The Oil Spill No One's Talking About

[babylonsister]

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/omoyele-sowore/the-oil-spill-no-ones-tal_b_649220.html


Omoyele Sowore
Founder, SaharaReporters.com
Posted: July 16, 2010 02:04 PM

The Oil Spill No One's Talking About

snip//

Here's what ExxonMobil and the government in Nigeria don't want you to know. They don't want you to know this 30-year-old platform is still leaking at least five thousand of barrels of crude a day. They don't want you to know that they can't fix the leak (sounds familiar again doesn't it?) They don't want you to know that if the current pipes break further before they can fix the platform, it will release 60 to 100 thousand of barrels of oil a day.

This environmental catastrophe has been going on since December 2009, when I first broke the story. ExxonMobil repeatedly denied that anything had happened, but the pictures attached to this article tell a different story. It's an eerily familiar story. There's oil on the surface of the ocean, wildlife coated in crude, fishermen losing their businesses.

Only in the last 10 days did ExxonMobil finally issue a statement to "BusinessDay and News Agency of Nigeria" saying only two barrels of oil had spilled.

The timing of that statement was interesting -- perhaps because ExxonMobil had another environmental PR disaster on its hands -- this time in the United States. ExxonMobil owns the largest oil refinery in the U.S. But just last week, the Associated Press reported the Baytown refinery violated federal air pollution laws thousands of times during the last five years, releasing 10 million pounds of illegal pollution, including cancer-causing toxins. According to environmental groups, ExxonMobil got away without facing proper fines or being forced to fix equipment. Yes, it's a familiar story.

Nigeria is a country of 140 million people. Kick backs to government officials are the normal way of doing business. Perhaps that's why this oil spill hasn't got the attention it should. Journalists can't report it, but I can. And just as I finish writing this piece comes word that BP's stocks went up with news that ExxonMobil may buy it. Sounds like a partnership made in heaven.

[Dogmudgeon]

1. It's Obama's fault!

:sarcasm:

--d!

[annabanana]

2. Until oil is replaced completely as a source of power.. we will continue

to destroy our home.

[Tuesday Afternoon]

5. +1

:kick:

[Z_I_Peevey]

3. And here's another one in China

http://af.reuters.com/article/energyOilNews/idAFTOE66H00C20100718

Saw this on CCTV last night.

[Prometheus Bound]

7. And another one in the Philippines this week.

Petron, Coast Guard scrambling to seal ruptured pipeline in Cavite
Saturday, 17 July 2010 20:25
PETRON Corp. and the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) are scrambling to seal the ruptured pipelines of the petroleum firm in its Rosario Depot Terminal in Cavite in a move to thwart what could be a local version of the oil spill in the Mexican Gulf.

Coast Guard spokesman Arman Balilo said the divers of both teams have located the two sources of the oil leak of Petron’s submarine pipeline that was ruptured by the anchor of MT Baliwag of Herma Shipping Lines at the height of Typhoon Basyang.

The leak is spewing one liter of oil every 10 minutes since July 13, when Typhoon Basyang hit the country. At that rate, the Coast Guard estimates at least 576 liters of bunker fuel had already spilled into the sea.

Petron’s 2.6-kilometer-long pipeline starts from the shore and extends out to the sea.

The spill already affected some 11,200 square meters off the coast in Rosario, Cavite.
http://businessmirror.com.ph/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=27803:petron-coast-guard-scrambling-to-seal-ruptured-pipeline-in-cavite&catid=23:topnews&Itemid=58

[eilen]

4. There should be an international ban on offshore

and deepwater drilling until the leaks are stopped and there is an effective plan or procedure for correcting this problem should it occur. This is not "Obama's Fault" on the other two leaks prior to his presidency but for any future well drilled without a failsafe in our waters, it will be as this information is out there. He has encouraged off shore drilling stating it was safe, it clearly is not. Perhaps he should fire the people who researched this an hire non-oil industry shills next time. Perhaps he should supply his watchdog agencies with some teeth. Roll back the Bush Era energy legislation to previous protections under the clean air and clean water bills.

International government should be putting pressure on the multinat'l oil corps to clean up their mess and to set safety and environmental standards in the 3rd world.

[KharmaTrain]

6. The Tip Of The Iceberg...

Not that this isn't a surprise, the oil companies have been exploiting African countries since the first deposits were uncovered. Our addiction to oil has allowed the oil companies to run roughshod around the globe...able to cover their tracks through manipulation of the media and governments. I read a report that there are many leaks and the ecological damage caused by oil leaks globably are growing as the oil companies take more risks in drilling and less care in maintenance. It's all about the profit. So a little oil spills...such is "progress".

Unfortunately there's still no real outcry to end this addiction and once the gulf oil gusher story begins to fade from the news, it'll be back to business as usual as people will be more concerned with the price of a gallon of gas than to keep the spotlight and pressure on all the oil companies as well as demanding government action in closely examining the current operations and business practices of these companies. Then there needs to be the push to stimulate the economy through investing in green industries...the road out of this addiction.

:hi:

[ensho]

8. kick

nt

[malaise]

9. SInce when has Africa mattered to the West

Africa is fair game for exploitation - get over yourselves :sarcasm:

[Richard Steele]

10. K&R