BP and the rest of the nation today will learn whether their efforts in capping the well are successful. If the new cap can hold and stop the flow of oil, it will be the first time in 84 days that the oil will stop polluting the Gulf of Mexico.
Even if this is successful, the solution is only a temporary one, but if offers the best hope to end the spill. The blown out well still must be plugged, and that permanent fix will not occur until the other two wells are on line, and that may not happen until mid August. When the other two wells are on line, then BP will work on a permanent fix by plugging the broken well with drilling mud and cement. BP will gauge the pressure within the wellhead, and if the pressure remains high, it would mean that the leak is being contained by the wellhead. If the pressure is low, it means that there is another leak within the well. Ending the flow will mean that there is now a finite end in sight for cleaning up the Gulf, and the shorelines affected by the spill. Besides ending the flow, if this is successful, BP should be able to provide us with a hard number of just how many barrels of oil were being emitted from the flow. The pressure within the well can provide us with that number. Government and BP previous estimates have been all over the place, but this past Monday the Feds commented that between 89 million to 176 million gallons of oil had poured into the Gulf. Unfortunately, the oil below the water’s surface will continue to rise during storm activity and continue to cause clean up issues for years to come. The only other good news regarding the spill is that the Obama administration resubmitted a revised moratorium on deep water off shore drilling.
Photo: BP Capping Efforts Photo Courtesy: BP
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