BP oil leak cleanup cost $350 mil so far + a world of outrage

For 3 weeks now BP has tried to stop an oil leak that began with an explosion on its Maconda well in the Gulf of Mexico. For 3 weeks, oil has spilled into the ocean at a rate of about 5,000 barrels per day. Not only is it devastating the environment surrounding the oil leak and causing economic repercussions for people who live and work on the coast, it’s also a monumental waste of unrealized energy.

With the fail-safes it had in place defunct and ineffective, BP is now flailing to figure out another way to contain the oil leak. Executive Officer of BP, Tony Hayward has indicated that the company already spent $350 million in trying to cleanup and stop the oil leak, but that’s miniscule compared to the gaping wound this circumstance has left in the Earth which is at the same time destroying the BP brand.

Companies are used to dealing with calamity though, they plan for them and learn from them, right? Maybe, but in this case the stakes mountainous, Hayward says it’s “. . . the largest, most comprehensive spill response mounted in the history of the United States or the oil and gas industry by probably two orders of magnitude”, according to Bloomberg. The blame game is just beginning too as class action lawsuits pepper Hayward’s desk and his company seeks to hold its vendors and partner partially responsible.

On the flip side this is an opportunity to see humanity react to catastrophe with a sense of ownership; with the realization that our presence on Earth has caused this. A Facebook group calling itself “Help Save the Gulf Coast from the Oil Leak” is organizing some donations and volunteer efforts. People and small businesses are also responding by donating hair that will be used to contain the oil.

BP has yet to voice any strong denial of its responsibility for the problem and has responded to lawsuits from individual fishermen who depend on clean waters in the Gulf for their livelihood. Claims have averaged $5,000 per person. But a payout like that certainly isn’t economically sustaining in the long term and the environmental damage in the Gulf certainly has long lasting implications for the entire region.