http://barbara-spring.blogspot.com/2010/04/offshore-oil-drilling-disaster.htmlSunday, April 25, 2010
Offshore Oil Drilling Disaster
NEW ORLEANS, Louisiana (AFP) – Oil is leaking from the ruptured well of a large rig that exploded, burnt and sank in the Gulf of Mexico earlier this week, the US Coast Guard said Saturday.The Coast Guard estimated that up to 1,000 of barrels of oil, or 42,000 gallons (158,987 liters) were spewing each day from a riser and a drill pipe...
In light of the oil disaster in the Gulf, here is an excerpt from my book, The Dynamic Great Lakes
The Great Lakes are large, but fragile.
Presently, offshore drilling for oil and gas is not permitted in the Great Lakes. The eight governors of the states bordering the Great Lakes ban oil drilling in the Great Lakes because they are so vulnerable to oil contamination.
Canada has allowed 55 wells in Lake Erie.
Yet some oil exploration companies have drilled under Lake Michigan from on shore sites by means of directional drilling and want to explore for more oil under the Great Lakes. So far twelvewells have been drilled from offshore using directional drilling to go
Accidental oil spills in the Great Lakes have the potential for far more serious damage than an oil spill at sea because the water in the Great Lakes takes a long time to circulate through the system. An oil spill would affect the whole ecosystem from the microscopic plankton to the eagle with a seven-foot wingspan. It would affect the people who depend on Great Lakes water for domestic, agricultural and manufacturing purposes.
*The Dynamic Great Lakes was published in 2001. Now the number of Canadian offshore wells has increased along with the possibility of oil spills.