Supertanker Skims Oil As Spill Now Worst Accident On Record
Author:
First published in Sanctuary Asia,
Vol. 30
No. 7,
July 2010
"This is going to be a very long and arduous clean-up operation in the days to come," said Coast Guard Admiral Paul Zukunft. "I'm especially concerned with some of the wildlife habitats."
An estimated 35,000 to 60,000 barrels of oil per day has been gushing out of the ruptured well since the BP-leased Deepwater Horizon drilling rig sank on April 22, some 50 miles (80 kilometers) off the coast of Louisiana.
A containment system has captured about 557,000 barrels of oil, but rough seas have delayed the deployment of a third vessel which is set to increase capacity from 25,000 barrels to 53,000 barrels a day. That means an estimated 1.9 to 3.6 million barrels -- or 79.5 to 153 million gallons -- of oil has now gushed into the Gulf. Read the full report here.
Source: AFP, Times of India
