There are a lot of estimates being tossed about and it is hard to get a grip on the implications. One went like this:
“one Exxon Valdez every two and a half to five days. And we’re on day 50.”
Very disturbing. There is a precedent for this sort of thing in the Gulf of Mexico but we seem to be moving beyond it.
i think we’re a fair way beyond it. it is a ‘big deal’ there. to start with, 11 lives lost, then very large amounts of oil, most of which will not have yet reached the surface but will be forming very large underwater plumes.. the Gulf of Mexico is turning into a lava lamp. I imagine that much of the oil will end up weathered into clumps of the consistency of chewing gum (‘tar balls’) that will lie on the sea floor till they are biodegraded (no disrespect intended towards the hard working honest bacteria that will do that job). I’m not sure if these events contribute to the so called dead zones so common now in other areas such as the Baltic.
I imagine this event will shake up deep sea exploration for oil quite a bit. I don’t know if it will alter estimates of available oil reserves or not. Last week a senior executive (?BHP) said there were 41 years of useable oil reserves left.
A while back CSIRO were working with the oil industry to create platform-free deepwater oil wells using processing techniques that worked down the well and on the seabed. I’m sure they’ll be onto this US disaster like a seagull onto a chip. It could accelerate their work (or cause it big headaches).
.cheers Tim,
Russ