Feds Say Gulf Well Cap Leaking But Stable
July 19, 2010 – Small amounts of oil and gas were detected leaking from the recently capped oil well 5,000 feet beneath the surface of the Gulf of Mexico, but federal officials today said there is no reason for concern.
The well was capped July 15, but it began leaking a small amount of oil and gas yesterday. Retired Coast Guard Admiral Thad Allen, the federal government’s point man in the Gulf of Mexico cleanup efforts, today said the amount leaking was of no consequence. And BP officials said oil found seeping from the seafloor some seven miles from the undersea is not coming from the BP well.
After more than 85 days, engineers for the BP corporation last week succeeded in sealing off the undersea oil gusher polluting the Gulf of Mexico since being triggered by a deadly explosion on April 20. A 75-ton containment cap placed last weekend on the leaking oil well riser located 5,000 feet beneath the surface of the Gulf of Mexico has shut off the flow of light crude oil and gas, up to 184 million gallons of which federal officials estimate have leaked into the sea since the crisis began. Engineers on the scene have been monitoring the pressurized oil well, checking to ensure it does not begin gushing oil from another spot that might crack from the increased internal pressure.
A prior containment cap that had partially checked the gushing oil well was removed July 10 after federal officials approved replacing it with the new 75-ton containment cap. The newest cap’s ability to effectively seal the gushing oil well riser located 5,000 feet beneath the surface of the Gulf of Mexico enabled federal officials to give the go-ahead for the latest effort.
While some tentative success has been reported, BP continues work on drilling two relief wells, which are intended to intercept the leaking oil well and allow engineers to permanently seal it with heavy drilling mud and concrete. The wells are expected to be completed sometime next month.
News of potential success in stifling the gushing oil well comes soon after the Obama administration decreed a second six-month moratorium on deepwater oil exploration in U.S. waters. A federal judge in New Orleans ruled the first ban was too expansive and improperly punished all drilling operations at depths exceeding 500 feet due to problems at only one site. A panel of three appellate judges affirmed the lower court’s decision last week.
Officials for several companies transporting supplies and workers to offshore drilling rigs legally challenged the initial federal moratorium, which originally was placed on May 6 and intended to last only through the month. Obama on May 27 extended the drilling ban to six months. Louisiana Governor Bobby Jindal and executives at several drilling companies said the moratorium would force drilling operations to move to other places beyond U.S. jurisdiction and hurt local economies.
The Obama administration decreed the latest six-month ban in response to last week’s ruling, arguing the nation cannot handle a second drilling accident while the current problem remains. Many industry analysts anticipate the latest drilling ban would not survive a legal challenge.
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