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Permalink Reply by Skip Peel - Mineral Consultant on July 15, 2010 at 2:47

IMO, the latest attempt to deny BP permits to drill going forward for an extended period of time represent a better means to deter the deliberate cutting of corners that compromise safety. Instead of punishing the industry, the punishment should be sufficiently severe per individual instance and operator that it acts as a deterrent. With companies the size of BP fines, no matter how extreme, just may not be enough.

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Permalink Reply by Kat Bloomfield on July 15, 2010 at 4:46

Jay,
That very well may be. I do not purport to "know" why what occurred did.

I do listen to all the information that has come out as a result of what happened. The industry has to spend some more money on safety, spill prevention, and recovery--as it is clear that the industry has run amock without proper regulation, oversight, pre-drill tests, multiple redundancies, etc. That doesn't make the industry evil; the industry is comprised of corporations which cannot be evil because they have no souls. Corporations exist for one reason and one reason alone--to make profits. That's their sole purpose in their paper existence. Thus, it behooves those of us who are not corporations, but are but individuals, and our governments, to exercise the proper oversight through regulation.

The industry has the opportunity to shine---why doesn't it come up with solutions to prevent future disasters, whether onshore or offshore? Why does the industry insist on simply digging in as a quasi-political pundit and just saying no, without offering any suggestions? There are industry insiders who do recommend this, just as this discussion posted. Neither Cavnar nor the other poster can be labeled by the usual suspects as those nasty little landowning environmentalists. THEY ARE ON THE INSIDE OF THE INDUSTRY.

One thing this disaster has shown is that the risk of harm is SO GREAT---the Gulf itself is at risk as is every living thing that needs it to survive--that greater safety measures are in fact needed. The harm that can occur, and which did, is so great, it is foolish and myopic, IMHO, to suggest that business should just continue on as usual.

The Gulf Coast will suffer not just for years. It has been destroyed as we once knew it. There is nothing that can be done to save it.

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