Offshore Roulette
This editorial cartoon in the local newspaper today has finally encouraged me enough to post on this topic. Ever since the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico almost a month ago,it continues to grow into what could be even bigger than that of the Exxon Valdez in the 80's.
Knowing the risks that a spill could cause to ecosystems, it is amazing that we are still considering new offshore drilling opportunities.
We live in a world so dependent on oil, that we often cannot even see the potential for disaster it can cause. The BP oil leak is now infringing on delicate ecosystems in the Gulf, and is showing up on the shores on Louisiana, and other southern states. It is impacting fishermen, whose livelihood depends on the seafood that is now tainted by oil. This is now much more than an environmental issue, but an economic issue, and the forecast isn't pretty.
This mess could take years to clean up, and the effects will be felt long after that. The rig is leaking at an alarming rate - hundred of thousands of barrels a day - and efforts to stop the leak have so far been hampered.
I really don't know what else to say other than this saddens me, disturbs me, and makes me wonder why we are playing offshore roulette. We have enough environmental problems as it stands, that we cannot stand for too many more avoidable disasters such as this one. More efforts should be made to find more sustainble forms of energy and power, like wind and tidal power, solar, and other clean sources. Advances are being made, slowly but surely, and I do have some faith that technologies will continue to improve. It also makes me happy that President Obama has put a halt to all new offshore drilling, pending discussions into what went wrong in the Gulf.
I am certainly not an expert in ecosystems or oil drilling, but what I do know is that the roulette must stop, before something even more tragic happens.
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