Interior Secretary Ken Salazar announced Wednesday afternoon that the Obama administration will not allow offshore oil drilling in the eastern Gulf of Mexico or off the Atlantic and Pacific coasts as part of the next five-year drilling plan, reversing two key policy changes President Obama announced in late March. Drilling will continue in other parts of the Gulf of Mexico under new safeguards. Previously.
posted by gerryblog on Dec 1, 2010 - 28 comments

Although some claim most of the oil is gone, and new tests for dispersants say seafood and people are safe, the reality is of course much different. However, an investigation by an Al Jazeera online correspondent finds toxic illnesses linked to BP oil dispersants along the Gulf coast. Trisha Springstead is a registered nurse of 36 years who lives and works in Brooksville, Florida. "What I'm seeing are toxified people who have been chemically poisoned," she said, "They have sore throats, respiratory problems, neurological problems, lesions, sores, and ulcers. These people have been poisoned and they are dying. Drugs aren’t going to help these people. They need to be detoxed."
posted by agregoli on Oct 30, 2010 - 31 comments

The Gulf Between Us. Stories of terror and beauty from the world's largest accidental offshore oil disaster. Six months on, Terry Tempest Williams gives us a trenchant report on the BP spill, for Orion magazine.
posted by HumanComplex on Oct 19, 2010 - 4 comments

Low levels of oxygen lead to a river of dead fish stretching to the horizon, from shore to shore near Plaquemines, Louisiana
posted by Blazecock Pileon on Sep 16, 2010 - 37 comments

Unf**k the Gulf has lots of swearing, lots, they're mad as f**k and are not going to take it anymore. Spend 13 on a Tee and 5 go to unf**king the gulf.
posted by dabitch on Jul 23, 2010 - 36 comments

The thrills of drilling, the hazards and rewards as you bring in your own . . . Offshore Oil Strike. "An exciting board game for all the family." Lovingly brought to you by BP. //BLDGBLOG
posted by (Arsenio) Hall and (Warren) Oates on Jul 14, 2010 - 15 comments

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) have released their latest models/scenarios ("based on several simplifying assumptions") of the BP spill's impact on coastlines [more inside]
posted by griphus on Jul 2, 2010 - 24 comments

'BP And The Axis of Evil': Adam Curtis provides some historic information on the Anglo-Perisan Oil Company, later the Anglo-Iranian Oil Company, later BP. [more inside]
posted by robself on Jun 23, 2010 - 15 comments

The pipe spewing oil into the gulf has been cut as part of the next plan to cap the leak. BP had planned to use a diamond edged saw, but it got stuck while cutting through the pipe, and they had to use shears instead. However, the shears "resulted in a jagged cut, meaning that the containment cap will fit less snugly." [more inside]
posted by insectosaurus on Jun 3, 2010 - 255 comments

On May 10th, 2010 ExxonMobile had an oil spill in Nigeria Delta. It is somewhere around the 16th worst oil spill in [wikipedia reported] world history, at 95,000 tonnes (696,350 barrels or 214,475,800 gallons). Nigeria's agony dwarfs the Gulf oil spill. The US and Europe ignore it. Oil spills are a regular occurrence in Nigeria, about 300 a year, it is estimated over the past 50 years about 1.5 million tons have been dumped in the Delta, equivalent to the Gulf War oil spill (the largest spill on record) or 50+ Exxon Valdez. [more inside]
posted by stbalbach on May 30, 2010 - 50 comments

Top kill has failed, and oil is still pouring into the gulf

Doug Suttles, COO of BP: "This scares everybody - the fact that we can't make this well stop flowing" [more inside]
posted by crayz on May 30, 2010 - 387 comments

'Top Kill' seems to have worked, Apparently stopping the flow of oil -- now officially estimated by the government to have been about 12,000-19,000 barrels/day, with 75% most of the volume being gas ABC News Dives below the surface to get a look at plumes of 'dispersed' oil: (spoiler alert: not pretty). And a BP exec takes the 5th, refusing to testify before a federal panel.
posted by delmoi on May 27, 2010 - 235 comments

Oil spill booming 101. Good stuff starts around 1:55. NSFW for very, very, very naughty language.
posted by lazaruslong on May 23, 2010 - 157 comments

"High pressures? You had better believe it. And in this case, Mother Nature won." Absolutely fascinating analysis of both the hazards of deepwater drilling and what happened to the Transocean Horizon rig that sank in the Gulf of Mexico. A first hand interview from one of the survivors, and discussions about drilling, safety and the equipment involved. [more inside]
posted by tgrundke on May 8, 2010 - 49 comments

The fire is out on the offshore oil rig Deepwater Horizon. But since the rig sank last Thursday, Coast Guard officials believe about 13,000 gallons (7,400 bbl) of crude oil per day is coming out of the exploratory hole drilled by the rig, about 41 miles offshore from Plaquemines Parish, LA. "An early suggestion that damage would be minimal because the fire was consuming most of the fuel 'does have the potential to change,' BP official David Rainey told the New York Times." [more inside]
posted by toodleydoodley on Apr 26, 2010 - 99 comments

Beyond petroleum? British Petroleum’s recent $200-million makeover into sunny-logoed bp seems to respond to mounting concerns over pollution, global warming, and wars for oil. By advocating alternatives to the very product that has made it the world’s seventh-largest company, it also seems like economic suicide. In accordance with their environmental goals, they've helped release bald eagles in Manhattan and bring solar power to rural Tibet, but many remain unconvinced. Each bp ad ended with the same tagline: “It’s a start.” Is it?
posted by gottabefunky on Dec 19, 2002 - 31 comments