America's Gulf Disaster: Accidental or Deliberate? (tags)
criminal malfeasance involved
Here We Go Again: Another Rig Explosion (tags)
only a total offshore drilling ban can work
Leak Hampers BP Effort to Shut Off Well and Halt Spill (tags)
ABOARD THE RESOLUTE, 50 miles off Louisiana — BP stopped collecting oil from its runaway well on Wednesday afternoon, laying the groundwork for a critical test that could halt the rush of oil into the Gulf of Mexico for the first time since the disaster began three months ago. The test involves closing valves on a new tight-fitting cap to increase pressure in the well, so that BP can assess the rest of the well’s condition.
Insurance Comm Candidate Padilla Opposes "Cap" On BP Ins-Calls For Seizure Of BP & Energy (tags)
Dina Padilla, Peace and Freedom Party candidate for California Insurance Commissioner has opposed any changes of insurance caps and instead is calling for the seizure of BP and public control of the entire energy under democratic worker management with the profits going to the public.
Gulf oil spill threatens economic, environmental catastrophe (tags)
"According to a report in the Wall Street Journal, the Deepwater Horizon oil rig lacked a device called an acoustic switch that could have shut off the flow of oil. The remote controlled device sends acoustic impulses through the water that can trigger an underwater valve to shut down the well. All offshore rigs have one main switch to shut off the flow of oil by closing a valve located on the ocean floor. There is also supposed to be a backup, a so-called “dead man,” that will shut down the well in the event of a catastrophe on the rig. Apparently neither of these devices worked on the Deepwater Horizon rig. The crewmembers who would have been closest to the shutoff switch are among those missing and presumed dead. With an acoustic trigger a crew can shut down a well even if the rig is damaged or evacuated. However, BP, which reported profits of $5.598 billion for the first quarter of 2010, vigorously resisted changes to US regulations that would have required acoustic triggers on deep sea rigs, citing effectiveness and costs, about $500,000 per unit. Compliant US regulators agreed, saying other backup plans were sufficient. They called the acoustic triggers unreliable and prone to causing unnecessary shutdowns."
Caravan to Rio Tinto to support miners locked out (tags)
On February 24th, a caravan of four big rig trucks and around 150 cars carried over 200 people and $30,000 in food to support the Rio Tinto miners in Boron, California.