The cap is on -nu?

Photo:Vlad Lazerian, Creative Commons, Flickr

In Yiddish there is the expression "nu?", which more or less translates into "so?" The question is now that the kindly folks at British Petroleum have deemed that the crisis may be in its waning days, what do we do from here? As a computer networking consultant and a writer working in New Orleans, I have no claim to any of the $20 billion slush fund appropriated by Congress and managed by Ken Feinberg. Those local fishers and other industry people affected by the downturn - and in many cases the paralysis - of their economy due to fallout from the spewing oil beneath the Gulf of Mexico are rightly entitled to petition the government for a redress of their losses. In most cases, though, only a fraction of their actual losses will be recovered. How they hold on financially and mentally during this time of trepidation will be telling. Already there are several horrible stories of people having been forced to move away to Texas or other fishing areas unaffected by the crisis in order to fend for their families. Some boat captains faced with financial ruin have taken their own lives rather than deal with the crisis head on. It is very sad and, unfortunately, these kind of pressures will continue unabated even after the spiggot of oil have been finally turned off. But the good news is that now there is some measure of hope and the beginning of the end is somewhat more now in view. The crisis began with the tragic deaths of 11 oilfield workers aboard the Deepwater Horizon. The numbers of affected families from the resulting crisis now numbers in the hundreds of thousands along the shores and stretch all the way down to Miami. So, the question is what can any of us do to help ensure this never happens again? Is a six-month moratorium on offshore oil exploration going to help stop this kind of event from recurring? Frankly, I doubt it. This was a series of breakdowns where each culpable party blamed the other with the bottom line being the only object truly being served. Had the blowout preventer manufacturer engineered their device properly, had the necessary tests been run to make sure it was working properly and had the B.P. engineers on board the rig not ignored the signs that showed fluctuations in pressure early on, none of this tragedy would have occurred and probably all of those whose lives were lost would have been saved and those whose way of life have been changed might still be productive and happy. I don't feel particularly safe now that the cap is on and the moratorium is still being sought by the government. When it all comes down to profit and loss statements, corners will be cut and, unfortunately, greed will rise to have its say. To add a moratorium to the oil exploration industry might hamper the little business that's still ongoing. If we want to shut down offshore exploration and send it off to Nigeria or other promising areas in South America, then we should consider that option. But, if we want to save the jobs and related industries that are still thriving, but barely so, then the government should proceed. That's why I'm somewhat happy, but also somewhat ambivalent. Nu?

Frankly, BP, I don't give a damn!

Thanks to the efforts of those in the media, there is a sense of urgency that the languid, viscous pools of oil and tarballs washing on Alabama and Florida beaches have made even more clear to our nation's leaders, particularly President Obama. When the oil first reached Louisiana shores and permeated the fragile marshes and estuaries known as the Louisiana wetlands, critics and commentators were appalled. With the loss of thousands of jobs and businesses closing down that had been healthy a little over two months ago -some that had existed for a hundred and more years - the pressure has been ramped up for a more rapid response. Do something. And for those on the sidelines, far north, east or west away from the crisis, there is one burning question: what can we do? As British Petroleum CEO Tony Hayward attempts to get his life back, hundreds of thousands of honest, hard-working Americans who have had little to do with the petroleum industry are at risk. They want their lives back too. They also want their fragile ecosystem and ways of life back. The thousands of dead birds, turtles and other sea creatures have weighed heavily on the minds of the young and old. Vox populi - the voice of the people - has been issued from the collective mouths of the innocent and those responsible leaders we look to for action. The question we should all be asking is: are you listening, B. P.?

The acrid smell of environmental disaster

There is a definite smell in the air, wafting its way into Louisiana's highways and byways. It is a reminder that the British Petroleum disaster in the Gulf of Mexico will be a clear and present danger for some time to come. There are those in the seafood industry who fear this may be the death knell for oyster beds, crabbing and for shrimping seasons for several years to come. The fact that the spill is now thought to be five times as originally feared is bad enough. The loss of 11 workers to their families on the ill-fated Deepwater Horizon rig that sank is sad enough. The inability to stop the flow of crude oil into the gulf should make all of us shout out that enough is enough. What hurricanes like Katrina, Rita, Ike and Gustav could not do to Louisiana and Mississippi - shut down the seafood industry - might actually be accomplished by this man-made event. The first reports of oil washing into the mouth of the Mississippi River came about Thursday evening, but the smell of disaster came into the region well in advance. With bad weather expected to hit the area in the next several days, skimming, burning and trapping measures to capture the oil spill could be stymied. Despite the best efforts on the part of BP technicians, the flow of crude oil from three separate leaks continues unabated. Even if the well was capped today, the damage to the ecosystem will be felt for some time to come. The point is that the well is not being capped and the environmental impact will loom large for some time to come. Louisiana has had a special relationship with the petroleum industry. It is a necessary evil because the fact is that oil production and the price of oil per barrel dictate whether the state budget runs into the red or black each year. Budgets aside, there is potential here to do more damage than the Exxon Valdez ever did in Alaska. Lives have been lost, livelihoods are in danger and life as we know it could disappear in a thick mass of tar lapping onto estuaries. The real danger is that damage to the fragile ecosystem below the waters and into the marshes could be catastrophic. Governor Bobby Jindal has declared a state of emergency, while critics have charged that the federal government's response has been sluggish at best. Frankly, it is questionable if any government or business is equipped to handle this level of tragedy. Meanwhile the smell of disaster hangs high in the air and its stench may eventually extend all the way to the hallowed halls of Congress and into the Oval Office of the White House.