Gulf Coast rig leaking buttloads of oil/day

[LawBeefaroni]

After it exploded and sunk last week, Deepwater Horizon has been leaking an estimated 42,000 gallons (10,000 barrels) of oil daily into Gulf Coast waters at a depth of about 5,000 feet.

Obviously missing/dead crew are the top priority, but for those of us not in search and rescue, this is a nasty side effect of the failure of the deepest oceanic oil well in history.

NEW ORLEANS -- Oil leaking from a sunken drilling rig in the Gulf of Mexico oozed slowly toward the coast Monday, endangering hundreds of miles of marshes, barrier islands and white sand beaches in four states from Louisiana to Florida.

The areas, home to dolphins, sea birds, prime fishing grounds and tourist playlands, could be fouled later this week if crews can't cut off an estimated 42,000 gallons a day escaping two leaks in a drilling pipe about 5,000 feet below the surface.

...

George Crozier, oceanographer and executive director at the Dauphin Island Sea Lab in Alabama, said he was studying wind and ocean currents driving the oil. He said Pensacola, Fla., is likely the edge of the threatened area.

"I don't think anybody knows with confidence what the effects will be," Crozier said. "We've never seen anything like this magnitude."

In Louisiana, Gov. Bobby Jindal asked the Coast Guard to deploy oil containment booms in the Pass A Loutre wildlife area, a 115,000-acre preserve that is home to alligators, birds and fish near the mouth of the Mississippi River.

They're using robotic submersibles to try to cut off the flow but I imagine this is still bad PR for Drill Baby, Drill.

EDIT: updated title to reflect unknown leak rate.

[coopasonic]

After it exploded and sunk last week, Deepwater Horizon has been leaking an estimated 42,000 gallons (10,000 barrels) of oil daily into Gulf Coast waters at a depth of about 5,000 feet.

4.2 gallons per barrel? Those are some small barrels.

[LawBeefaroni]

After it exploded and sunk last week, Deepwater Horizon has been leaking an estimated 42,000 gallons (10,000 barrels) of oil daily into Gulf Coast waters at a depth of about 5,000 feet.

4.2 gallons per barrel? Those are some small barrels.

Eh, 1,000 barrels.

[msduncan]

Luckily the ocean is pretty much lifeless at 5,000 feet.

[msduncan]

And yes. I'm joking.

[Enough]

[Victoria Raverna]

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/04/29/us/29 ... ss&src=igw" target="_blank

In a hastily called news conference, Rear Adm. Mary E. Landry of the Coast Guard said a scientist from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration had concluded that oil is leaking at the rate of 5,000 barrels a day, not 1,000 as had been estimated. While emphasizing that the estimates are rough given that the leak is at 5,000 feet below the surface, Admiral Landry said the new estimate came from observations made in flights over the slick, studying the trajectory of the spill and other variables.

[Crabbs]

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/04/29/us/29 ... ss&src=igw

In a hastily called news conference, Rear Adm. Mary E. Landry of the Coast Guard said a scientist from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration had concluded that oil is leaking at the rate of 5,000 barrels a day, not 1,000 as had been estimated. While emphasizing that the estimates are rough given that the leak is at 5,000 feet below the surface, Admiral Landry said the new estimate came from observations made in flights over the slick, studying the trajectory of the spill and other variables.

Just saw this on the news this AM, I guess there is a 3rd leak now in the stand pipe leading away from the well. Initially BP just thought there were 2 leaks... Hope they are able to cap it soon.

[Arcanis]

Radio is announcing a controlled burn is planned to try and prevent it from hitting the coast of some of the islands down there. The slick is approaching some major shrimp and oyster farming areas as well as an island that practically lives off of tourism. On the good news portion of it apparently raw oil like this biodegrades and disperses pretty quickly, at least in comparison to refined oil.

[LawBeefaroni]

Radio is announcing a controlled burn is planned to try and prevent it from hitting the coast of some of the islands down there.

From what I hear, a burn will only eliminate about 3% of the total.

[Arcanis]

Radio is announcing a controlled burn is planned to try and prevent it from hitting the coast of some of the islands down there.

From what I hear, a burn will only eliminate about 3% of the total.

They gave no estimations. They made it clear that not all of the oil would burn this way. The burn was for no reason other than to push it back from the coast because in open water it isn't as much of a hazard.

[Grifman]

I want more offshore drilling but they are going to need to figure out a solution to situations like this before I'd approve of it.

[noxiousdog]

I want more offshore drilling but they are going to need to figure out a solution to situations like this before I'd approve of it.

There are solutions. This one just failed for whatever reason. I was sent an industry mag document that has the overview. It's long so it would be tough to pare it down. If you'd like to read it I can forward it along.

[Arcanis]

Working for an Oil company i hear all of the tidbits early. This is all hearsay from unqualified people so keep that in mind. Apparently someone screwed with a pump and that is what caused the initial fire/explosion. The pump was supposed to default to closed if it lost power, in order to regulate to pressure, this pump was rigged to remain open for some reason.

As far as prevention goes it is just like everything else nothing is going to be 100% all the time but the cause of the problem is likely a person screwing with and disabling a safety of some kind.
The main reason this is so difficult for them to get under control is the depth of the well. At 5000 feet down where the break is the pressure is too high for most normal methods of repair to be feasible. The vast majority of wells in the Gulf are in much shallower water and allow for divers to work on the damaged portions. This is one of those scary ones that require special gear just to get to it much less have enough mobility and control to fix it without making things worse.

[silverjon]

The pump was supposed to default to closed if it lost power, in order to regulate to pressure, this pump was rigged to remain open for some reason.

That doesn't really surprise me all that much. People in all kinds of lines of work will override the safety features because it makes their job more convenient in the immediate moment. Most of them just end up hurting themselves, but some manage to take out a few coworkers, and a few cause disasters of enormous magnitude. I could give you all sorts of examples from the Alberta oilpatch.

[Lassr]

Radio is announcing a controlled burn is planned to try and prevent it from hitting the coast of some of the islands down there.

Glad I went to Dauphin Island a few months ago. May not be a pretty site soon.

[LawBeefaroni]

WASHINGTON — The Obama administration says the cost of cleaning up a giant oil spill off the Gulf of Mexico will fall on BP PLC, the company that operated the rig.

White House spokesman Nick Shapiro says President Barack Obama has directed his administration to aggressively confront the oil spill. The military is working to determine how its array of aircraft, ships and equipment might be able to assist the cleanup operation.

Considering that the Navy is now involved, in addition to the Coast Guard, BP might be paying a lot of coin for this one.

They're already paying over $6M a day for their own efforts.




Also, apparently they didn't use a remote shutoff, something used on other deep water rigs.

The oil well spewing crude into the Gulf of Mexico didn't have a remote-control shut-off switch used in two other major oil-producing nations as last-resort protection against underwater spills.

The lack of the device, called an acoustic switch, could amplify concerns over the environmental impact of offshore drilling after the explosion and sinking of the Deepwater Horizon rig, hired by oil giant BP PLC, last week.


...

The efficacy of the devices is unclear. Major offshore oil-well blowouts are rare, and it remained unclear Wednesday evening whether acoustic switches have ever been put to the test in a real-world accident. When wells do surge out of control, the primary shut-off systems almost always work. Remote control systems such as the acoustic switch, which have been tested in simulations, are intended as a last resort.

Nevertheless, regulators in two major oil-producing countries, Norway and Brazil, in effect require them. Norway has had acoustic triggers on almost every offshore rig since 1993.

[Arcanis]

Multipage news article with continuing updates. From our local paper.

This is worse than thought. Local TV station reported that it isn't 1000 barrels a day it is 5000. BP can't contain it so the military is moving in to aid in the cleanup.

other bits:

Earlier Wednesday, Louisiana State Wildlife and Fisheries Secretary Robert Barham told lawmakers federal government projections show a "high probability" oil could reach the Pass a Loutre wildlife area Friday night, Breton Sound on Saturday and the Chandeleur Islands on Sunday.

In Plaquemines Parish, a sliver of Louisiana that juts into the Gulf and is home to Pass a Loutre, officials hoped to deploy a fleet of volunteers in fishing boats to spread booms that could block oil from entering inlets.

"We've got oystermen and shrimpers who know this water better than anyone," Plaquemines Paris President Billy Nungesser said. "Hopefully the Coast Guard will embrace the idea."

[LawBeefaroni]

Some shrimpers have already sued BP, along with operator Transocean, Cameron International, and Lloyds.

[Enough]

Radio is announcing a controlled burn is planned to try and prevent it from hitting the coast of some of the islands down there.

Glad I went to Dauphin Island a few months ago. May not be a pretty site soon.

Glad I got on the Gulf Coast for my first time this past Christmas. If the oil spill hits those sugar white sand beaches it is really going to make for some powerful images of contrast. Here's an informative map showing the extent of the spill with an overview of some wildlife under risk.

Edit, here's the NOAA's tracking page on the spill that also has a good map.

[AjD]

A question I haven't seen answered in the coverage I've read:

If, hypothetically, it was simply impossible to shut this thing off..... how long would it take before the oil stopped leaking out? How much oil, give or take, would spill out? What would happen to the oceans in that scenario (and the whole global ecosystem)?

[Rip]

I think we should seize Britain and all her assets for compensation. I mean we kinda run the place already, so why not.

[abr]

A question I haven't seen answered in the coverage I've read:

If, hypothetically, it was simply impossible to shut this thing off..... how long would it take before the oil stopped leaking out? How much oil, give or take, would spill out? What would happen to the oceans in that scenario (and the whole global ecosystem)?

From what I understand, if both triggering the shutoff valve and the dome thingy they're building fail, the way to stop this spill will be to drill a relief well close by - which is estimated to take 3 months. For the amount of oil, well I guess you'd have to multiply the daily output (now estimated at more than 200000 gallons) by 90 days.

No idea what this means for the oceans and the affected ecosystems, but I don't think it will be pretty.

edit: Just read another article which also mentioned two natural mechanisms which could limit the spill:

- When the pressure inside the field decreases over time, the outflow will slow down.
- There is a chance that the well will become unstable and collapse, sealing it off.

[Arcanis]

While doing cake for this months birthdays at work yesterday this was obviously the talk going on.

Apparently the Acoustic shut off LB linked to has never been used before, while it should work due to testing it has yet to actually be tried at depth. Another item brought up was concern about them shutting down all of the rigs in the Gulf because of this accident. The company i work for has been given notice that all rigs are to be reinspected immediately and that they may shut down the rigs until they are inspected. If this happens it will devastate US oil production for months as the inspections are being done and the time required to get it going again. The person across the hall from me mentioned this is the first major disaster on a rig in 40 years as well. They are angry that the oil industry is getting criticized over 1 incident when coal mines have repeatedly failed over the past couple of years and aren't even being closed for failing inspection.

Just wanting to give you guys an inside look at what people within the industry are hearing and saying.

edit: wanted to add that there have been some news reports where they are saying that the pipes get blown out of the well and when they hit cause the sparks needed to cause an explosion, think the opening scenes of Armageddon. This is an impossible feat to achieve according to one of our Eng. The physics make it difficult and the many layers of fail safes for that specific instance eliminate such a possibility without it being intentional.

[LawBeefaroni]

They are angry that the oil industry is getting criticized over 1 incident when coal mines have repeatedly failed over the past couple of years and aren't even being closed for failing inspection.

As an outsider, I can tell you that when a coal mine collapses, "only" coal miners die. It is tragic, but the damage is limited to those employed to work in the mines. If the "only" casualties were the 11 or so killed working on the rig, this would probably play out similarly (see the many oil refinery casualties that go largely under the radar).

But unlike a coal mine, this incident is also threatening the livelihoods of thousands (hundreds of thousands?), threatening wildlife on an immense scale, and is likely to have very visible and long lasting damaging effects.

If a coal mine explosion covered a state in a noxious cloud or leeched toxins into drinking water on a large scale, there would be a similar reaction.

Finally, the recent mine incident has triggered a review of safety enforcement and quite a bit of criticism.

FWIW, I realize you're not arguing the point but rather relaying co-workers' comments. That's just my take on it.

[abr]

What Lawbeef said. Also, there is the issue of BP having vehemently lobbied against tighter security regulations for the gulf region in the recent past.

[Arcanis]

yeah. They are just frustrated with the whole situation as it threatens their profession and they feel like they are being hit with a double standard. I think the bigger issue with them is that as an industry with a good safety record they feel they should get the benefit of the doubt and be allowed to work until it is shown that there is an actual problem on each individual well or several wells start having problems.

[Enough]

yeah. They are just frustrated with the whole situation as it threatens their profession and they feel like they are being hit with a double standard. I think the bigger issue with them is that as an industry with a good safety record they feel they should get the benefit of the doubt and be allowed to work until it is shown that there is an actual problem on each individual well or several wells start having problems.

Well, I don't think any extractive industry is ever going to have a good safety record.

An MMS review published last year found 41 deaths and 302 injuries out of 1,443 oil-rig accidents from 2001 to 2007.

It's very dangerous work and nearly all of the serious accidents don't make national press on the same scale as the recent coal mining disaster. When spills threaten ecosystems we all rely on and endanger jobs it becomes a much bigger story such as we see now.

This very rig has caught on fire before this accident, along with over 500 rig fires that have occurred since 2006. Frankly, I can't remember the last big news story on a rig fire since 2006 besides the current one and there has been 500 of them!

Despite federal reporting requirements, Doyle said companies have failed to report off-shore injuries to the U.S. Coast Guard, which shares some enforcement authority with the MMS, in about a third of the employee cases he has handled.

“Often (company officials) deny an injury no matter what the doctors say,” he said. “So the injury rate looks low, but is not.”

Federal court records show dozens of recent cases filed nationwide against Transocean Inc and interrelated companies. But many of the injuries and death cases result in undisclosed settlements, two other attorneys who recently represented workers in cases against Transocean said.

Kurt Arnold, who has represented several clients in recent cases against Transocean Offshore and specializes in maritime injury cases said most of the workers live together in small towns from East Texas to all across Louisiana.

“Unfortunately, the rise of incidents offshore are increasing as the exploration for oil and gas increases,” Arnold said. “Many companies talk about their safety record, but the majority of accidents are not reported or misclassified. Unlike on land, there is little oversight.”

I can totally understand how when it's your livelihood the folks you are talking with would feel like they do, but make no mistake being an oil worker is one of the more dangerous jobs on the planet when it comes to safety. Likely in the top 20 I would guess for sure, if not higher. Of course, fisherman have an even higher accident rate and they're also taking a big economic hit from this and coastal residents are in line to get a nice healthy dose of toxics to add to what they are already being exposed to from Katrina, etc. It's just a sickening situation.

[Arcanis]

Undoubtedly working on a rig is extremely dangerous. I know many people who either work on the rig or have to service equipment on the rigs. The fact that every commercial break on the local channels includes a commercial for a lawyer specializing in offshore injury claims, kinda indicates how frequent and difficult to handle injuries on rigs are. All of the oil companies i've ever worked with were pretty small, but i would hear them being pretty protective of their crews. Most any injury was seen by medical personnel on the rig and flown to shore as soon a helicopter could get to them. I'm sure this isn't the norm and is mainly due to the fact that these companies are small and see something more than a number on their statistics sheets.

[LawBeefaroni]

Some estimates of the economic impact are coming in.

- Fitch's Energy Team estimates containment and clean-up costs could reach $2 billion to $3 billion.

- Shares of oil services companies tumbled on Friday in the aftermath of the spill. BP is down around 14 percent and Transocean down 20 percent since the rig explosion on April 20.

- Omega Protein (OME.N), the world's largest producer of omega-3 fish oil, relies heavily on a Gulf fishery, and its share price extended Thursday's sharp losses on Friday morning, losing another nine percent to $5.40.

With a current $164B market cap, back of napkin math tells me that's around $26B in market cap wiped out for BP alone.

- Analysts have said the spill could be a supportive factor for U.S. crude futures, but negative for Brent if it began to disrupt oil imports in the U.S. Gulf.

Oil prices rose on Friday, heading for a third straight monthly gain, driven by expectations of global economic recovery and hopes of a bailout package to help Greece avoid debt default.

[Grifman]

One third of all US seafood comes from Louisiana/Gulf. Better eat your seafood now, it's going to be expensive this summer.

What I don't understand is why aren't the multiple redundant shut off systems. That would seem to be a no brainer given the costs that are going to be involved here. Not only the clean up cost but all those people who are going to be up out of work that are going and should sue BP for this. Sure, something like this may have a 1 in 100,000 chance of happening but if that 1 time is going to cost you billions of dollars, I'd like to have some redundancy/backup.

[Arcanis]

One third of all US seafood comes from Louisiana/Gulf. Better eat your seafood now, it's going to be expensive this summer.

What I don't understand is why aren't the multiple redundant shut off systems. That would seem to be a no brainer given the costs that are going to be involved here. Not only the clean up cost but all those people who are going to be up out of work that are going and should sue BP for this. Sure, something like this may have a 1 in 100,000 chance of happening but if that 1 time is going to cost you billions of dollars, I'd like to have some redundancy/backup.

There should have been. One thing i heard but haven't found any corroborating evidence of was that Haliburton screwed the pooch. They laid the concrete for the base and something within that laying jammed the cut off down there open. I can't speak with confidence about what i think i know about their safety mechanisms so i won't get into that.

[LawBeefaroni]

What HAL says:

As one of several service providers on the rig, Halliburton can confirm the following:

-- Halliburton performed a variety of services on the rig, including cementing, and had four employees stationed on the rig at the time of the accident. Halliburton's employees returned to shore safely, due, in part, to the brave rescue efforts by the U.S. Coast Guard and other organizations.

-- Halliburton had completed the cementing of the final production casing string in accordance with the well design approximately 20 hours prior to the incident. The cement slurry design was consistent with that utilized in other similar applications.

-- In accordance with accepted industry practice approved by our customers, tests demonstrating the integrity of the production casing string were completed.

-- At the time of the incident, well operations had not yet reached the point requiring the placement of the final cement plug which would enable the planned temporary abandonment of the well, consistent with normal oilfield practice.

-- We are assisting with planning and engineering support for a wide range of options designed to secure the well, including a potential relief well.

[Enough]

Please, please don't let this happen.

The worst-case scenario for the broken and leaking well gushing oil into the Gulf of Mexico would be the loss of the wellhead currently restricting the flow to 5,000 barrels -- or 210,000 gallons per day.

If the wellhead is lost, oil could leave the well at a much greater rate, perhaps up to 150,000 barrels -- or more than 6 million gallons per day -- based on government data showing daily production at another deepwater Gulf well.

By comparison, the Exxon Valdez spill was 11 million gallons total. The Gulf spill could end up dumping the equivalent of 4 Exxon Valdez spills per week.

[Enough]

Sell, sell!

BP confirmed Friday that it is self-insured for any costs related to the spill, so the company will have to absorb its full share of spending currently running about $6 million a day plus $100 million which it expects will be spent bringing in another rig to drill a relief well.

[LawBeefaroni]

Sell, sell!

BP confirmed Friday that it is self-insured for any costs related to the spill, so the company will have to absorb its full share of spending currently running about $6 million a day plus $100 million which it expects will be spent bringing in another rig to drill a relief well.

I think it took the hit on that news yesterday.

[Kraken]

The more I read about this spill, the worse it sounds. The repercussions will be profound.

[Crabbs]

The only "good" thing about the spill is that it's leaking Light Sweet Crude and not the Heavy Crude which can be even harder to clean up.

Not that it's much of a positive, but I guess I'm looking for any 'happy news.'

[LawBeefaroni]

But unfortunately that little bit of good is pretty much nullified by the location. Apparently if it hits the marshlands, there is no possible way to clean up, short of bulldozing the marshes.

Shirley said that these marshes rest on a thick layer of dead grass stalks, which could absorb the oil and then release it back into the water over a period of years. For now, he said, what's reached the marshes is a thin sheen of oil. But he said that's just the beginning.

"That thick layer is there. It's coming," Shirley said.

If those marshes are saturated with oil, it could be toxic to the many species that live and raise their young among the grass blades. But Ed Overton of Louisiana State University said the oil could kill the grass itself, which serves to break up waves before they hit the state's rapidly dwindling coast.

Overton said his worries grew after a university lab analyzed a sample of the oil. "It's not terribly toxic, but it does appear to be terribly sticky," he said, which meant it could coat grass blades and kill them.

For birds, oil is damaging because it coats their feathers, destroying the natural chemistry that keeps the birds buoyant, warm and able to fly. And, in the act of "preening" it off their feathers, birds can also ingest the oil and be poisoned.

And now, huge numbers of birds are converging on the Gulf Coast. Some are just stopping to recharge, after a long flight over the gulf from South America. But others have come to stay, preparing to raise their young in nests in the marsh and along sandy beaches.

"It's about as bad a time as you could pick," said Parr, of the American Bird Conservancy.

[miltonite]

I work at the U.S. Fish and Wildlife in Lafayette. We mainly deal with permitting in reference to threatened and endangered species and also investigate take (when T&E species are killed). Some of the guys in the office got a message that they are leaving as soon as possible to go and asses the situation and see how bad it will actually be on the T&E wildlife in Plaquemines parish where it has reached landfall already. The cleanup alone will cost a ton of money then when my office can actually get as estimate on how many brown pelicans, piping plover, gulf and pallid sturgeon, and manatee were killed BP is going to have another very large problem to deal with.


Bobby Jindal has told shrimpers to go ahead and get what they can while it is there. Right now they usually can only get white shrimp from the gulf but the brown shrimp season that opens in May have been declared fair game.


Being in renewable resources and environmental quality this has been a big topic in many of our classes recently. A guy in one of my classes had a dad working on that rig. He asked dad what happened (speculative alert, not sure how accurate the source so take it with a grain of salt). On the blowout prevention valve there are 2 rams that sheer the pipe closed when a button is pressed. MMS when inspecting a rig makes sure this is working. After MMS left someone on the rig was ordered to disable the rams so production would not be shut down because someone accidentally pressed the button.


That is what I have heard around work and in the halls of my college. I just hope they can get it cleaned up before a hurricane or tropical storm comes through.