Despite my earlier articles suggesting the promise of the containment dome... the latest attempt at ceasing the never ending stream of oil has been a bust. After the 14 days it took to build the dome, 3 days to move it out to sea, and 12 hours to lower it down a mile into the ocean- it was ice that put a stop to the whole operation.
According to the article that I read a few hours ago, the ice that caused the complication was a mixture of gas and water at freezing temperatures and high pressures called hydrates. These hydrates are reportedly common problems with offshore drilling, and had been possible obstacles since the beginning of the whole operation. Yet, despite recent news that this is all common knowledge. I hadn't heard anything about it in the several articles I've read on the subject in the past few days...
(Officials are going to have to wait until Monday to move forward with the containment and weigh their options as to what to do next. Some of the ideas on the table right now are to melt the ice with warm water and try again, or to prevent icing inside the dome with a mixture of hot water and methanol.)
Two other recent developments surrounding the spill: (1) The cause has been determined to be a methane gas bubble. Apparently, as the bubble (another common occurrence in drilling) shot up through the pipes, it grew in size and burst through several seals- causing the almost irreparable damage that we are dealing with today. (2) Tar has reached the shores of Dauphin Island, only 3 miles off the coast of Atlanta. This has so far put a damper on beach-goers and caused quite a scare- but cleanup has been quite easy so far.
- Amber
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20100508/ap_on_bi_ge/us_gulf_oil_spill
Saturday, May 8, 2010
How the Oil Containment Dome Works?
In my last article I talked about the recent oil spill in the Gulf Coast, and its potential solutions. As a follow-up article, I am going to explain in brief how the proposed containment dome (pictured below) will work.
The dome is roughly 4 stories tall, measuring in at 14 x 24 x 40ft. To put that in perspective, its volume is a little over 100,000 gallons. That is only a fraction of the roughly 5,000 barrels of oil being leaked daily. So, how will something so small help contain SO MUCH oil?
By fitting the dome over the worst of the 2 remaining leaks, engineers hope to create a seal with the sea floor and collect as much oil as possible. (Estimates are at an optimistic 85%) They will then connect a long pipe from the dome on the sea floor to a boat above it. The pressure created in the dome as it fills, will force oil up the pipe and into the boat where it can be collected and stored properly.
Sounds good so far. But the problem is that a cleanup method of this type has never been done at such a depth before. The domes were used after Katrina in depths of roughly 1,000 feet, but multiplying that by 5 leaves a lot of room for guess work. Not to mention the fact that even getting the dome over the broken pipe will be a task with a difficulty compared to that of performing open heart surgery...
Also, the dome will only be a short-term fix. And assuming it is a successful operation, there will still be one more leak to fix, and all of the already spilled out to clean up. Long term plans right now are to drill a relief well for the oil but that could take up to 90 days...
I'll keep you posted as more info. comes out in the news.
- Amber
http://news.yahoo.com/s/livescience/20100507/sc_livescience/howthegulfoilspillcontainmentdomewillwork
The dome is roughly 4 stories tall, measuring in at 14 x 24 x 40ft. To put that in perspective, its volume is a little over 100,000 gallons. That is only a fraction of the roughly 5,000 barrels of oil being leaked daily. So, how will something so small help contain SO MUCH oil?
By fitting the dome over the worst of the 2 remaining leaks, engineers hope to create a seal with the sea floor and collect as much oil as possible. (Estimates are at an optimistic 85%) They will then connect a long pipe from the dome on the sea floor to a boat above it. The pressure created in the dome as it fills, will force oil up the pipe and into the boat where it can be collected and stored properly.
Sounds good so far. But the problem is that a cleanup method of this type has never been done at such a depth before. The domes were used after Katrina in depths of roughly 1,000 feet, but multiplying that by 5 leaves a lot of room for guess work. Not to mention the fact that even getting the dome over the broken pipe will be a task with a difficulty compared to that of performing open heart surgery...
Also, the dome will only be a short-term fix. And assuming it is a successful operation, there will still be one more leak to fix, and all of the already spilled out to clean up. Long term plans right now are to drill a relief well for the oil but that could take up to 90 days...
I'll keep you posted as more info. comes out in the news.
- Amber
http://news.yahoo.com/s/livescience/20100507/sc_livescience/howthegulfoilspillcontainmentdomewillwork
Wednesday, May 5, 2010
Oil Spill
On April 20, 2010 - two weeks ago, a BP oil rig, the Deep Horizon just off of the coast of Louisiana exploded resulting in the death of 11 crew members and setting events in motion that would lead to one of the most catastrophic oil spills in history. An estimated 210,000 gallons of crude oil are being leaked into the ocean every day- meaning that over a million gallons of oil could already have contaminated the ocean. And despite many efforts to contain the spill and clean it up as quickly as possible- it is proving to be a very difficult task. Obama was reported calling the spill a "potentially unprecedented environmental disaster,"on Sunday- comparing it to the likes of the EXXON spill of 89 which spilled nearly 11 million gallons of crude oil, contaminating over 1,300 miles of Alaskan coastline, and 11,000 square miles of ocean.
The New York Times reported on Saturday, "The imperiled marshes that buffer New Orleans and the rest of the state from the worst storm surges are facing a sea of sweet crude oil, orange as rust."The marshes that have already been degraded by recent hurricanes such as Katrina and Rita are already in critical condition, and skeptics wonder how much more they can take. Scientists are unsure of how the marshes and wetlands will handle the impending influx of oil. Normally, wetlands can survive spills of this nature, but already weakened by hurricanes it is possible that much of the grasses that make up the wetland ecosystem could die out.
Obviously, this is already a huge environmental problem, and it is only going to continue to grow until the rig can be shut down. The reason this task has proved so difficult thus far is because the rig is 5,000 feet below the surface of the ocean. And for some reason, despite numerous efforts by BPs engineers- the rig's blowout preventers are not closing. Since then, the National Guard has tried burning off the oil before it can spread but weather is preventing as much action as they would have hoped. In addition, engineers were able to send down robots to fix one of three leaks on the boat but the oil flow has not slowed down. The next step in trying to contain the spill is, according to the New York Times, to lower a 98-ton "containment dome" over the rig in order to prevent further contamination.
President Obama, who has been endorsing off shore drilling took a big hit with this catastrophic event. He has shut down all new off-shore oil rigs until this situation can be resolved and is taking some heat from his previous critics, and environmentalists alike to postpone offshore drilling altogether until more safeguards can be put into place in order to combat these sorts of situations.
Sources: [NYTimes: Gulf of Mexico Oil Spill (2010). NYTimes: Gulf Coast Towns Brace as Huge Oil Slick Nears Marshes.Wikipedia: EXXON . ]
- Amber
The New York Times reported on Saturday, "The imperiled marshes that buffer New Orleans and the rest of the state from the worst storm surges are facing a sea of sweet crude oil, orange as rust."The marshes that have already been degraded by recent hurricanes such as Katrina and Rita are already in critical condition, and skeptics wonder how much more they can take. Scientists are unsure of how the marshes and wetlands will handle the impending influx of oil. Normally, wetlands can survive spills of this nature, but already weakened by hurricanes it is possible that much of the grasses that make up the wetland ecosystem could die out.
Obviously, this is already a huge environmental problem, and it is only going to continue to grow until the rig can be shut down. The reason this task has proved so difficult thus far is because the rig is 5,000 feet below the surface of the ocean. And for some reason, despite numerous efforts by BPs engineers- the rig's blowout preventers are not closing. Since then, the National Guard has tried burning off the oil before it can spread but weather is preventing as much action as they would have hoped. In addition, engineers were able to send down robots to fix one of three leaks on the boat but the oil flow has not slowed down. The next step in trying to contain the spill is, according to the New York Times, to lower a 98-ton "containment dome" over the rig in order to prevent further contamination.
President Obama, who has been endorsing off shore drilling took a big hit with this catastrophic event. He has shut down all new off-shore oil rigs until this situation can be resolved and is taking some heat from his previous critics, and environmentalists alike to postpone offshore drilling altogether until more safeguards can be put into place in order to combat these sorts of situations.
Sources: [NYTimes: Gulf of Mexico Oil Spill (2010). NYTimes: Gulf Coast Towns Brace as Huge Oil Slick Nears Marshes.Wikipedia: EXXON . ]
- Amber
Saturday, April 17, 2010
Earth Day Festival Photos
The Earth Day Festival was fantastic. Most of one of the streets in downtown Spokane was blocked off for the street fair. And although the turn out was not as great as any one would have hoped, it was reportedly hirer than the previous years. There were many speakers at the event: several environmental conversationalists, the mayor, and a state senator. In addition there were dozens of booths ranging from politics to arts and crafts, all about the environment and its protection. Although not many people of my age group showed up, there were plenty of adults, young adults, and children attending. And without further ado, here are the promised photos:
This sign was emblazoned upon the side of a tall building. Hopefully plenty of people saw it and appreciated its message.
Me, enjoying an ice cream cone at the festivities.
- Amber
All About Earth Day
Earth Day, celebrated April 22, was founded by U.S. Senator, Gaylord Nelson in 1970 was designed to be a day for the promotion of the environment and its protection. According to the Wikipedia article, the first Earth Day was an unsuspected, raving success. Despite original skeptical predictions of the turn-out, over 20 million people from all demographics, all across the country got out and rallied for the environment. Since its creation 40 years ago, Earth Day has continued to grow in size. The holiday is now celebrated globally, endorsed by the United Nations, and has even spread into Earth Week. An entire week of April designated for the love and protection of planet Earth.
Although Earth Day isn't until the middle of next week, I thought it would be fitting to write an article on it today seeing as I will be attending Spokane's annual Earth Day celebration downtown in only a few hours. The event takes place from 11:00 AM until midnight today, and will feature: community booths, vendors, performances, live music, plenty of food and beverages, and fun activities for people of all ages. Not only is Earth Day a great opportunity for fun, and the protection of the environment, it offers a great opportunity for teaching the next generation about ecology. In my opinion, the best method for ensuring the protection of the planet in the future is to education children, the next generation- and Earth Day is a prime occasion for this kind of education. Some of the specific events occurring are:
- planting vegetable gardens and wildflowers
- a water testing activity
- bicycle endorsement and helmet give-away
- bird-feeder construction
- and arts and crafts made from recycled materials
I'll be off soon to the event... and I promise to take and post plenty of pictures of the proceedings.
- Amber
[inserted images are earth day flags: 1. agreenwayoflife.com, 2. inhabitat.com, 3. teacherweb.com].
Wednesday, April 7, 2010
More Pictures
So, Spring quarter just started up at SCC... and I've been feeling kind of distracted lately - not really in the educational/research mood generally required for writing more formal blog posts. So if it's alright with everyone I think I'm going to try and shift to a more informal attitude. That means more pictures, more about my life and my experiences, with the occasional educational post tossed in there. If there are any objections- or if you feel that I am lacking in one of those categories feel free to comment.
Here's a quick recap of my latest adventures: I went to Alaska for spring break, it was incredible. That is where the below pictures are from. I've decided to go back to Anchorage next year for school and everything is all lined up for that. This is good for my enviro-habits too... At West I will rejoin and actively participate in school recycling, Green Team, and FIISH club. As well as continue my vegetarianism. While in Alaska I fell back on my no-meat policy. But now that I've returned to Spokane its back to full veg for me. I'll keep you posted on how its going. But as for now, PHOTOS:
The view of sleeping lady and the Cook Inlet from my step-mom's office in downtown.
A sundog...
Looking over the inlet from our parking spot downtown.
Girls night out for first Friday. Clockwise: Amber, Morgan, Heather, Lisa.
That's all for now. I hope you enjoyed the new pictures.
- Amber
Friday, April 2, 2010
Photos of Alaska
It has been really great to be back with our family in Alaska. Unfortunately however, spring break is almost over and we'll be flying back to Spokane on Sunday morning. Here are some photos of my latest Alaskan adventure.
Flying over the cascades on the way to Anchorage from Seattle.
The view from my snow tunnel in the front drive-way.
XC skiing in Girdwood with my cousins.
Sunrise, view from the living room window.
Airplane flying over sleeping lady at Kincaid park.
That's all for now. I hope you enjoy them. I'll write more later. But as for now I am going to go to an art show.
- Amber
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