming to an end,” President Barack Obama said in remarks today to the executive council of the AFL-CIO labor union.
Obama said the U.S. will hold the company accountable for paying for the damage caused by the leaking well, the biggest U.S. maritime oil spill.
A quarter of the oil from the spill evaporated or dissolved naturally into the water, according to the report. BP captured 17 percent of the oil using equipment at the wellhead and skimming accounted for 3 percent of the oil.
Chemicals were used to break up 8 percent of the oil and 16 percent was naturally dispersed, or broken down into small droplets that can be eaten by bacteria in the Gulf, according to the report.
“At least 50 percent of the oil that was released is now completely gone from the system,” Lubchenco said during a press conference at the White House today. “And most of the remainder is degrading rapidly or is being removed from the beaches.”
The findings come from daily operational reports, previous scientific analyses, best available information and a broad range of scientific expertise, according to the report.
‘Impossible’ Accounting
“I find it very hard to believe, impossible actually, that they have three-quarters of the oil accounted for,” Samantha Joye, a professor of marine sciences at the University of Georgia in Athens, said today in an e-mail.
Joye was among scientists who discovered plumes of oil under the Gulf’s surface and has been continuing to survey and analyze the results of water samples.
“When they say that there’s 25 percent of the oil remaining, that is almost five times the Exxon Valdez,” which spilled crude into Alaska’s Prince William Sound in 1989, said Ian MacDonald, a professor of oceanography at Florida State University in Tallahassee.
Though there may be no oil washing onto beaches, tar balls can be found six to 10 inches (15 to 25 centimeters) below the surface, he said.
Buried Material
“An enormous amount of the oil is now buried, and we know from previous spills that this buried material can persist for decades,” MacDonald said. “And that oil does have an effect on the behavior and health of the animals.”
BP rose 6 pence, or 1.4 percent, to 421.65 pence at 4:35 p.m. in London trading. The cost of insuring BP’s debt for a year with credit-default swaps dropped below five-year premiums today for the first time in two months on speculation the bid to close the well will succeed.
National Incident Commander Thad Allen said BP and the government are discussing whether to inject cement into the well from the top as a part of the static kill operation.
Once the decision on cementing is made, the next step will be to finish the relief well and kill the well from the bottom “towards the end of August” at the latest, according to Allen.
To contact the reporters on this story: Allison Bennett in New York at abennett23@bloomberg.net; Katarzyna Klimasinska in Houston at kklimasinska@bloomberg.net
Rate this Page