Just when they’ve secured one oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico, there’s now another one to deal with. This one was also in Louisiana waters, but closer to the coast than the Deepwater Horizon wreck.
This oil spill took place in Barataria Bay, right behind the lines of defense against the Deepwater Horizon crude oil, amidst the marshes that protect New Orleans from storm surge. There’s not much doubt that this oil will hit the Louisiana Delta’s marshes, as it’s at least a mile in length, and not far at all from the shorelines surrounding it.
The oil spill barge rammed a capped oil well that had been abandoned by the Cedyco oil company. That a spill can come from a capped oil well, long after the well has been sealed, shows an additional risk created by offshore drilling that hasn’t been adequately considered and remedied by Congress.
Considering that this additional oil spill has taken place in the Gulf of Mexico before the Deepwater Horizon oil is even close to being cleaned up, how can we trust that the expansion to new offshore drilling sites will be safe?
