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Fact Finding: BP Gulf of Mexico Oil Volcano Mega Catastrophe

By James Leigh

27 July, 2010
Countercurrents.org

To understand the BP oil volcano in the Gulf of Mexico , we need to search beyond the popular media. Even if what is reported there is only partly true, this must be the biggest man-made environmental catastrophe ever.

This oil disaster is unprecedented with eruptive pressure up to 22,000 ppsi at the well's bottom, which is a depth of possibly 35,000 feet from the ocean's surface to the foot of the well (Landau, 2010; Moors, 2010 ; The Alex Jones Channel, 2010 ). Also the fractured crust of the earth (Amyn, 2010 ), with oil and gases (including methane) erupting at other sites several miles away (The Alex Jones Channel, 2010 ), may make this an uncontrollable force which is erupting a possible gigantic amount of 120,000 barrels of oil per day (Bloomberg, 2010 ).

There is the additional massive environmental pollution of the BP dispersant called Corexit (and when mixed with oil is up to 11 times more toxic than the oil itself), which is one of the least effective but most toxic. Surely then it is no coincidence that BP has ties with the company that makes it (Quinlan, 2010 ). In spite of this high level of Corexit's toxicity, BP has poured well over a million gallons of this dispersant into the gulf, further exacerbating the worst man-made environmental catastrophe ever (O'Dowd, 2010 ).

And the possibility of the growing subterranean methane bubble igniting to cause a massive explosion and tsunami, resulting in destruction, death and pollution, portends the increasingly dramatic level of this already major event (Amyn, 2010 ). Plus the petrochemical gaseous toxins (a lot of methane too) already in the air, hundreds of times beyond the suggested maximums, blowing across the Gulf Coast (Blair, 2010 ; Infowars.com, 2010 ), all add up to a mega catastrophe, in which we haven't seen anything yet.

Remember the floating oil scum, even spreading beyond the Gulf into the Atlantic, is only what we yet see, most of the oil is below the surface of the ocean, on the ocean floor or suspended in massive plumes, hundreds of feet thick, and tens of miles wide and long, possibly covering almost half of the Gulf sea floor (Landau, 2010; Brown and Dearen, 2010 ). It is not seen. This will eventually mean more devastation and pollution as the event plays out.

This developing catastrophe and its fallout, with liquid oil and gases gushing from several places, even miles from the original bore, is already beginning to physically sicken Americans. And the media blackout suggests powerful collusion of BP, government and the media. And who knows if BP can stop this erupting oil at all. I suspect they can't, as there may be no well casing left, and the geology of the whole area may also be fractured, making the subterranean environment a geologically fractured and porous zone, allowing the gushing up of the pressurized toxic materials from below. Capping the wellhead will just force the subterranean materials up through the surrounding fractures.

Apparently BP were warned to not develop this very risky project (Bethge et al, 2010 ; Amyn, 2010 ), but ignored the warning. And then it may be gross (even criminally) reckless activities on the platform, ordered from on high in BP, produced this totally devastating and unnecessary disaster (Agencies, 2010 ; CBS News, 2010 ).

We wait to see, but if the oil volcano continues to spew these toxins into the environment, it could be that waterborne pollutants will find their way through the Gulf Stream , into the world oceanic conveyor belt to pollute the oceans around the globe (Salkever, 2010 ).

Air pollution along the Gulf Coast has reached a level that people can now smell the toxins in the air (EPA, 2010 ) and people are beginning to fall sick from these airborne pollutants which are at levels of hundreds of times above the recommended maximums (Russia Today, 2010 ). As much of the gases and liquid pollution, of erupted oil and other materials, and the highly toxic Corexit dispersant find their way into the air, and the world's wind currents, it could be that the atmosphere worldwide will become toxic. Could this lead to unstoppable world-engulfing toxic fallout through the oceans and the atmosphere?

This could strike millions in America and the other continents. People and environments in many other nations could be polluted – vast areas of all the Americas , Europe , Africa and eventually even Asia – the whole world. The land and marine biospheres could eventually be poisoned globally by these interlinking oceanic and atmospheric systems. A few hurricanes would surely hurry up this process and it is now hurricane season in the Gulf of Mexico for 2010 .

This oil catastrophe on the heels of the economic crisis is rapidly and massively impacting America , and potentially the whole world at various levels (Heinberg, 2010 ).

 

References

Agencies, ( 2010 ) Blamed for ‘Risky Shortcuts', BP Says Sorry for oil Spill, The Times of India , 16 Jun, http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/World-US/Blamed-for-risky-shortcuts-BP-says-sorry-for-oil-spill/articleshow/6052694.cms

The Alex Jones Channel, (2010) Lindsey Williams Talks with Alex Jones About Deadly Gases Leaking from BP Spill, 11 June, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SYhugmaAL3A

Amyn, T. (2010) How the BP Disaster Could Kill Millions, rense.com, http://www.rense.com/general91/mill.htm

Bethge, P. (2010) The Risky Hunt for the Last Oil Reserves: Does Deep Sea Drilling Have a Future, Der Spiegel, 13 May, http://www.spiegel.de/international/business/0,1518,694346,00.html

Blair, E. (2010) Gulf Oil Disaster Exposed: EPA Lies About Air Quality – AGAIN, Pyramids of Control, 13 June, http://rulersofusall.wordpress.com/2010/06/13/gulf-oil-disaster-exposed-epa-lies-about-air-quality-again/

Bloomberg, (2010) Simmons Says Nuclear Device Only Option to Stop Oil Flow, June, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-MARDF8F4P4

Brown, M. and Dearen, J. New, Giant Sea Oil Plume Seen in Gulf, The Associated Press, ABC News, 27 May, http://abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory?id=10760224

CBS News ( 2010 ) 60 Minutes, 16 May, http://www.cbsnews.com/video/watch/?id=6490348n

EPA ( 2010 ) EPA Response to BP Spill in the Gulf of Mexico , 14 July, http://www.epa.gov/BPSpill/

Heinberg, R. ( 2010 ) Deepwater Horizon: The Worst Case Scenario, Post Carbon Institute, 20 June, http://www.postcarbon.org/blog-post/109323-deepwater-horizon-the-worst-case-scenario

Innfowars.com, (2010) May Levels of Toxic Gases in Gulf Back Up Claim Made by Lindsey Williams, 12 June, http://www.infowars.com/may-levels-of-toxic-gases-in-gulf-back-up-claim-made-by-lindsey-williams/

Landau, C. (2010) The Truth About the BP (BS) Disaster, Rense Radio, on Patriot Trading Group, Videos 1-4, 22 July, http://www.allamericangold.com/

Moors, K. ( 2010 ) The BP Relief Wells … And the Two Nightmae Scenarios to Fear, Monday Morning, 14 July, http://moneymorning.com/2010/07/14/bp-relief-wells/

O'Dowd, R. ( 2010 ) Corexit Sprayed by BP Tops 1 Million Gallons, Veterans Today, 10 June, http://www.deepwaterhorizonresponse.com/go/doc/2931/589583/

Quinlan, P. (2010) Less Toxic Dispersants Lose Out in BP Oil Spill Cleanup, 13 May, New York Times, http://www.nytimes.com/2010/05/13/business/energy-environment/13greenwire-less-toxic-dispersants-lose-out-in-bp-oil-spil-81183.html

Russia Today, ( 2010 ) Poison Spreads: Gulf Air Turns Toxic After Oil Spill 'Relief Effort', 1 July, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uled9TFmXMY

Salakever, A. ( 2010 ) Intel Computers Say BP Oil Spill Will Spread up the East Coast, Daily Finance, 13 July, http://www.dailyfinance.com/story/intel-supercomputers-say-bp-oil-spill-will-spread-up-the-east-co/19549464/

Windwalker, M. ( 2009 ) The Ocean Conveyor - The "Bloodstream" of the Earth, 30 April, Bukisa, http://www.bukisa.com/articles/81969_the-ocean-conveyor-the-bloodstream-of-the-earth

 

James Leigh , PhD
Asst Professor Cultural Geography
University of Nicosia
www.freewebs.com/jas4