The Gulf of Mexico Oil spill 2010 was the biggest and most famous oil spill in the country's history. It is also known as the Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill in 2010. The oil spill occurred after an explosion occurred within the Deep-water Horizon oil rig on April 20, 2010. The oil rig exploded about 41 miles away from Louisiana beach. After the explosion, the oil rig sank on April 22, 2010. The oil rig was owned and managed by Transocean. The oil rig was leased by oil company BP and was located within the Mississippi Canyon. The oil well was situated about 1522 meters or 4993 below the surface and extended about 5486 meters or 18000 feet into the continental shelf rock ( Kostka et al., 2011) . The research paper will evaluate the cause of the BP oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico and its environmental impact.
The Explosion
The well had been sealed using a concrete core installed by Halliburton Company. However, on April 20 th , 2010, there was a surge of natural gas within the oil well. When the pressure became too high, the natural gas blasted through the concrete core. Studies showed that the core used by the company was too weak and could not withstand the pressure from the natural gas. The concrete core was weak because the contractors had used nitrogen gas to speed up or accelerate the curing process. After the natural gas was released through a fracture in the core, it rose through the riser to the surface and platform. After reaching the platform, it ignited leading to the death of eleven workers while seventeen were injured. On April 22 nd , the rig collapsed and sank ( Solomon & Janssen, 2010) . The collapse caused the riser to rupture. The company had attempted to inject drilling mud into the riser to counteract the upward pressure of natural gas and oil. When the riser ruptured, there was no opposing force and methane gas and oil began discharging into the surrounding.
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Figure 1 showing the fire after the explosion.
Initially, BP attempted to activate a failsafe mechanism known as rig's blowout preventer (BOP) but the device malfunctioned. The BOP was a mechanism through which they could close the channel where the oil and gas were being drawn. In 2011, a forensic analysis of the BOP was carried out and it revealed that the blind shear arms had malfunctioned (White et al., 2012). The blind shear arms are a set of big blades designed to slice through pipes carrying gas and oil. The malfunction of the blind shear arms was caused by a bend in the pipes due to the high pressure of rising oil and gas. The Chemical and Safety Board insisted that the blind shear arms had been activated earlier than they had previously thought and the move could have actually punctured the pipe carrying gas and oil.
Figure 2 showing the areas affected by the oil spill.
There were various efforts in May to insert a containment dome over the leak in the ruptured riser but the efforts were unsuccessful because of the gas hydrates that had a buoyant action. They also attempted a ‘top kill’ mechanism where they tried to pump drilling mud into the riser to control the flow but it also failed. In June, they attempted the Lower Marine Riser Package (LMRP) cap where they tried to lower a cap onto the top part of the BOP. Although the cap was loosely fitted, BP was able to siphon about 15000 barrels of oil daily into a tanker. Furthermore, BP added an ancillary system into the BOP that allowed the company to siphon over 25000 barrels of oil daily ( Mezić, Loire, Fonoberov, & Hogan, 2010) .
In July, the company removed the LMRP cap so that they could place a permanent seal. On July 12, the more permanent seal was installed and it stopped the leak. However, the leak stopped after 87 days and a government-commissioned panel of scientists estimated that the leak had released about 4.9 million barrels of oil into the gulf (White et al., 2012). The LMRP cap had only assisted BP to collect about 800000 barrels. On August, BP began pumping drilling mud into the BOP as a form of ‘static kill.’ The drilling mud could now be injected into the riser at lower pressures because of the impact of the capping stack. In September, BP removed the malfunctioned the capping stack and defective BOP and replaced it with a functioning BOP. They also pumped cement through a relief well. After a series of detailed and sophisticated pressure tests, they announced that the well was completely sealed on September 20 th , 2010.
Environmental Impact
The oil spill had an immediate impact on animals within the gulf. There were smothered turtles that were washed up on the Louisiana beaches, pelicans that were black with oil and some fish that were belly-up within brown patches. There was an increase of strandings of sea turtles and dolphins for more than five years after the oil spill. The average dolphin deaths within the gulf between 2002 and 2009 were 63. But after the spill, it rose to 125 dolphin deaths in 2010 and 335 dolphin deaths in 2011. Between 2010 and 2015, the average dolphin death was 200 in comparison to 63 deaths before the oil spill ( Mezić, Loire, Fonoberov, & Hogan, 2010) . Although the dolphin deaths have been declining since 2016, the long-term impact of the oil spill of dolphins' population is not yet known. Also, the sea turtles' nests reduced significantly in the Gulf and the long-term impact is not yet known.
Figure 3 showing a dolphin affected by the oil spill.
Seabirds were adversely affected by the crude oil because a few drops of oil on their feathers impacted their ability to find food, fly, and swim. It is estimated that there were hundreds of thousands of seabird losses. Seabirds that live in the marshes surrounding the gulf experienced the biggest impact of the oil spill. Invertebrates both in the deep and coastal areas were adversely affected by the Deepwater Horizon Spill. Most of the shrimp fisheries in the Gulf were closed for several months after the spill. However, the species seems to have recovered according to recent estimates by fishermen. About 400 feet deep within the Gulf, corals were covered by a brown substance and had tissue damage ( Mariano et al., 2011) .
Figure 4 showing a pelican covered in oil in Queen Bess Island, Louisiana.
Its effects on the fish communities are yet unknown but laboratory studies show that the oil spill could have caused heart defects on the developing larvae of various fish including Bluefin tuna. On the other hand, some fish larvae population appeared to have increased because of more food attributed to oil-eating microbes. About seven years after the disaster, there were reports of deformed wildlife such as fish with deformities and lesions. Also, there were reports of deformed and eyeless shrimp. Nevertheless, consuming Gulf seafood was declared safe after the oil cleanup. The Gulf of Mexico spans over 1000 miles from Florida to Texas and the area was negatively affected by the oil spill ( Solomon & Janssen, 2010) . Although the region was cleaned, the erosion rate accelerated after the spill. Furthermore, the eroded shorelines are taking a long time to recover.
The US Department of Justice initiated a formal criminal and civil investigation into the spill in 2010. Furthermore, there were numerous and complex legal entanglements both public and private regarding the case. In 2012, BP agreed to settle claims that were worth about $7.8 billion. Also, they pleaded guilty to 14 criminal charges including 11 counts of felony and manslaughter, violation of Clean Water Act, and violation of Migratory Bird Treaty Act. The agreement carried a further $4.5 billion in terms of penalties and fines. Also, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) suspended the company from getting new federal contracts in 2012 ( Mariano et al., 2011) . The ban was later lifted in 2014. Furthermore, there were various charges against individual and contractors. The finalized settlements were worth over $20.8 billion in 2015. It was the biggest financial penalty leveled against a company in the US. Although some observers questioned the settlement, the environmental and economic outcomes of the oil spill were severe.
Conclusion
The research paper evaluates the cause of the BP oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico and its environmental impact. The oil spill occurred after an explosion occurred within the Deep-water Horizon oil rig on April 20, 2010. The leak continued for about three months before it was sealed. Thousands of sea turtles, birds, and mammals were affected by the oil spill. There was a sudden spike in the number of deaths of wildlife within the gulf. More than 1400 dolphins and whales were stranded by 2015 ( Crone & Tolstoy, 2010) . Research also showed that there was a sudden decrease in dolphin fertility. All in all, the disaster exposed the dangers of offshore oil processes not only to human but also to the environments. Regardless of the importance of oil to the global economy, oil companies must evaluate the impact of their activities on human and animal life. Also, the government must ensure that oil companies comply with regulations.
References
Crone, T. J., & Tolstoy, M. (2010). The magnitude of the 2010 Gulf of Mexico oil leak: Science , 330 (6004), 634-634.
Kostka, J. E., Prakash, O., Overholt, W. A., Green, S. J., Freyer, G., Canion, A., & Huettel, M. (2011). Hydrocarbon-degrading bacteria and the bacterial community response in Gulf of Mexico beach sands impacted by the Deepwater Horizon oil spill: Applied and environmental microbiology , 77 (22), 7962-7974.
Mariano, A. J., Kourafalou, V. H., Srinivasan, A., Kang, H., Halliwell, G. R., Ryan, E. H., & Roffer, M. (2011). On the modeling of the 2010 Gulf of Mexico oil spill. Dynamics of Atmospheres and Oceans , 52 (1-2), 322-340.
Mezić, I., Loire, S., Fonoberov, V. A., & Hogan, P. (2010). A new mixing diagnostic and Gulf oil spill movement. Science , 330 (6003), 486-489.
Solomon, G. M., & Janssen, S. (2010). Health effects of the Gulf oil spill. JAMA , 304 (10), 1118-1119.
White, H. K., Hsing, P. Y., Cho, W., Shank, T. M., Cordes, E. E., Quattrini, A. M., ... & Brooks, J. M. (2012). Impact of the Deepwater Horizon oil spill on a deep-water coral community in the Gulf of Mexico: Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences , 109 (50), 20303-20308.
