Health Consequences of the BP Oil Spill

A Disaster in the Making: A History of British Petroleum & Environmental Negligence

In the year 1901, William Knox D’Arcy won a concession from Persia, now Iran, to explore for oil (Ishaan Tharoor, “A Brief History of BP,” Time, Published June 2, 2010, Accessed May 6, 2014, http://content.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,1993882,00.html). Geologists and explorers urged D’Arcy to explore specifically in the Persian region, so he made the necessary investments and began the Anglo-Persian operation. D’Arcy gambled all of his fortune in hopes of striking oil but it seemed D’Arcy had only struck out. Just like the pipe he was drilling for oil, D’Arcy saw his fortune, two country homes, and his mansion on Governors Square in England going down into the ground.

After many failed attempts D’Arcy was ready to throw in the towel and accept his loses. He sent a telegraph to his explorer George Reynolds stating: “Drill to 1600 feet and give up”. George wasn’t ready to give up on this operation, even if it seemed doomed. Reynolds would be the man to change D’Arcy’s luck around on the 26th of May, 1908. The entire camp reeked of sulphur that morning. That afternoon the drill came in contact with oil around four o’clock, and a fountain of oil spewed the dawn sky (“BP,” First oil, Accessed May 6, 2014, http://www.bp.com/en/global/corporate/about-bp/our-history.html).

British Petroleum (BP) has grown significantly from a project in Persia searching for potential oil to a Global Energy Company, being the world’s sixth largest oil company, with a production rate of 4.1 million barrels per day (Forbes Magazine, Forbes, Accessed May 6, 2014, http://www.forbes.com/pictures/mef45glfe/6-bp-4-1-million-barrels-per-day-3/). BP has shown power and success in profiting from extractions of natural resources. However, they have also historically shown a lack of responsibility in the extraction of these natural resources, particularly through two major incidents that preceded the Deepwater Horizon oil spill, the Prudhoe Bay Oil Spill and the Texas City Refinery Explosion.

The Prudhoe Bay oil spill took place in 1989 in Alaska and its significant environmental effects were directly caused by BP’s negligence. The spill “went undetected for as long as five days before an oilfield worker detected the acrid scent of hydrocarbons while driving through the area on March 2″ (Felicity Barringer, “Large Oil Spill in Alaska Went Undetected for Days,” The New York Times, Published March 15, 2006, Accessed May 6, 2014, http://www.nytimes.com/2006/03/15/national/15spill.html?_r=0). The spill originally occurred because of a corroded pipeline that had burst. After the spill was detected, it was immediately plugged. However, due to the fact that BP had failed to monitor their pipelines, an estimated 267,000 gallons were released into the Alaskan environment.

The second major instance of regulatory negligence on BP’s part occurred on March 23, 2005 when an explosion occurred at the Texas City Refinery. The explosion took place when a large hydrocarbon vapor cloud ignited, taking the lives of 15 workers and injuring more than 170 others. An investigation by 60 Minutes over a three month period after the explosion discovered evidence that BP ignored warning after warning that something terrible could happen at the Texas City Refinery. The investigation found this to be the worst workplace incident in the United States since 1989 primarily due to BP failing to protect the health and safety of its own workers (CBS Interactive, “BP Didn’t Plan for Major Oil Spill,” CBSNews, Published April 30, 2010 Accessed May 6, 2014, http://www.cbsnews.com/news/bp-didnt-plan-for-major-oil-spill/).

The Deepwater Horizon oil rig would be one of many other rigs owned by BP to begin some of the first offshore drilling in deep ocean waters in President Obama’s term. In its 2009 exploration plan and environmental impact analysis for the Deepwater Horizon rig, BP suggested it was unlikely, or virtually impossible, for an accident to occur that would lead to a giant crude oil spill that would cause serious damage to beaches, fish, and mammals (CBS Interactive, “The Explosion At Texas City,” CBSNews, Published October 26, 2006, Accessed May 6, 2014, http://www.cbsnews.com/news/the-explosion-at-texas-city/). Little did they know that one of the largest environmental disasters would transpire throughout the Gulf South.

What Happened? Details of the Deepwater Horizon Explosion

Deepwater Horizon had every bit of advanced drilling technology that was available at the time. The rig was “an ultra-deepwater, dynamically positioned, column-stabilized, semi-submersible mobile offshore drilling unit (MODU)” With the ability to operate in waters up to 8,000 feet deep, this drilling unit measured in length at 396 feet and in width at 256 feet. Deepwater Horizon was owned by Transocean Ltd and was leased out to British Petroleum (BP) until September of 2013. Prior to the explosion, Deepwater Horizon was valued at $560 million dollars.

The fire that began the devastation on Deepwater Horizon began around 9:43 pm on April 20th. Survivors that witnessed the event “described the incident as a sudden explosion that gave them less than five minutes to escape as the alarm went off”(“Deepwater Horizon oil spill,” Deepwater Horizon oil spill, Updated February 22, 2013, Accessed May 6, 2014, http://www.eoearth.org/view/article/161185/). Roughly three minutes before the first explosion, the riser evacuated onto the drill floor discharging a combination of expanding gas, drilling mud, and sea water above the decks. The reason for the sea water exhausting through the riser is because the crew aboard Deepwater Horizon had previously displaced mud in the riser with seawater. Crew members then activated the variable bore rams to close. In an attempt to cease formation fluids from entering the well bore, the variable bore rams were activated. However, oil and gas had been released through the riser, which was located above the blowout preventer (BOP), and oil and gas mixed with surrounding air was then absorbed by the rigs engines. This mixture of natural gas and oil would cause engines aboard the Deepwater Horizon to over speed and lose all power at approximately 9:49 p.m.

The second explosion would occur on Deepwater Horizon just soon after. The drill pipe continued to build pressure and ruptured where steel had been corroded. Well bore fluids began to flow upward and rise toward the surface. Without power, the rig had no stability and no dynamic positioning. Because of this, Deepwater Horizon, lost the riser, and begin to drift off location stretching the drill pipe that was connected to the well. Soon after, the rig began to drift from location and the drill pipe was pulled apart releasing oil into Gulf waters. Research after the explosion would conclude that high pressure was the initial problem eroding the drill pipe that had broke off.

Deepwater Horizon had equipped an Automatic Mode Functioning Device (AMF) built into the Blowout Preventer. The purpose of the AMF is to activate rams in a scenario where hydraulic pressure and electric signals are lost to the Blowout Preventer from the rig at surface. When the AMF activated the shear rams and set the ST locks locked. It carried out the function it was made to do. The rams and locks would close off any drilling pipe that had been put through the BOP. However, the locks and ram couldn’t fully close the drill pipe due to all the pressure it had built up within itself. As a result, this sent more drill pipe upward through the BOP because the AMF was not able to fully contain the pressure from the well and was eventually washed out. Around 36 hours later, the Deepwater Horizon sank. On its way to the sea floor, it kinked the riser right above the Blowout Preventer, leaking massive amounts of oil into the Gulf of Mexico.

Environmental Effects of an Oil Spill like Deepwater Horizon

Whenever the explosion of Deepwater Horizon occurred, the estimated damaged was underestimated. Besides sinking a highly designed rig with millions of dollars invested, it caused initial and persisting harm to the environment. For 87 days, the Macondo well would leak huge amounts of oil and natural gas into the environment. In the article No Comment, published by Earth Island Journal, Elizabeth Grossman writes, “To date, more than 200 million gallons of petroleum have gushed from the ruptured well, oiling 650 miles of shoreline and closing fishing, at one time or another, in 88,552 square miles of the Gulf of Mexico” (Grossman, “No Comment.” http://earthisland.org/journal/index.php/eij/article/no_comment/). Satellite images taken between April 25th and July 16th, 2010, have shown that BP’s Mancondo well produced an amount of oil that covered 68,000 square miles of ocean, which is the same size of the State of Oklahoma (“SkyTruth: BP / Gulf Oil Spill – 68,000 Square Miles of Direct Impact,” Published July 27, 2010, Accessed May 6, 2014, http://blog.skytruth.org/2010/07/bp-gulf-oil-spill-68000-square-miles-of.html).

Marine oil spills cause immediate threats to marine life and the environment, especially a body of water such as the Gulf of Mexico, which contains a very diverse ecosystem. The Gulf of Mexico contains deep sea ocean ridges and trenches, mid-depth banks, barrier islands, beaches, and coral reefs. Oil has the ability to create persisting damage in the environment long after a spill. Southern Louisiana possesses about forty percent of the nations coastal wetlands (“Deepwater Horizon oil spill”). The wetlands in Louisiana “provide a range of goods and services, including flood control, water purification, storm buffer, wildlife habitat, nursery grounds for aquatic life, and recreational areas”(Cleveland, “Deepwater Horizon oil spill”, http://www.bu.edu/sustainability/deepwater-horizon-oil-spill/).

By June 4th, 2010, oil released from the well that Deepwater Horizon had been drilling had already landed along 125 miles of Louisiana’s coast. The presence of this oil in the environment could cause decreased habitat use in the area, altered migration patterns, altered food availability, and disrupted life cycles. Oil is harmful to vegetation and has the potential to kill vegetation; eliminating roots that help bind and stabilize soil, leading to erosion (“NOAA Gulf Spill Restoration,” NOAA Gulf Spill Restoration RSS, Accessed May 6, 2014, http://www.gulfspillrestoration.noaa.gov/oil-spill/affected-gulf-resources/).

During clean-up efforts, three major types of oil removal that were commonly used were burning, chemical dispersion, and direct extraction. After the spill, BP had about a third of the world’s supply of dispersant available at use, specifically Corexit 9500 and 9527. Dispersants are “preapproved to help clean up oil spills and are widely used in disasters”. Different studies have shown that we have little understanding of how toxic dispersants and oil are combined. When oil is combined with dispersant, the mixture can be up to 52 times more toxic than oil alone (Tim Wall, “BP Oil Highly Toxic When Mixed with Dispersants,” Published December 3, 2012, Accessed May 6, 2014, http://news.discovery.com/earth/bp-oil-dispersants-more-toxic-121203.html).

Marine pollution isn’t the only concern when dealing with massive oil spills. In a study conducted by NOAA, the “amount of air pollutants in the atmospheric plume generated by the Deepwater Horizon oil spill was similar to a large city”. The study concluded that over the course of the spill, “the total mass of organic particles forced from evaporating surface oil was about ten times bigger than the mass of soot from all the controlled burns”. Controlled burns are used to reduce the size of the oil spill and minimize interaction between oil and shoreline ecosystems. In a massive oil spill, such as the BP oil spill, oil covers a large area of water. Water evaporates, therefore, removing some of the oil from the water by natural process. When this occurs, “some of the hydrocarbons from the evaporating oil reacted with nitrogen oxides in the atmosphere to create ozone pollution” (“Air pollution levels from Deepwater Horizon spill similar to large urban area” Published December 19, 2011, Accessed June 6, 2017, http://www.noaanews.noaa.gov/stories2011/20111219_dwhairquality.html).When these excess hydrocarbons reach the shorelines, they are then subjected to form additional ozone pollution by reacting with nitrogen oxides that cars and power plants produce on a daily basis.

Restoration efforts have been unending since the summer of 2010. In an article administrated by NOAA, they explain that “primary restoration activities work to restore or replace habitats; species and service back to their original condition where possible”. In total, 23 different countries offered to aid the clean-up efforts. 70 offers were received from those 23 different countries. Eight were accepted, involving the assistance of 12 different countries (U.S. Department of State, “Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill: International Offers of Assistance,” U.S. Department of State, Accessed May 6, 2014, https://2009-2017.state.gov/r/pa/prs/ps/2010/06/143125.htm). In total, private charities and companies (many of them being oil companies) donated around $4 million dollars to tackle the impact of the spill (Nicole Wallace, “Gifts for Oil Spill Total $4-Million, but More Is Needed,” The Chronicle of Philanthropy, Published June 17, 2010, Accessed May 6, 2014, http://philanthropy.com/article/Gifts-for-Oil-Spill-Total/65880/).

Gulf Coast Wildlife Face Harmful Effects From Oil Spill

The NNE octant of the Gulf, or the area that contains the Deepwater Horizon site, contains 8,332 species of plants and animals (Wall). Dispersing oil is considered to be one of the best ways to protect birds and keep the slick from making landfall. However, they contain harmful toxins of their own and can concentrate leftover oil toxins in the water, where death of fish can occur (Abrahm Lustgarten, “Chemicals Meant To Break Up BP Oil Spill Present New Environmental Concerns”, ProPUBLICA, Published April 30, 2010, Accessed May 6, 2014, http://www.propublica.org/article/bp-gulf-oil-spill-dispersants-0430). It is still often used because of how well the dispersant breaks up oil into tiny droplets that are more likely to sink or remain suspended in deep water rather than floating on the surface. Yet, “there is a chemical toxicity to the dispersant compound that in many ways is worse than oil,” said Richard Carter (“Chemicals Meant To Break Up BP Oil Spill Present New Environmental Concerns”). An expert on marine biology and oil spills, Richard Carter also holds the position as a senior policy adviser for Marine Programs for Defenders of Wildlife as well as the Chairman of the Gulf of the Farallones National Marine Sanctuary Advisory Council. Attempting to prevent oil from reaching shorelines of the Gulf Coast will come with some heavy penalties.

Crude oil is one of the most complex mixtures of natural products, extending over a wide range of molecular weights and structures. The low boiling saturated hydrocarbons (gasoline range), have, until recently, been considered harmless to the marine environment. However, it has now been demonstrated that these hydrocarbons at low concentrations produce anesthesia and narcosis and, at greater concentration, cell damage and death in a wide variety of lower animals. Similarly, these hydrocarbons may be especially damaging to the larval and other young forms of marine life (M. Blumer, “Oil Pollution of the Ocean,” Accessed May 6, 2014, https://link.springer.com/chapter/10.1007/978-1-4684-9019-0_2).

In the Gulf waters, species that appear to the surface to sustain oxygen levels were some of the first affected by this environmental disaster. Animals can be poisoned or suffer internally from ingesting oil (Jennifer Kennedy, “Effects of Oil Spills on Marine Life,” Education Marine Life, Accessed May 6, 2014, http://marinelife.about.com/od/conservation/tp/effectsofoilspills.htm). In the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s (NOAA) oil spill response document, Effects of Oil on Marine Mammals, it is explained that “Dispersed and dissolved oil [comprised of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, (PAHs)] in the water can result in exposure of aquatic resources to the toxicological effects of PAHs”. It is also explained that PAH’s can also cause direct mortality to marine mammals, fish, and aquatic vertebrates through smothering. They also can cause effects such as: “DNA damage, liver disease, cancer, and reproductive, developmental, and immune system impairment” (“NOAA Gulf Spill Restoration”). If a species cannot metabolize these toxic chemical by-products, they can be passed on through consumption from predatory species, affecting those species as well.

Dispersants used to break up oil particles in marine aquatics can also create a greater toxicity of chemicals that can be spread throughout marine life internally, by consumption, or externally, by swimming through it. External effects are found in greater numbers in wildlife such as bird’s wings that come in contact with oil and stick to their feathers. External effects and internal effects affect all the marine life in the spill region, but vary depending on length and quantity of contact. Some external effects that present as symptoms may result in, “skin and eye irritation, burns to mucous membranes of eyes and mouth, and increased susceptibility to infection. On the other hand, internal effects often include, but are not limited to: respiratory infection, inflammation, emphysema, or pneumonia through inhalation, gastrointestinal inflammation, ulcers, bleeding, diarrhea, and maldigestion through ingestion of oil, and damage to organ systems, along with anemia, immune suppression, or even death from absorption of inhaled or ingested chemicals (“NOAA Gulf Spill Restoration”).

The oil spill affected nearly all the wildlife throughout the Gulf of Mexico, but sea turtles and marine birds were some of the first. Many have seen pictures and visual representation of how oil affects marine birds in the Gulf region – images of rescue volunteers cleaning oil that was matted in the feathers of pelicans, for instance, but turtles are also affected by oil. Sea turtles are harmed just by coming in contact with oil and dispersants internally and externally, but additionally, “sea turtles may experience oiling impacts on nesting beaches and eggs through chemical exposures resulting in decreased survival to hatching and developmental defects in hatchlings” (“NOAA Gulf Spill Restoration”). Out of the 528 sea turtles collected in one of the studies conducted by NOAA, 400 were pronounced dead, leaving 128 still alive.

Birds on the other hand, are more susceptible to coming in contact with oil externally through physical contact. Feathers from the bird are made of interlocking barbs and barbules that maintain a barrier between skin and the surrounding environment. Birds also produce natural oils to retain structure and feathers in alignment. When birds come in contact with crude oil, the feathers immediately absorb the oil and, in consequence, all the feathers become matted down. This can cause the birds to lose insulation, which keeps them from maintaining regular body temperatures. Similarly, when a bird comes in contact with oil, it also loses its ability to repel water and fly. As a result, un-rescued birds will typically die from hypothermia, starvation, and/or drowning. On May 30, 2010, the Unified Area Command published its first “Consolidated Fish and Wildlife Collection Report”. On June 16th , 2010, the report concluded that out of 1,746 birds collected during the spill, 1,014 were visibly oiled and 997 were pronounced dead. 749 birds were captured alive and released in hope that it would not come in contact with the oil spill area later on. However, whether they did or not is still unknown.

Making an environmental trade off with the use of dispersants to remove crude oil has injured and imbalanced much of the ecosystem within the spill area. The U.S. Wildlife and Fisheries concluded a report of marine mortalities with injuries from the Deepwater Horizon oil spill. This report included fatalities of 6,147 birds, 613 sea turtles, 157 mammals (including dolphins), and one reptile (“Deepwater Horizon Response Consolidated Fish and Wildlife Collection Report,” Published April 20, 2011, Accessed May 6, 2014, http://www.fws.gov/home/dhoilspill/pdfs/ConsolidatedWildlifeTable042011.pdf). Thousands of other animals that were visibly oiled were captured and released back into the environment. This report and additional information only show a small number of the marine life that was affected by the spill as it is reliant on what has been recorded to date.

Environmental Disaster Affects Louisiana Locals in More Ways than One

Many health concerns after the oil spill have been reported with significant variety. Most that are exposed to pollution from the crude oil or dispersants have symptoms such as headaches, confusion, memory problems, upper and lower respiratory symptoms, asthma, persistent cough, bronchitis, complaints of gastro-intestinal symptoms, and episodic diarrhea. Larger concerns have been raised regarding the workers that are doing offshore clean-up. Chronic respiratory problems and markers of DNA damage that could potentially cause cancer and birth defects have been linked to those helping with clean-up of previous oil spills, such as the Exxon Valdez spill. The NIOSH Report of Deepwater Horizon Response/ Unified Area Command Illness and Injury Data (April 23-July 27, 2010) shows a total of 2,130 workers involved in the Deepwater Horizon response that have contracted some form of illness or injury. These include First Aid cases, OSHA-recordable cases, and missed or restricted duty cases. The worker type for this report varies from positions: BP employee, contractor, federal/state/local, volunteer, and undetermined. The age group ranges from 18-25 but most cases reported were between the ages of 26-35. The most reported cases were lacerations and punctures, contusions and hematomas, and strains, sprain, or muscle and joint pain. The majority of injuries suffered were usually to body parts such as hands and fingers, the arm, or elbow and wrist injuries. Meanwhile, the most common illnesses by nature were heat stress and heat effects.

Lasting Damage

Since June 22nd, 2010, more than 6,000 response vessels and 37,000 personnel have been employed to respond to the spill, recovering more than 25 million gallons of oily water. Over 13 million gallons of oil have been recovered; however, around 1.5 million gallons of dispersant was used. British Petroleum has faced many fines from the government as well as additional lawsuits. This incident was a disaster to the environment and local residents of the Gulf Coast. From the past problems of BP, this should be a final attention grabber to open the eyes of industrial giants and people who run British Petroleum.

In conclusion, the explosion of Deepwater Horizon was an environmental and ecological disaster, as well being the largest accidental marine oil spill in history. Damage to fish and wildlife from oil and the dispersants could cause years of various health problems. In addition, this was not the first time British Petroleum showed negligence to safety and regulations. The Prudhoe bay oil spill and the Texas City Refinery explosion could have been prevented just like the explosion of Deepwater Horizon. To date, almost 5 million barrels of oil were released through the Macondo well covering an area of the Gulf of Mexico that was nearly the same size as Oklahoma. The oil spill will be detrimental to marshlands by oiling plants and killing them, destroying more of the wetlands that haven’t already been destroyed by human efforts. The Deepwater Horizon blowout has permanently scarred the ecosystem, environment, response workers, and communities of the Gulf South region. The BP oil spill has created irreversible damage that money will never be able to fix.