Another view on the oil spill
This from a relative of mine, a geologist, who knows what he is talking about:
As for my ‘take’ on the oil spill…. first I was somewhat sympathetic about the ‘accident’…. but as info was released to indicate that at several crucial junctures, extremely BAD decisions were made, all three parties, BP, Transocean, and Halliburton are INCREDIBLY at fault. As the released data indicate, a poor cement job (to cement in the last string of casing in the well) was done, the poor decision was made to NOT do a cement bond log, even though Schlumberger technicians were onsite ready to do it, and then when the well “bumped” as they were adjusting the drilling mud vs seawater ratio, and thereby reducing the confining pressure…. suggesting that they had a well which was ‘wanting’ to blowout…. after all that… then they made the STUPID decision to go ahead and pump the heavy drilling mud out of the well so that the temporary seal of cement could be pumped in (can’t be done with drilling mud in the hole)…… then the well obliged with what was obviously a truly MAJOR oil/gas discovery.
The fact that then the blow-out preventers did not operate, wellllllllll, it seems that they had such issues as a leaky hydraulic line to it, etc., which indicates an extremely poor attitude…. and simply incredible LIABILITY. The blowout preventer should have stopped the flow first with several sets of packer/seals which would have closed around the pipe, etc., but, without enough hydraulic pressure, quite probably the last back up, that of shearing off everything in the well, all pipe, etc. failed simply because it was not strong enough to shear, without full hydraulic pressure.
This ‘cap deal’ might actually work to recover much of the oil, but, probably not all of it….. and besides an incredible amount is already loose. The only permanent solution is the one of literally ‘hitting a needle in a haystack’ by drilling up to the old well casing and then reaming a hole into the side of it, establish communication and then pump heavy drilling mud followed by cement to seal it. That feat, actually hitting a piece of 9 7/8″ pipe at a distance of five or so miles, is literally a near miraculous feat, and quite directly, may require numerous attempts, miss, back up and drill out with a new bore (all directionally controlled of course) to attempt again, and maybe again……