\nthe uncertainty, it was still the first tangible sign of success in more than
\nthree weeks of efforts to prevent at least 210,000 gallons of oil (and maybe
\nmuch more<\/a>) from spewing unabated into the sea each day and feeding a
\nmassive slick off the coast of Louisiana.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
BP
\nSenior Executive Vice President Kent Wells refused to be specific on quantity,
\nbut confirmed that after a temporary hitch in which the tube became dislodged
\novernight, siphoning operations were up and running once again.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
“We
\nwill look to … capture as much of the oil as we can,” he told reporters
\nin Houston, Texas. “At this point, we don’t know what percentage we will
\ncapture” by the process, in which the oil is sucked up as if through a
\nstraw to a giant ship.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
A
\nBP statement said simply that the four-inch-diameter tube inserted into the
\n21-inch leaking pipe using undersea robots had captured “some amounts of
\noil and gas.”<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Wells
\nadded that the BP crews “don’t have any idea at this point” how much
\ncrude is being collected and would only have a better estimate in coming days.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
“The
\noil was stored on board the Discoverer Enterprise drill ship 5,000 feet above
\non the water’s surface, and natural gas was burned through a flare system on
\nboard the ship,” the statement said.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
The
\nObama administration seemed unimpressed, however, pointing out that BP’s latest
\nefforts, even if they manage to slow the leak, would not permanently stop the
\nunderwater geyser.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
“This
\ntechnique is not a solution to the problem, and it is not yet clear how
\nsuccessful it may be,” said Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano
\nand Interior Secretary Ken Salazar said in a statement. “We are closely
\nmonitoring BP’s test with the hope that it will contain some of the oil, but at
\nthe same time, federal scientists are continuing to provide oversight and
\nexpertise to BP as they move forward with other strategies to contain the spill
\nand stop the flow of oil.”<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Engineers
\nare mulling several different options to seal the main leak, which has spewed
\nout an estimated 5 million gallons so far, according to the most conservative
\nestimates, and prevent the giant slick from destroying ecologically fragile
\nwetlands and nature reserves.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
A
\nrelief well that would divert the flow and allow the well to be permanently
\nsealed may not be ready until August.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Fresh
\nanalysis of enormous plumes of oil under the surface suggest the spill may be
\nfar worse than previously estimated. One was reported to be 10 miles long,
\nthree miles wide, and 300 feet thick.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Researchers <\/p>\n Response <\/p>\n “The <\/p>\n University <\/p>\n But <\/p>\n On <\/p>\n “This <\/p>\n Officials <\/p>\n Meanwhile, <\/p>\n Engineers <\/p>\n A relief well that would divert the flow and Related Links:<\/strong><\/p>\n U.S. approves use of subsea dispersants to battle oil slick<\/a><\/p>\n Obama’s uninspiring ‘anger’ at BP and lax regulators<\/a><\/p>\n Living Buildings, Living Cities, and $125,000 up for grabs<\/a><\/p>\n
\nfrom the National Institute for Undersea Science and Technology said the plumes
\nwere “perhaps due to the deep
\ninjection of dispersants<\/a> which BP has stated that they are
\nconducting.”<\/p>\n
\ncrews have so far used some 560,000 gallons of the controversial
\nchemical dispersants<\/a>, spraying them onto surface oil and also directly into
\nthe leak in a bid to break up the oil.<\/p>\n
\noil still exists, it’s just spread in smaller pieces,” Aaron Viles,
\ncampaign director for the Gulf Restoration Network, a coalition of
\nenvironmental groups, told AFP. “It could have a significant impact on the
\nmarine life of the Gulf of Mexico.”<\/p>\n
\nof Georgia researcher Samantha Joye, who is on a scientific mission to gather
\ndetails about the looming environmental disaster, told The New York
\nTimes<\/a> that oxygen levels have dropped 30 percent near the plumes, in an
\n“alarming” trend that is endangering marine life.<\/p>\n
\nAndrew Gowers, head of group media for BP, dismissed reports that
\n“speculate” on the giant plumes. He said officials “had no
\nconfirmation” of oil clumping together in mid-ocean areas.<\/p>\n
\nSunday, a large concert in New Orleans drew crowds to support Gulf fishermen,
\nwhose livelihoods are threatened by the oil spill, with rocker Lenny Kravitz
\nheading the line-up.<\/p>\n
\nis a catastrophe,” Kravitz told CNN television. “I love this place.
\nAnd this place has been through so much in the last several years,” he
\nsaid, referring to the devastation of Hurricane Katrina. “Here we are,
\ngetting hit again.”<\/p>\n
\nsaid some 19,000 personnel and more than 650 vessels have been deployed to try
\nto mitigate the negative effects of the spill on the Gulf shoreline and
\nwildlife.<\/p>\n
\nthe U.S. Coast Guard told AFP that oil was washing ashore in at least two new
\nlocations—Whiskey Island, La., and Long Beach, Miss.<\/p>\n
\nare mulling several different options to seal the main leak, which has spewed
\nout an estimated 5 million gallons so far, according to the most conservative
\nestimates, and prevent the giant slick from destroying ecologically fragile
\nwetlands and nature reserves.<\/p>\n
\nallow the well to be permanently sealed may not be ready until August.<\/p>\n
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