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Deepwater Horizon Update August 24, 2010

Published Jan 24, 2011 11:17 AM by The Maritime Executive

Scientist Question Government Oil Spill Budget
On August 2, NOAA released the "oil spill budget," which estimated that a large part of the oil released into the Gulf of Mexico was gone and no longer a threat. The report claimed that just 26% of the oil remained, the rest had been burned, skimmed, cleaned off the beaches and the vast majority had degraded in some way. Scientist at the University of Georgia (UGA) and the University of South Florida (USF) have calculated different numbers. UGA Scientist were the first to say that the broken BP well was causing underwater plumes, back in May. They were met with criticism until NOAA later acknowledged they were right.

  • UGA may again be right and on August 16, along with the Georgia Sea Grant, the university released a report concluding that up to 79 percent of the oil released into the Gulf of Mexico had not been recovered and remained a threat to the ecosystem.

    Experts from UGA and other institutions concluded that about 11% had weathered and degraded, estimating that 79% of the oil remained in the water in some form, posing a threat to the ecosystem.
     
  • Scientist from Sea Grant and UGA also said in their report that the circular current known as the Franklin Eddy is preventing the Loop Current from bringing oil-contaminated water from the Gulf to the Atlantic, keeping the east coast of Florida clear of oil.
     
  • USF also disagrees with the NOAA report, saying that there is oil on the seafloor that is not being accounted for. USF researchers reported on August 17, that they found micro droplets of oil scattered across the ocean floor and they say that the dispersants are likely to blame. They also found oil in the DeSoto Canyon, which funnels water and nutrients into the waters along the Florida Gulf Coast.


Admiral Allen Issues Directive to BP Authorizing the BOP Fishing Procedure
WASHINGTON - National Incident Commander Admiral Thad Allen late last night issued a directive to BP authorizing the BOP fishing procedure – a preparation procedure for the removal and replacement of the current BOP on the Deepwater Horizon/Macondo 252 well -provided that certain specific steps are taken to preserve forensic evidence, including the development of a timeline and plan to remove and replace the current BOP stack and full cooperation with the Joint Investigation Team and the Department of Justice. The letter directs BP to submit for review and approval a procedure for the BOP salvage operation, and it sets out a series of conditions related to execution of that procedure designed to ensure that the BOP salvage is performed in a way that doesn’t compromise the investigation. The letter also directs BP to ensure live ROV feeds are in place prior to the removal and recovery process to document those activities. The directive can be viewed here.

Retired District Judge and Coast Guard Capt. Join the Deepwater Investigation Team
U.S. District Judge (Ret.) Wayne R. Andersen and U.S. Coast Guard Capt. Mark R. Higgins will be joining the Deepwater Horizon Joint Investigation Team. The addition of Judge Andersen and Capt. Higgins will increase the depth and diversity of the team, drawing on their vast expertise in managing and facilitating complex proceedings.

The public hearings in this matter began on May 11, 2010, and have continued during the weeks of May 26 and July 19. The next hearings are scheduled to take place beginning on August 23, 2010, in Houston, Texas.

Andersen is a retired U.S. District Judge for the Northern District of Illinois, where he served from 1991- July 2010. He is currently a mediator and arbitrator for JAMS, a national alternative dispute resolution provider. He previously served as Judge of the Circuit Court of Cook County and Deputy Secretary of State of Illinois. He received his law degree from the University of Illinois College of Law in 1970 and an undergraduate degree in government, cum laude, from Harvard University in 1967. He is donating his time and will not receive compensation for his service on the team.

Higgins is currently serving as the Staff Judge Advocate for the U.S. Coast Guard Atlantic Area. He serves as regional counsel for all legal issues within the Atlantic Area, including operations and international maritime issues involving five Coast Guard Districts and Coast Guard operations in Europe, Africa, and the Middle East. He also serves as a military judge. He received his law degree, cum laude, from the University of Miami in 1989 and an undergraduate degree in civil engineering, with honors, from the U.S. Coast Guard Academy in 1983.

The Ongoing Administration-Wide Response to the Deepwater BP Oil Spill
UPDATED August 22, 2010 7 PM

FWS Personnel Continue Wildlife Rescue and Recovery Missions Across the Region
From the Houma, La., Incident Command Post, 245 field personnel, 71 vessels, three helicopters and one fixed-wing aircraft participated in reconnaissance and wildlife rescue and recovery missions. From the Mobile, Ala., Incident Command Post, 20 wildlife recovery teams, 19 vessels and one helicopter participated in reconnaissance and wildlife rescue and recovery missions. To report oiled wildlife, call (866) 557-1401.

By the Numbers to Date:

  • The administration has authorized the deployment of 17,500 National Guard troops from Gulf Coast states to respond to this crisis; currently, 1,227 are active.
     
  • More than 30,294 personnel are currently responding to protect the shoreline and wildlife and cleanup vital coastlines.
     
  • More than 4,375 vessels are currently responding on site, including skimmers, tugs, barges, and recovery vessels to assist in containment and cleanup efforts—in addition to dozens of aircraft, remotely operated vehicles, and multiple mobile offshore drilling units.
     
  • Approximately 2.11 million feet of containment boom** and 8.92 million feet of sorbent boom have been deployed to contain the spill—and approximately 1.8 million feet of containment boom and 3.32 million feet of sorbent boom are available.
     
  • More than 34.7 million gallons of an oil-water mix have been recovered.
     
  • Approximately 1.84 million gallons of total dispersant have been applied—1.07 million on the surface and 771,000 sub-sea. Approximately 577,000 gallons are available.
     
  • 411 controlled burns have been conducted, efficiently removing a total of more than 11.14 million gallons of oil from the open water in an effort to protect shoreline and wildlife. Because calculations on the volume of oil burned can take more than 48 hours, the reported total volume may not reflect the most recent controlled burns.
     
  • 17 staging areas are in place to protect sensitive shorelines.
     
  • Approximately 675 miles of Gulf Coast shoreline is currently oiled—approximately 353 miles in Louisiana, 116 miles in Mississippi, 73 miles in Alabama, and 134 miles in Florida. These numbers reflect a daily snapshot of shoreline currently experiencing impacts from oil so that planning and field operations can more quickly respond to new impacts; they do not include cumulative impacts to date, or shoreline that has already been cleared.
     
  • Approximately 52,395 square miles of Gulf of Mexico federal waters remain closed to fishing in order to balance economic and public health concerns. Approximately 78 percent remains open. Details can be found at http://sero.nmfs.noaa.gov/.
     
  • To date, the administration has leveraged assets and skills from numerous foreign countries and international organizations as part of this historic, all-hands-on-deck response, including Argentina, Belgium, Canada, China, Estonia, France, Germany, Greece, Ireland, Japan, Kenya, Mexico, Netherlands, Norway, Qatar, Russia, Spain, Sweden, Taiwan, Tunisia, United Arab Emirates, United Kingdom, the United Nations’ International Maritime Organization, the European Union’s Monitoring and Information Centre, and the European Maritime Safety Agency.

**The decrease in boom numbers is due to the continued recovery of displaced boom. Once recovered, this boom must be decontaminated, repaired, inspected, and certified before being staged or redeployed. New boom is being deployed in some areas.

Photo courtesy of WHOI release, Dan Torres