Justin Ahrens
Sarah Ahrens
Kara Ayaram
Tim Damitz
Bob Davidson
Susan Herda
Kerri Liu
Katrina Strich
Intern
Guest Blogger
Don’t get us wrong. This is a tragedy. Oil has now washed ashore in Louisiana, Alabama, and Mississippi, and residents in Florida have complained of the smell from the burns that took place. An estimated 20+ million gallons of crude have leaked thus far, and it’s showing no signs of stopping any time soon. Every effort to stop the leak so far has failed, including a 4-story dome/cap and the Top Kill procedure (for a recap of April’s events, check out our previous post). Two relief wells are being drilled, which are supposed to be the magic bullet. However, until they are done in a few months, there are few options left to stop the leak. (The latest effort is known as the “Lower Marine Riser Cap,” and it involves cutting and removing part of the well in order to install a cap on it. We’re all crossing our fingers that it will work, but not necessarily holding our breath as it’s just been delayed by a stuck blade.)
But we’ve all heard the bad news, and everyone wants the oil to stop leaking. We could play the blame game all day long. Actually, that’s something that we’d like to toss around. Is BP really responsible for what happened? Here’s an analogy to think about, one from another recent debate:
Say you were driving down the road in your car, and suddenly you realize that the car in front of you has come to a quick stop and you need to as well. However, when you hit the brakes, they fail to work, and you slam into the the car in front of you. Who’s to blame? The driver? Or the person who made the brakes? Judging from the news lately, most people are blaming the latter.
So, let’s say that the car is the well and BP is the driver. BP owned the well, but another company owned the rig (Transocean Ltd), which was built by Hyundai Heavy Industries, and another company manufactured the equipment for the blowout preventer (Cameron International). So BP was “driving” this well when the rig exploded, which is what seems to have caused the leak to start. So are they really to blame for the malfunction? For the explosion that started it all? It seems like everyone’s hands are dirty in this mess. However, BP has claimed responsibility from the beginning and has put forth a giant effort to clean up. They’ve made it easy to file a claim, and have already paid 15,000 claims. Though it hasn’t been perfect, if you’re looking for a more positive spin on their response, check out this article.
Either way, what matters right now is stopping the leak and banding together to make things better for the victims.
Here’s a small list we gathered of things you can do to help:
WHAT HELPS:
+ Visiting the Gulf. Only a few resort beaches are actually tainted. But the local economy is suffering tremendously because no one wants to go near the Gulf. The beaches and waters are safe for the most part, but if you still feel creeped out by jumping in the waters, hang out on the beach or dive in the pool. While BP is writing checks to those who’ve lost revenue because of the spill, the local economy in the Gulf was already suffering from the wake of bad hurricanes over the past several years. Take a trip, perhaps volunteer, but most importantly, spend locally in the Gulf states to help everyone out.
+ Donating to organizations like International Bird Rescue if you’re a wildlife lover. For a more complete list of organizations that are involved, check out this link.
+ Writing your representative in Washington to take more action.
WHAT DOESN’T HELP:
+ Boycotting BP Gas stations. BP actually doesn’t own the stations; they are privately owned and operated. Also, large oil companies trade their products worldwide, so you may not even get BP oil when you buy gasoline at a BP station. You are only hurting the local economy when you boycott the gas station.
Also, gasoline is only half the battle when it comes to oil. Only 19.4 gallons in a 42-gallon barrel of oil goes to creating gasoline. You are surrounded by the other products it creates: asphalt, shampoo, perfume, shoes, candles, toothpaste, golf balls, almost every type of plastic, and more. For more products, check out this link. Surprising, isn’t it? We are much more oil-dependent than we are aware.
A Few Random Resources:
Live Video of the spill and relief efforts
BP Twitter Spoof (just for comic relief)
So, what do you think? Is BP to blame? What other actions can we as citizens take to help and to prevent this from happening again?
Terrible as it is, I fully agree. Its so rare nowdays that company’s actually claim responsibilities for mistakes made – just ask the 2000+ people that had flickring 27″ iMac displays – BP should be given a lot of credit for their integrity following the incident.
I for one am proud of BP’s response to this matter. When most of our society is in the “its not my fault” camp for all of their actions and consequences, BP has actually took the reigns and taken responsiblity for the devestation even though the cause of the disaster is not really on their shoulders. I applaud their responsibility, integrity and ethics in this matter and wish others would take note and apply these lessons to areas of their own lives.
Our Government and President have focused more on blame than solutions. Regardless of how or why an accident happened, is it not the government’s responsibility to protect the country? Perhaps they work on a solution then work out the blame game after the situation is stable.
I think what makes people mad, myself included, has been the numerous ways in which BP has sought to protect their image, cover up the effects, purchase key google phrases to add their influence to oil-related search results, etc. This would be different if BP were a reputable company not seeking to protect their brand or profits in the midst of such disaster. As it is, they are working towards a solution, but how much of their effort and cash is being spent to quiet dissenters, block the media, etc?