Recent Gulf Oil Spill News
August 5, 2010
Reports indicate that the oil spill leak in the Gulf of Mexico is nearing an end. The static kill is working, as the mud that was forced down a blown-out well is holding down the flow of oil.
The next step would be deciding whether to cement the well. For the past three months, BP has been drilling a relief well, which will be used later this month to execute a “bottom kill.” The “bottom kill” involves mud and cement being injected into the bedrock 2 1/2 miles below the sea floor. Federal officials said they won’t declare complete victory until they get into the well from the other end.
There is a lot of work to do in the Gulf of Mexico. The amount of oil remaining in the water from this oil spill – or washed up on the shore – is still more than four times the size of the 1989 Exxon Valdez spill.
This disaster could end up costing BP $21 Billion in fines. These fines are in additional to the $20 Billion escrow fund the company has set up to pay damage claims.
