Crude Operatons

– Oil And The Environment Essay, Research Paper

Crude Operations:

Oil and the Environment

The environmental impacts of offshore oil drilling greatly outweigh the economic benefits provided. Although it has been a continuous activity for more than a decade, One can not help but wonder why offshore drilling continues when considering the pollution caused, how it eliminates the supply of natural resources, murders innocent sea creatures, and actually damages the national economy. There are, however, solutions to this problem. Before solutions can be presented, it is important to discuss the various problems.

First, offshore oil drilling results in both sea and land based pollution. The Environmental Protection Agency, or EPA, claims that “with offshore drilling comes substantial routine pollution in the forms of oil and gas.” By routine, the EPA means “a near constant flow from oil rigs and derricks” (Sisskin). Nothing is ever done about the pollution, and until something is done about the oil being put into the sea, our oceans are at risk. So just how much oil is put in the oceans. According to a study conducted by the World Research Institute, ” between 3 and 6 million tons of oil are discharged into the oceans every year” (Gorman 48). To put this in perspective, that is approximately 4 football stadiums filled to the top with oil. That is just every year and this has been going on for more than a decade. In total, 45 million tons of oil in the past ten years that have been put into the oceans. There are several ways that oil ends up in the oceans. One method is through drilling accidents and another is through spillage from tankers and other transports. In 1990 alone, 1/8 of the total oil discharged ” occurred daily in the New York – New Jersey Harbor” (American Oceans Campaign). And this is only an eighth of the total oil spilled. Take a moment and just think about how much oil was spilled that one eighth of 6 million tons is 750,000 tons of oil in just the New York – New Jersey Harbor alone. These large concentrations of oil often devastate marine life, and can lead to extinction of species that inhabit that area. Christos Papoutsis, the energy commissioner of the European Commission stated that when dealing with oil, “sea disposal is neither a realistic, nor a desirable option ” (Cutter). And he is right. The current effects of dumping raw oil into the ocean have severe impacts on the marine life, and the surrounding environment. Companies that dump raw oil into the oceans for whatever reason simply lack the foresight to accurately see the results of the actions. And the pollution from offshore drilling does not stop with marine pollution. In conjunction with marine pollution offshore drilling also creates air pollution. Often times when companies drill for oil, they ” come across packets of natural gases that escape into the air” (Sisskin). The reality is that companies who drill for oil are equipped to handle siphoning the natural gas when they come across it, but simply choose not to. The natural gas then escapes into the environment where they are capable of doing damage not only in the form of global warming, but also mix to form poisonous toxins in the atmosphere. Offshore oil drilling is not only responsible for pollution; it also does more.

Offshore oil drilling will not only leave a lasting impact on the marine life, but decrease natural resources as well. Offshore drilling removes the natural resources that “the world will look to the oceans for in the 21st century” (Environmental News Network). Already, it is clear that our marine resources are overstressed. In a short while, the full effects of depleted oceans will reach us. Countries that rely on the oceans for their economy will simply collapse. The stress that is placed on the oceans leaves a major impact on the creatures that inhabit the area. One of the leaders in the oil industry, Shell, ” has not improved on it’s environmental performance in the Niger Delta” (Rowell 101). The result of this was the death of over 3 million sea-based creatures and a reduction in marine life around the oilrig within a quarter mile radius. Consider a similar effect for every oil platform there is, and it is clear why there has been a severe reduction in marine life. And out at sea is not the only place that offshore disasters can occur. Tanks used to store oil after transportation to shore are dangerous to the environment as well. About “one fourth of the U.S. underground petrol stations are thought to be leaking” (Rowell 104). The leaks from underground led into the waterways, killing both land and sea based life along the way. It is only a matter of time until the leaks reach waterways used as drinking water, and then the full impact will be seen. So with these types of pollution, is offshore drilling even somewhat safe for the environment. The results given were just from a simple underground leak. An actual oil spill has far greater impact on the marine life. After the Exxon Valdez oil spill, only 2,400 California otters remained. This number is small when compared to the “nearly twice that number [that] were killed during the spill in Alaska” (AOC). That is approximately two thirds of the California otter population, lost to only one spill. At the current rate, the California otter will face extinction because of oil spillage. This is only one example of the several species that now face