Oil leak in the gulf

[yojack1]

Ok, what genius out there can tell us (what if ) if they can't stop that oil spewing out from a 5,000' deep gusher, what's at stake?
The oil companies fail safe shutoff valve designed for just this scenario failed. Now they are scratching their asses trying to come up with a solution.

Meanwhile:

Will the underwater gusher ever stop itself?
Will it get bigger?
Will it be stopped in weeks or months or maybe never?
Has anything even close to this, happened before?
Could this pollute all the oceans if it can't be stopped?
Whats the environmental outlook in the short term? (Say one Month)
Whats the outlook for a worst case scenario? (Many months to years)
The innocent wildlife, perhaps we ain't seen nothin' yet. Whats going to be the toll of millions of animals?
How long before eating anything taken out of the water is safe?
How long before the oil companies start taking advantage raping us with higher fuel prices?

I just heard that if they screw up again trying to cap the head and it breaks off, they say it would be like an underwater volcano that can't be stopped. Is this true?

On Larry King tonight they were talking about, get this, could aliens from another world be a threat to us. Brilliant! I thought a disaster like this would have taken precedent. Seems to me that this is a situation that needs the utmost urgency for a fix and our government better get their act together and soon. The food supply in the gulf depends on it.

The worlds problems seem to be eccelerating everyday, 2012 humm?

I'm sorry, just my rant for the day and maybe it will be stopped soon but,
Mankind is really pissing me off.
Jack
Any oil drilling experts out there?

 

[sahtt]

I'm not a drilling expert but I did work for an off shore oil rig service firm for a couple years and more importantly, I've been following this particular situation extremely closely.

I can help you with some of your questions-

What if it keeps 'spewing'? There is a finite amount of crude that will exit the breach. It's a combination of the amount calculated through geological surveys and various pressures acting on the crude (i.e., you can release pressure in certain places in a certain manner and the oil will stop flowing out of the hole regardless of whether it's capped or not, appropriately named relief wells). That being said, you cannot measure the volume of crude under ground to a high degree of accuracy, and this is especially true when drilling off shore. My uncle's job as a geophysicist would be much easier if this was the case (or maybe he wouldn't have a job). A case in the late 70's consisting of a small well only a couple hundred feet under water spewed for 9 months before being resolved (not very promising eh?).

In regards to a potential remedy, there are several. As you mentioned, plan A is the safety cut off switch that the robots are either failing to initiate or they did initiate it but it isn't functioning. Plan B takes 2-3 months to initiate and consists of a fairly commonsensical approach; simply connecting big containers to the well and directing flow to empty ones as each reaches capacity. Many thousands of barrels can fit in each 40x14 ft container (common size for such applications). Attaching all the piping and positioning the containers takes weeks as does fabricating it all. Relief wells will take roughly the same amount of time.

As far as wildlife etc. is involved, the Exxon Valdez case is a good parallel. 250k barrels worth were dumped into the ocean in that one. BP is dealing with 250-1m barrels unless they pull off a miracle or the robots simply do what they are supposed to.

This shouldn't effect oil prices unless it leads to massive regulation of off shore drilling (totally possible if not realistic), and even then it won't be a material effect for more than a few weeks IMO. We get almost all our oil from Canada, Mexico, and Saudi Arabian land based rigs.

If it makes you feel any better, I bet the Larry King deal was in relation to Stephen Hawking's new hour long show/documentary, where he openly discusses the possibility of alien life/encounters with earth from a scientific POV.

 

[heySkippy]

This ought to put the brakes on the recent resurgence of talk about drilling off the gulf coast of Florida.

 

[nsxotic911]

This ought to put the brakes on the recent resurgence of talk about drilling off the gulf coast of Florida.

Help me understand how this problem wouldn't happen out in the middle off the ocean off someone else's coast?

 

[yojack1]

Help me understand how this problem wouldn't happen out in the middle off the ocean off someone else's coast?

I heard that lobbyists for the oil companies have managed to eliminate some kind of special equipment (which costs 1/2 million per oil rig) that solves the kind of problem they are having now of a leak on the ocean floor. I understand that it is mandatory everywhere else in the world. Why am I not surprised. This is also the third major spill for BP in the last 5-years, again not surprised.
Sahtt probably knows more about this equipment and could explain. He has pretty good knowledge with this kind of stuff!

Jack

 

[swerve2007]

I heard that lobbyists for the oil companies have managed to eliminate some kind of special equipment (which costs 1/2 million per oil rig) that solves the kind of problem they are having now of a leak on the ocean floor. I understand that it is mandatory everywhere else in the world. Why am I not surprised.

i am glad i am not the only one. afterall 500k is such an f-in expense for these companies, it might just reduce their profits for like 30 seconds. of course someone will retort with a comment how the oil companies are only trying to make an honest buck, pay bunch of taxes, how difficult it is and so on. the fact that someone can negate the basic safety and regard for not only our imiidiate environment but the lives of people in the area that will be seriously affected, stemming from simple greed, is criminal and i hope they will be brought up on charges.

 

[TURBO2GO]

 

[Biscuit]

Correct me if im wrong but oil squirts out of the earths crust all the time under the ocean and hasnt killed us yet but this will lead to a few pics of oil soaked pelicans so that the tree huggers can cry wah wah save the earth and offshore drilling (for the us only) ceases and our gas prices go through the roof again...right?

 

[Swift]

^I highly doubt oil squirting out of the crust goes at how many barrels a day? LMAO

I find it highly suspicious that they have supposedly three,yes three shut off valves and none can be closed? WTF? With today's technology you can't tell me there isn't someway to cap it off 10 days later. pure BS

 

[Biscuit]

^I highly doubt oil squirting out of the crust goes at how many barrels a day? LMAO

I find it highly suspicious that they have supposedly three,yes three shut off valves and none can be closed? WTF? With today's technology you can't tell me there isn't someway to cap it off 10 days later. pure BS

Chris Reddy, director of the Coastal Ocean Institute at WHOI and a co-author of the study, has studied oil spills his whole career. “These volcanoes (enormous underwater volcanoes composed of hardened oil like asphault) are an astonishing display of nature,” Reddy said. “And they underscore one little-known fact: Half of the oil that enters the coastal environment is from natural oil seeps like the ones off the coast of California.”

 

[NSXrunner]

This shouldn't effect oil prices unless it leads to massive regulation of off shore drilling (totally possible if not realistic), and even then it won't be a material effect for more than a few weeks IMO. We get almost all our oil from Canada, Mexico, and Saudi Arabian land based rigs.

I am betting it will, not because the spill actually will affect it, but because they now have an excuse to charge more. Supply and demand excuse was blown out of the water when demand went down yet prices kept going up a few years back. When I heard BP say they are taking responsibility and paying for all the costs, part of me thought yeah right, they will be passing the expense to the customer in the form of higher prices.

 

[sahtt]

I am betting it will, not because the spill actually will affect it, but because they now have an excuse to charge more. Supply and demand excuse was blown out of the water when demand went down yet prices kept going up a few years back. When I heard BP say they are taking responsibility and paying for all the costs, part of me thought yeah right, they will be passing the expense to the customer in the form of higher prices.

It's still based on supply and demand, I promise . Recall that once it became evident that even developing nations (where all the growth in consumption is coming from) were being strangled by the global recession, oil prices fell in a cataclysmic fashion from over 150$/barrel back to the $30's. Sure you can subsidize a market or manipulate it for a short amount of time (say a couple years), but eventually those gaining pay the piper proportionally. Whether it's those long oil over 100$/barrel or those buying homes with subsidized mortgages back in the early and mid 2000's.

The price for a barrel of crude on any given day is likely the result of probably the most complex pricing system currently on planet earth. I barely understand the process and multitude of factors and I could easily write a book much longer than anyone would care to read about it.

It's probably wise to consider there are thousands and thousands of off and on shore oil rigs through out the world. One rig is meaningless and since BP works in an extremely competitive marketplace, they will probably be unable to transfer a large portion of the costs onto consumers. That being said, people are apparently completely unaware every one of these firms must have insurance by law and the associated firm is covering at least 2/3's of the spill's costs; which will be stratospheric. There are already well over $5,000,000,000 in proposed law suits just for disrupting other business activities.

 

[swerve2007]

That being said, people are apparently completely unaware every one of these firms must have insurance by law and the associated firm is covering at least 2/3's of the spill's costs; which will be stratospheric. There are already well over $5,000,000,000 in proposed law suits just for disrupting other business activities.

of course every major operation has to have insurance but what kind of sense does it make to accrue all these costs (not to mention the environmental damage) because somebody lobbied to get rid off safety devices?
once again, corporations advantage untill absolutely forced to do the right thing.

 

[yojack1]

Correct me if im wrong but oil squirts out of the earths crust all the time under the ocean and hasnt killed us yet but this will lead to a few pics of oil soaked pelicans so that the tree huggers can cry wah wah save the earth and offshore drilling (for the us only) ceases and our gas prices go through the roof again...right?

It's brilliance like this that must be running things.
I think your wrong. How can you compare the natural release vs thousands of barrels from one spot. There are estimates now of 5-times the volume first thought, with no end in sight.
Your out of touch with reality if you think that there is only going to be just a few oiled up pelicans. The entire fishing industry has come to a grinding halt, not to mention future tourists and businesses that depend on them are now at risk.
The crying tree hugger statement shows how, (even with this possible worst case oil disaster ever), some people just have to make their political views apparent, no matter how absurd they may sound. Who cares!









When making a point, try to make sense, it makes it so much easier to digest.
Jack

 

[steveny]

The price of Shrimp is going up!

I feel sad for the people who lost family members from this accident.

There should be a redundant back up for any piece that can fail and cause such massive damage to the environment.

 

[yojack1]

One-fifth of all sea food eaten in the U.S. comes right out of the Gulf according to CBS News. Many people and there children may still eat poisonous benzene contaminated seafood without even knowing it. When an animal ingests it, there done.
I'll feel sorry for alot of living things. Again!

Jack

 

[yojack1]

The price of Shrimp is going up!

I feel sad for the people who lost family members from this accident.

There should be a redundant back up for any piece that can fail and cause such massive damage to the environment.

BP supposedly had three fail safe backup systems, all of which have failed. Unless those underwater robots can turn those valves off it could take 1 to 3 months to try to funnel it up into tanks or drill another well next to it and plug it with concrete. Something thats never been done at that depth!
Jack

 

[Ko-nsx]

I decided to post and not finger point and arm chair coach.

I work for transocean, aboard a drillship called the Discoverer Enterprise. I crew changed with the people aboard the Deepwater Horizon at the BP heliport in Houma. It was a tragedy that 11 men lost their lives in that horrific accident April 20th. May their soles rest in peace. Having a blow-out is the worst thing that can happen out here and we all know this. I can not begin to explain all the testing and precautions taken to prevent things of this nature.
Im aboard the Enterprise now and there is truely and all out effort to console the families of the men that died, also control and clean up the accidental spill that effects many people aboard this very vessel. We will be on location very soon to safely try to control is well and help contain and clean up the spill, unfortunately the weather is not in our favor, it has slowed us not stopped us. Mother nature has basically changed the plans of over 600 peoples plans and efforts onshore and offshore.

Nobody is sitting around with their thumbs up the asses out here. Im personally not happy to be moving over the accident site(yes right over the well, in the spill) to try and contain the well, but thats a real scenario in offshore drilling. I am confident in the efforts and intentions of BP and the drilling industry to get this under control, i've seen the efforts first hand. I've been to no less that 10 or so meetings discussing the plans and efforts in this accident.
[U]I see that Jack(YoJAck) doesn't want the environment and fishing industry harmed, but guess what, NEITHER DO THE 600+ PEOPLE OUT HERE WORKING AROUND THE CLOCK!!!!![/U] But most important we don't want the same thing that happened on the HORIZON, to happen to all of the 40 or so vessels in the area and the 500 or so people actually OUT HERE IN THE MIDDLE OF IT!!!!!
Instead of posting about what you don't know, dogging out BISCUIT and posting only the info you get from the news (CBS) and other media, be a part of the solution and come lend a hand.:smile: I haven't seen any there asses out here! Also the well is not GUSHING like a volcano. I've seen it

Hopefully i can get off here incident free and make the next nsxcraze. :biggrin:

 

[Ko-nsx]

BP supposedly had three fail safe backup systems, all of which have failed. Unless those underwater robots can turn those valves off it could take 1 to 3 months to try to funnel it up into tanks or drill another well next to it and plug it with concrete. Something thats never been done at that depth!
Jack

BP is the Oil company. Transocean is the DRILLING contractor that leased the Horizon to BP. All the systems did not fail and NOBODY KNOWS EXACTLY WHAT HAPPENED IN SEQUENCE. Most of the info we could have gotten is with the 11 members of the drill crew aboard the Deepwater Horizon, that is now........ you know where. The well is not gushing, but seeping. The BOP was partially closed, not entirely closed. There are a number of ROVS in water giving assessments.

 

[Ko-nsx]

The price of Shrimp is going up!

I feel sad for the people who lost family members from this accident.

There should be a redundant back up for any piece that can fail and cause such massive damage to the environment.

You would not believe the redundancy out here. But its hard to be redundant against mother nature and uncontrollable force such as a blow-out with gas in the air. Mud(synthetic) weight and the BOP are the only safeguards FEASIBLE against a blow-out.

 

[sahtt]

I decided to post and not finger point and arm chair coach.

I work for transocean, aboard a drillship called the Discoverer Enterprise. I crew changed with the people aboard the Deepwater Horizon at the BP heliport in Houma. It was a tragedy that 11 men lost their lives in that horrific accident April 20th. May their soles rest in peace. Having a blow-out is the worst thing that can happen out here and we all know this. I can not begin to explain all the testing and precautions taken to prevent things of this nature.
Im aboard the Enterprise now and there is truely and all out effort to console the families of the men that died, also control and clean up the accidental spill that effects many people aboard this very vessel. We will be on location very soon to safely try to control is well and help contain and clean up the spill, unfortunately the weather is not in our favor, it has slowed us not stopped us. Mother nature has basically changed the plans of over 600 peoples plans and efforts onshore and offshore.

Nobody is sitting around with their thumbs up the asses out here. Im personally not happy to be moving over the accident site(yes right over the well, in the spill) to try and contain the well, but thats a real scenario in offshore drilling. I am confident in the efforts and intentions of BP and the drilling industry to get this under control, i've seen the efforts first hand. I've been to no less that 10 or so meetings discussing the plans and efforts in this accident.
[U]I see that Jack(YoJAck) doesn't want the environment and fishing industry harmed, but guess what, NEITHER DO THE 600+ PEOPLE OUT HERE WORKING AROUND THE CLOCK!!!!![/U] But most important we don't want the same thing that happened on the HORIZON, to happen to all of the 40 or so vessels in the area and the 500 or so people actually OUT HERE IN THE MIDDLE OF IT!!!!!
Instead of posting about what you don't know, dogging out BISCUIT and posting only the info you get from the news (CBS) and other media, be a part of the solution and come lend a hand.:smile: I haven't seen any there asses out here! Also the well is not GUSHING like a volcano. I've seen it

Hopefully i can get off here incident free and make the next nsxcraze. :biggrin:

I'm glad you were able to post and I want to personally thank you for what you are doing out there. It's easy to sit around in comfort and talk about stuff like this while there are hundreds if not thousands of individuals making huge sacrifices to get the situation remedied. Everything I've seen out of BP suggests they are doing everything in their power to get this under control. Let us not forget that these firms are made up of real people with real families making real sacrifices. Working on oil rigs and managing them is not a cake walk or simply a printing press for money. I considered working off shore and even with the tiny insight I have into what it takes out there I have a lot of respect for you guys. These people and these companies are what enable us to have the energy to drive our cars and heat our homes.

BP management appears to be completely devastated by this emotionally, particularly the relatively new CEO. This "villainization" of corporate America is getting out of hand IMO. If you can find something for productive for me to do Ko and can get me a helicopter ride, I'd help.

 

[Ko-nsx]

^
Thanks for the kinds words. I am not a BP or Transocean fanboy. We are out here 21 days and work 12 hours shifts, normally. But 16 hour days seem to be the norm now. We are testing and re-testing EVERYTHING related to power generation and subsea well control. Most of the info is gathered through high tech equipment and it can very hard to make decisions off that alone. If we have an equipment failure, we can't hop in the truck and go to Grainger and get a replacement. Crew boats have been running non-stop out here with supplies and equipment. People are having to make hard decisions, with out actually being down there to put your hands on the stuff. Yes the ROV's help tremedously, but its still difficult to give answers to ALL the scenarios addressed AND be accountable. The VP of transocean is actually making house calls to the victims families. Even with all the meetings and changes(like this weather we are having out here), the BP Co. reps have been very good about information and understanding families concerns. I believe on the HORZION one of our rig managers suffered a broken leg and had burns over 25% of his body. We are family out here too. Its a lot of teamwork out here and DEEP concern about preventing any more death to others and the environment.

 

[yojack1]

I decided to post and not finger point and arm chair coach.

I work for transocean, aboard a drillship called the Discoverer Enterprise. I crew changed with the people aboard the Deepwater Horizon at the BP heliport in Houma. It was a tragedy that 11 men lost their lives in that horrific accident April 20th. May their soles rest in peace. Having a blow-out is the worst thing that can happen out here and we all know this. I can not begin to explain all the testing and precautions taken to prevent things of this nature.
Im aboard the Enterprise now and there is truely and all out effort to console the families of the men that died, also control and clean up the accidental spill that effects many people aboard this very vessel. We will be on location very soon to safely try to control is well and help contain and clean up the spill, unfortunately the weather is not in our favor, it has slowed us not stopped us. Mother nature has basically changed the plans of over 600 peoples plans and efforts onshore and offshore.

Nobody is sitting around with their thumbs up the asses out here. Im personally not happy to be moving over the accident site(yes right over the well, in the spill) to try and contain the well, but thats a real scenario in offshore drilling. I am confident in the efforts and intentions of BP and the drilling industry to get this under control, i've seen the efforts first hand. I've been to no less that 10 or so meetings discussing the plans and efforts in this accident.
[U]I see that Jack(YoJAck) doesn't want the environment and fishing industry harmed, but guess what, NEITHER DO THE 600+ PEOPLE OUT HERE WORKING AROUND THE CLOCK!!!!![/U] But most important we don't want the same thing that happened on the HORIZON, to happen to all of the 40 or so vessels in the area and the 500 or so people actually OUT HERE IN THE MIDDLE OF IT!!!!!
Instead of posting about what you don't know, dogging out BISCUIT and posting only the info you get from the news (CBS) and other media, be a part of the solution and come lend a hand.:smile: I haven't seen any there asses out here! Also the well is not GUSHING like a volcano. I've seen it

Hopefully i can get off here incident free and make the next nsxcraze. :biggrin:

I am sorry and have deleted my rant.

I do thank you though for comming on and giving us some insight from your close perspective. Please keep posting, I am very interested.


Jack

 

[NsXMas]

Wow Jack, that was very harsh and unnecessary.

Accidents happen, despite all the money / people you throw at it.

We lost 2 space shuttles despite the billions of dollars we spend on the space program, with some of the brightest people in the world working to exacting standards. Shows that accidents will happen, because man is not perfect, and there will be mistakes / errors no matter what.

Life is not perfect. This is a tragedy, and a disaster.

Hopefully the good that will come of this will prevent or greatly reduce any future incidents.

 

[sahtt]

Wow Jack, that was very harsh and unnecessary.

Accidents happen, despite all the money / people you throw at it.

We lost 2 space shuttles despite the billions of dollars we spend on the space program, with some of the brightest people in the world working to exacting standards. Shows that accidents will happen, because man is not perfect, and there will be mistakes / errors no matter what.

Life is not perfect. This is a tragedy, and a disaster.

Hopefully the good that will come of this will prevent or greatly reduce any future incidents.

I'll second all of that.. do your best to try to stay focused on the task at hand Ko-nsx.