Done by: Ong Wei Sern

Sim Yew Chong Tan Yan Wei Ang Zheng Yong

BP Oil Spill

The Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill, also

known as “BP Oil Spill” : The Gulf Of Mexico in 2010

** BP- British multinational oil and gas company HQ in London

Largest accidental marine oil spill >30% larger in volume than the “Ixtoc I” oil spill

Total discharge: 210 million US gallons

Introduction

20 April 2010: High-pressure methane gas from

the well expanded into the drilling riser and rose into the drilling rig

Drilling rig- Ignited and explode, engulfing the platform, causing the historic oil spill

Failed efforts to contain flow 19 September 2010: Well capped and declared sealed  

Introduction

Flawed well design Poor management decisions Inadequate preparation Ignorant towards critical indicators Insufficient training Violation of federal regulations

Causes

Cement failure- Base of well

containing oil and gas.Allowing natural gas under huge pressure to shoot onto drilling platform EXPLOSION

Flawed Design: Cement used to seal the bottom of well Failed to contain hydrocarbons within the reservoir as they were designed to do Allowing gas and liquids to flow up the production casing.

Causes

Poor management decisions:

Rush to completion of the well

Huge financial pressure to cut costs and rush the job The project: $50 million over budget Behind schedule

Causes

Inadequate Preparation:

BP wellhead was fitted with a blowout preventer (BOP) improperly for use during emergency

Failed to engage. Hydrocarbons shot up the well at an uncontrollable rate and ignited, causing a series of explosions on the rig

Causes

Ignorant towards Critical Indicators: Failure to recognise initial ominous signs

etc. a pipe called a riser- losing fluid BP ignored recommendations by Halliburton for

more centralizers (Claimed that the lack of centralizers probably did not affect the cement)

Flow of gas into the engine rooms through ventilation system created potential for ignition Should have redirected the flow of flammable gas

Causes

Insufficient Training: Workers interpret pressure test wrongly Caused reports sent to be inaccurate

Violation of Federal Regulations: Required to:

(a) Operate in safe manner(b) Take Measures to contain oil and gas(c) Conduct Reliable tests of well pressures(d) Notify of changes in well drilling plans

Causes

"The evidence show that BP put

profits before people, profits before safety and profits before the environment," -Justice Department attorney Mike Underhill

Causes

Commercial and recreational fishing was affected

from Mississippi to Florida Tourism: Important to Gulf Coast states

Affected by cancelled vacations Jobs in the fishing, tourism and even oil industry

are in jeopardy Shrimp, crab and oyster farmers and harvesters

now only have contaminated seas and estuaries left

2010-2013 Costs: Gulf Coast States USD23 billion

Impacts-Economical

Symptoms of nausea, dehydration, dizziness,

headaches, chest pains and vomiting The spill and related clean up released

chemicals into the environment Full health impact on the reason may not be

known for many years. BP describes itself as a “changed company”

with a shattered reputation BP lost its CEO, costed billions of dollars

Impacts-Social and Political

Oil washed up on shores, into wildlife refuges,

beaches, and seafood grounds

16,000 total miles of coastline have been affected, including the coasts of Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, and Florida

Impacts-Environmental 1

Impacts-Environmental 1

Many of the areas have unacceptable levels of contamination

Over 8,000 animals (birds, turtles, mammals) were reported dead just 6 months after the spill, including many that are already on the endangered species list

Signs of an oil-and-dispersant mix

were found under the shells of tiny blue crab larvae

Some types of spiders and otherinsects became far less numerous

Migratory birds carried chemicals from the spill as far as Minnesota (From the Gulf of Mexico)

Chronic exposure to toxic materials caused all sorts of problems with immune deficiencies and in somecases even deformities

Impacts-Environmental 2

Map of Area Affected

Searching for risks of oil spills

+Assess situation Develop appropriate oil spill response and crisis management plans

Developed oil spill modelling systems and capabilities

Preventive measures

Enhancing the environmental and

socio-economic data required in the models: Help inform response planning

Conducting staff training in related regions

Preventive measures

Using dispersants- Breaks down oil

into smaller structures Once oil in the sea is broken down to

smaller droplets Microbes will consume these smaller droplets of oil

Danger: Absorbed by marine life, into food chain.

Clean-up measures

Containment and skimming:

Buoyant booms floating and web below surface

Keep oil from spreading out/ contaminating further

Easier to skim oil from surface Boats suck/scoop oil, into containment tanks

Clean-up measures

Searching for risks of oil spills

+Assess situation Develop appropriate oil spill response and crisis management plans

Developed oil spill modelling systems and capabilities

Preventive measures

Using magnets- oil will be pumped

onto a boat treatment facility

Magnetic nanoparticles will be exposed to the oil which will then stick to the oil

Filtration- With help of magnets to separate oil and water

Clean-up measures

Biological Agents: (Reached shore)

Fertilisers spread over shoreline (etc. Phosphorus/Nitrogen)

Foster microorganism growth

Break down oil into natural components

Clean-up measures

Sorbents:

Large sponges absorb oil from water In-situ Burning:

Setting oil on fire More effective But produces large amount of toxic gas

X Near coastal settlement area

Clean-up measures

http

://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lY-PikuXTYY

Video: The BP Oil Spill

http://

www.bp.com/sectiongenericarticle800.do?categoryId=9048964&contentId=7083298

http://www.bp.com/sectiongenericarticle800.do?categoryId=9048922&contentId=7082610

http://edition.cnn.com/2012/09/21/tech/oil-spill-magnets http://

www.nola.com/news/gulf-oil-spill/index.ssf/2013/04/as_third_anniversary_of_bp_oil.html

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/10309001 http://

www.bloomberg.com/news/2013-02-26/bp-profit-push-root-cause-of-gulf-spill-witness-says.html

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/01/12/science/earth/12spill.html

Bibliography

http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2011/apr/20/deepwater-ho

rizon-key-questions-answered http://www.bp.com/genericarticle.do?categoryId=2012968&conten

tId=7064893 http://www.nytimes.com/2011/09/15/science/earth/15spill.html?_r

=0 http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-21548117 http://www.nydailynews.com/news/world/bp-oil-spill-trial-begins-art

icle-1.1272679 http://www.dosomething.org/tipsandtools/11-facts-about-bp-oil-spil

l http://www.wwltv.com/news/local/Three-years-after-BP-oil-spill-new

-report-rates-health-of-Gulf-of-Mexico-ecosystem-202213361.html http://

articles.latimes.com/2013/feb/25/nation/la-na-bp-trial-20130226

Bibliography

Thank You!!

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