Oil Spills And Their Affects On Our Beaches Research Paper

Oil Spills And Their Affects On Our Beaches - Research Paper ExampleOil contamination Act of 1990 (OPA 90), which imposed unlimited liability on proprietors and operators of ships and shore facilities who discharge oilinto surrounding waters. This Act met with much criticism, especially from energy company lobbyists, for it contained hard rules and regulations that had the potential to alter international oil trade. For example, the cost of compliance with OPA 90 was said to be $1.3 billion over the next 24 years, but few say the figure will be closer to $7 million by 2015. (Oshins, 1992, p.54) This is an important statistic in the context of this essay, for it indicates the real reason behind continue instances of oil spills namely, cost of compliance. Although the OPA 90 was supposed to deter sub-standard safety measures, it has not fulfilled that end. This is in part due to the perceived excesses in some of its clauses. in that respect is validity to those claims which portr ay OPA 90 in negative light, attacking it for the severity of punitive measures it encompasses. For example, under the OPA 90, in addition to removal costs, the responsible party becomes conjectural for consequential damages harm to natural resources, economic loss to real or personal property, losses suffered by one who earns subsistence from natural resources, losses in tax revenues, loss to profit or earning capacity, and increased expense of public services. (Oshins, 1992, p.54) Hence, a major drawback of the legislation is its underlying assumption that exorbitant financial stipend after the event will somewhat prompt oil companies to tighten up their transportation procedures. But this assumption has proven weak. For example, although there are some efforts by major oil companies toward making their oceanic oil transport as risk-free as possible, the frequency of spills has not reduced. The recent British oil colour disaster is another example of the systemic failure of oi l industry and government agencies. The recent BP disaster is as much a result of gentlemans gentleman failures as it is due to technical shortcomings and inadequate planning. Even as investigations were started and all pretense of earnestness were shown by politicians, the most important reason has been ignored namely, that heavyset sea drilling is inherently risky and continued use of fossil fuels are already affecting marine ecosystems through climate change. Another part that amplifies risk of oil-spill is the generation of hydrate gas. Under a depth of 1000 feet or more beneath the sea-level hydrate gases such as methane are found in a solid state, compressed into molecular cages of ice. (Allen, 2010, p.12) But if they happen to get destabilized due to a reduction in draw or rise in temperature, the gas-water compound can quickly expand 164 times in volume. If ignited, even ice-bound hydrates burn. This could potentially block the blowout preventer stack, kill lines and ch okes, obstruct the case of the drill string, and cause serious operational and safety concerns including blowouts (Allen, 2010, p.12) In the last thirty years, 165 blowouts were witnessed in U.S. marine zones and 500 worldwide. The Minerals Management Service (MMS), which is the head word government agency looking into the problem, has not taken adequate steps to mitigate this risk. Even in the BP case, the MMS was suspected of colluding with the business corporation