We all know the background; Deep Horizon, an oil rig, bursts into flames and then sinks in the Gulf of Mexico on April 20. British Petroleum take full responsibility, states they will clean up the mess, no matter the cost. As of today, May 11, oil is still streaming into the Gulf at a rate between 790,000–4,000,000 liters a day.
The explosion is said to have been cause by a sudden bubble of methane gas. Impossible to predict. But certainly a probable outcome of drilling. Reason should dictate that such an explosion would cause the oil tanker to sink. And that sealing a hole in the ocean floor would be challenging at best, and impossible at worst. Reality is dictating the worst.
Here’s what I don’t get; We’re all born with common sense. We know that error happens. We know what the fall out of possible error is. And yet our governments continue to invest in unsustainable energy sources. What if this had been a nuclear tailing pond, which must stand undisturbed for 100,000 years to neutralize the effects?
Errors happen. Maybe it’s time we start accounting for that in initial plans.
