As the environmental impact of the Gulf oil disaster continues to grow, more details are beginning to emerge of a series of reports warning of such a disaster being ignored and BP even being granted a ‘categorical exclusion’ from environmental reviews into their drilling operations.

Revelations

It is often the case with disasters such as this that the investigations in the aftermath reveal either a shortcut being taken, a instance of simple human error, or just plain bad luck is to blame. But it is now emerging that time after time warnings were ignored, and the fallout from revelations over the extent of the systemic failures could resonate even wider than the disaster’s environmental impact.

Timeline of failures

Between 2000 and 2008, a series of reports were published detailing the risks and lack of protection for deep-sea drilling operations, all of which were ignored. Here is the time line of events that preceded this disaster.

• In 2000, the US Department of the Interior’s Minerals Management Service (MMS) published a report that contained a warning that now seems hauntingly prescient. They claimed that due to limited experience in deep-water well control and such rigs’ high production rates, any blow-out could be “a potential show-stopper” for deep-water drilling.
• In 2004 another report highlighted the fact that while research into drilling technology had advanced greatly, making deep-water drilling an even more accessible prospect, safety technology had been widely passed over and had therefore stagnated. This report, by Texas A&M University, explicitly raised a concern that blow-out control technology was currently not adequate.
• In 2008 a report whose authors included people employed by Transocean and BP (who own and lease the Gulf rig) warned that the BOPs that are supposed to prevent blow-outs may lack the capacity to cut through the high-strength drills used in deep-sea operations, which would render them unable to stop a blow-out occurring.
• In 2009 MMS granted BP’s Deepwater Horizon drilling operation a ‘categorical exclusion’ from all environmental reviews, along with hundreds of similar exclusions being granted to other drilling operations in the Gulf. Waivers such as this are meant for projects that have minimal or non-existent potential for causing environmental damage in the event of a problem occurring.

Learning From Mistakes

It is clear from this series of events that there were considerable failures in the oil industry’s regulators. It has often been claimed by environmentalists that the huge demand for oil has lead to the industry ignoring any reports that may reign in extraction activity. This timeline may be the clearest example yet that the industry needs greater scrutiny over its practices. If only one good thing comes out from this disaster then it may be that the US government has had its hand forced following years of neglecting its responsibility to ensure monitoring and regulation takes place.

WWF is one of the world’s most vociferous and active lobbyists for increased environmental awareness in the oil industry. By joining today, you can help their efforts to make sure that we no longer have to face disasters such as the Gulf oil spill