Deep water drilling: An unacceptable risk?

An unacceptable risk?

With BP now in front of Congress over the Gulf of Mexico oil spill and over $20 billion being put aside for the clean-up and compensation for the victims of the slick, questions are being asked whether deep water drilling, especially in the continental shelf, is just too much of a risk.

In a speech to the United States, President Obama addressed the country's oil dependency noting that his country has two percent of the world's oil reserves but consumes 20 percent of global supplies.

In order to keep America supplied, President Obama said that as a result oil companies were engaging in deep water drilling since "we're running out of places to drill on and in shallow water."

As the past two months has shown us, deep water drilling can have devastating consequences and at such depths, make repairs difficult to say the least.

In an article for the Infrastructurist, Peter Lehner, Executive Director of the Natural Resources Defense Council noted the shocking fact that the 19,000 or so barrels of sludge released by the BP geyser in less than two minutes is what the US consumes daily. It is the shocking fact that the US's daily consumption is now flowing into the sea, that Lehner hopes will shake the country out of its energy complacency making the government focus "on saving oil rather than scouring the ends of the earth for more."

With the Obama Administration making the largest strides in energy reform that any other recent administration, with national vehicle greenhouse gas emissions and fuel economy standards adopted last year and vehicle efficiency rising, it is hoped that oil demand can be kept down. On top of that, it is hoped additional renewable energy investment will diversify the country's power needs.

While many will cite BP's alleged cutting of corners for the disaster, deep water drilling is a precise science and as such, always a gamble. While a six month offshore drilling ban is currently in place, this is getting resistance from many states who rely on drilling to support their economies. However these states are always going to have a finite lifespan if they continue to be so reliant on fossil fuels, no matter what alternatives they propose to the ban.

Relevant articles:

How America can reduce its oil dependency | The offshore drilling ban: Bad for the US? | The second Gulf of Mexico oil spill | The Gulf of Mexico oil spill: What happens next? | Gulf oil slick: A boon to future alternatiive energy?

Timon Singh

Timon Singh is a graduate of Liverpool University where he received a degree in Social and Economic History. He has previously worked for BBC Magazines on BBC Who Do You Think You Are? Magazine, the publication for the popular genealogy show.

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