The oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico is now 80 miles across and the size of Jamaica, and according to new reports is five times worse than first thought, leaking around 5000 barrels into the sea, as opposed to the 1000 barrels first estimated.The new estimates were released after the discovery of another leak from the pipeline crippled after fire ravaged the Deepwater Horizon rig, and early attempts by robotic submarines to seal the well have failed. Despite the new leak, BP officials have claimed the original estimate of 1000 barrels a day is closer to the truth. However US Coast Guard Rear Admiral Mary Landry disagreed with the statement at a news conference and said she was relying on the new estimate of 5000 barrels from the National Oceanic Atmospheric Administration.
Click the image above for a bigger version of the chart, click the link above for more info and head over to TheOilDrum.com for an AMAZING (and HUGE) piece on what this spill means.
I really hope defenders of oil drilling are rethinking their position after all of this. Sure, it's a freak mishap, but the damage and the cost is extreme. Like I wrote the other day, it's not like you see this kind of disaster when solar panels, uh, leak, and it's not just about the wildlife and the ecosystem, either--this spill damages the local economies of the gulf AND it costs a LOT to clean up--don't tell me BP is NOT going to pass the cost onto the consumer...
Huh, BP is responsible for all this? So much for "Beyond Petroleum."
Though I do think it's time for them to take a cue from their own slogan!
Something just occurred to me while proofreading this post--won't this disaster hike up the price of oil? So, this is good news for the oil companies, isn't it?
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