Fishing The Fly Scotland Forum

Paul Rankine

BP Oil Spill
« on: 29/04/2010 at 20:08 »
Hi All,
           America is facing the most catastrophic oil spill in its history with crude pouring from a ruptured well in the Gulf of Mexico set to reach the ecologically fragile Louisiana coast as early as tomorrow, threatening hundreds of species including turtles and dolphins.

As BP faced growing accusations that it has tried to cover up the scale of disaster, after the Deepwater Horizon rig exploded and sank last week, US authorities said that five times more oil was pouring into the Gulf from the seabed than previously believed.

The oil could potentially affect hundreds of miles of previously pristine fishing environment on the coasts of Lousiana, Alabama and Texas . It is already the size of Jamaica and getting bigger daily. Having fished  in the Laguna Madra , a huge salt water marsh of great natural beauty , and incidentally  full of redfish, it beggars belief what might happen to these environments.

Will we ever learn ?

As the Eagles said "Soon as you call Paradise , kiss it goodbye .

Paul.

Matt Henderson

Re: BP Oil Spill
« Reply #1 on: 29/04/2010 at 20:23 »
It is undoubtedly a tragedy. However let's wait and see why it happened before we decide whether or not this is a failing that has happened before or not. Also 11 families are grieving right now.
Not that long ago the north sea suffered a similar tragedy. Let's hope it changes the GOM for good.
Matt

Paul Rankine

Re: BP Oil Spill
« Reply #2 on: 30/04/2010 at 17:09 »
Hi Matt,
           
Quote
whether or not this is a failing that has happened before or not.
Exxon Valdez ? Piper Alpha ? Braer ? The fact is that it HAS happened before. That's my point.
Paul.



Matt Henderson

Re: BP Oil Spill
« Reply #3 on: 30/04/2010 at 17:19 »
Paul

With all due respect braer and exxon valdez were boats, piper alpha was a process plant issue and the deepwater horizon was a drilling rig. Unless I've missed something then we actually don't know what happened here other than there was an explosion and the resulting fire and oil spill.

The end result has been seen before but the root cause is still unknown.

Matt

zeolite

Re: BP Oil Spill
« Reply #4 on: 30/04/2010 at 22:17 »
GRHE...

You know that there are quite a few oilfield guys on here so I am not sure whether your post is an honest question about what has hapened or a troll to stir things up. I will assume that it is the former.
I have done a bit of a rake around to try and find out more and it seems the cause of the initial explosion has not yet been announced (This will be known without a doubt). There has been some woolly references to a "kick" but that really doesn't tell me much. Anyway this kick or uncontrolled expansion of fluid from down the hole has caused the blow out preventer to fail. This is the big mystery as this multi-million dollar piece of equipment is supposed to hold bak the fluids and prevent the pressure escaping. It was a hose on this piece of equipment that failed when the Odyssey went up in the late 80s with the loss of the radio op. It would seem that the fluid escaped from the BOP and then ignited ( we can assume it was hydrocarbon gas) causing the explosion. Now I am not familiar with the rig or the drilling operation or setting but again I am assuming it was drilling a deepwater subsea template. This would explain why there are live wells situated where it was anchored. When it sank it must have damaged the pipework and control systems for those wellheads that were already down there.
I should say that drilling oilwells is my business and the fact that this can happen fills me with dread. This rig was new and state of the art and presumably the BOP was as well. BOPs are tested regularly and these tests are a legal requirement with the appropriate paperwork being treated as such. I believe the well was a deepwater, high pressure, high temperature type and these wells are drilled very carefully. The fact that a BOP can fail scares the hell out of me and I want to know why as much as anyone who has to sleep on a drilling rig. There are 11 families who will want to know why their families are now short of a member as well. I know BP are getting the flak but I would be looking at the drilling company for the answers as it seems that it is their piece of equipment that has caused this disaster but not doing what it should have done.

I should also say that I have worked in the Gulf of mexico and it is in no way an unspiled piece of paradise. I know that a lot of work has gone into cleaning up a lot of the  polluted areas and it is amazing what a bit of time will heal. Lets hope that the damage can be limited.

Matt Henderson

Re: BP Oil Spill
« Reply #5 on: 30/04/2010 at 22:39 »
Zeolite great post.

I suspect that once we know what happened that it will have wide spread industry implications. Much the same way as safety process changed after piper alpha... This situation is my worst nightmare...

Paul Rankine

Re: BP Oil Spill
« Reply #6 on: 02/05/2010 at 18:40 »
Hi All,
         I wondered when you would turn up zeolite  :z4
No ,not a troll at all. Just my geniune dismay that something like this can still happen. Rig, ship or whatever !

Matt, this situation is everybody's worse nightmare mate !

Paul.

Rob Brownfield

Re: BP Oil Spill
« Reply #7 on: 02/05/2010 at 23:55 »
It is remarkable just how clean and safe the oil and gas industry is when you consider the numbers, the intensity, the extreme conditions and the locations exploration and drilling takes place in. It produces less waste then the car industry for example and has less accidents than your average manufacturing plant.

Being concerned in industry safety and my partner being an environmental scientist  in the sector we are both exposed to the bad side of things and as I said, these are are rare occurances and are dealt with swiftly.

Unless we go back to using natural materials to make things, ride horses and never fly we are all responsible for the demand on oil.

Paul Rankine

Re: BP Oil Spill
« Reply #8 on: 03/05/2010 at 15:11 »
Some further information.

 Sunday Times 2.05.10

 BP warned of rig fault 10 years ago

 
Quote
BP faces fresh questions over the cause of the Gulf of Mexico oil spill after it emerged that problems with the type of equipment that led to the disaster were first reported a decade ago.
In June 2000, the oil giant issued a"notice of default" to Transocean the operator of the Deepwater Horizon. The row was over problems with a blowout preventer that should close out of control wells.Transocean acknowledged at the time that the preventer "did not work exactly right".The rig in question,the Discover Enterprise,was unable to operate for extended periods while the problem was fixed.The preventer was made by Hydril,now owned by GE's oil and gas arm,and Cameron International,a Houston company.Cameron also made the preventer on the Deepwater Horizon,the rig that exploded.It,s preventer was fitted at about the same time BP was complaining of problems with it's sister vessel .

Mmmmm....

Barry Robertson

Re: BP Oil Spill
« Reply #9 on: 03/05/2010 at 15:33 »
Find that hard to believe!
The BOP would of been tested prior to every job, i dare say they might of got dispensation for the last job if it was not working 100% but no way would they have got by for 10 years with a Dodgy BOP. I think everyone will just be guessing at the moment and i dare say it will be a great big cover up as the end result!
Anyway all this speculation is not solving the problem, get out and wet a line  :z2

clark

Re: BP Oil Spill
« Reply #10 on: 03/05/2010 at 16:08 »
Right then  :z4 coming from a family who have a combined work time in the oil and chemical industry of over 60 years i've heard a theory not as to how the explosion happened but why the rig actually sank.

Apparentley the BP workers on the rig weren't able to close alot of the doors and hatches before escaping off the rig.
The coast guard who were in charge of the rescue operation and overall management of the the situation told the fire services to pump water continuosly into these open hatches in order to extuingish the fire. This water then made it's way into the supports of the rig and due to the sher volume of water being pumped into the rig these supports gave way.
The pipe leading into the oil well sheared off and the oil started oozing into the ocean.

It is now immpossible to get to the well head due to it being under the wreckage of the rig so a proposed plan is to bring in another rig. Due to the well peing a horizontal pipe they plan to get the new rig to drill dow into this pipe and to section off the well infront of the well head.

Again this is just what my parents have heard from their contacts. Hope this is taken informatively and that no one feels the need to critisise in anyway  :z16

Calum

Paul Rankine

Re: BP Oil Spill
« Reply #11 on: 04/05/2010 at 12:29 »
Hi Callum,
                 Thanks for that. I hope the truth comes out in the end.
Paul.

 




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