As India is fighting over the price of gas, America is grappling with what may be the worst oil spillage in history, eclipsing the Exxon Valdez oil spill disaster in 1989. Whatever be the cause of the spillage, British Petroleum (BP) will find itself entangled in lawsuits, and this will have serious repercussions on both its reputation and finances.
The word “spillage” barely conveys the apocalyptic nature and scale of what is going on. Most worryingly, in the absence of a remote-control shut-off device, no one has properly explained how the volcanic flow of hot oil into the Gulf of Mexico from some 5,000 ft beneath the waves can be stopped. The Deepwater Horizon floating rig, which BP leases, found oil beneath 5,000 feet of water and 13,000 feet of rock when something went awry on April 20, causing an explosion and fire. This killed 11 workers. The rig, larger than a football field, sank two days later and now sits upside down on the bottom. That also means that the government there lacks the tools to seal the well and must rely on the oil industry to find a solution.
If any such mishap were to happen in India, do we have the wherewithal to take remedial steps?
M M Gurbaxani, Bangalore