The Economic and Environmental Impact of the BP Oil Spill, 2010
Jun 12, 2010 Christine Rachuy
The BP 2010 oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico damaged the environment and with it the economy of the United States. The impact could last for decades.
Sadly, after the explosion of a British Petroleum (BP) offshore oil rig on April 20, 2010, countless gallons of oil have penetrated the waters of the Gulf of Mexico. The damage that the explosion has caused environmentally and economically is not yet known because the horrific story is not yet finished; oil continues to gush into the ocean in the area.
Unlike the Exxon Valdez spill in 1989, where the spill was limited to the capacity of the ship, the BP rig is tapped into an underwater well, with an undetermined amount of oil to be leaked. In his 2010 Huffingtonpost.com article "Government Raises Estimate of Oil Flow to 20,000 to 40, 000 Barrels A Day, More or Less" (accessed June 11, 2010), Dan Froomkin reports that American government mathematicians have estimated that between 840,000 to 1.7 million gallons of oil are leaking into the Gulf each day.
Environmental Impact
Due to the difference in location, the depth of the oil spill, and the ecological systems in the area, it's difficult for scientists to determine exactly how the environment will be affected. The spill in the Gulf of Mexico occurred at a depth of 5,000 feet, thus affecting the water from seafloor to surface. Sadly the affects of the spill could last for decades.
Read more at Suite101: The Economic and Environmental Impact of the BP Oil Spill, 2010 http://www.suite101.com/content/oil-spill-2010-a248028#ixzz0yuQAlwNL