Should the Government Take Over the Oil Leak Cap Efforts now?

Posted on May 29, 2010 by Jeffrey Newman

I write this directly upon BP’s announcement that “top kill” has failed to stop the flow of oil from the well and it is moving on to another approach. Given the fact that the spill is the largest disaster of its kind and the economic impact growing daily, some consideration should be given to the issue of who should control the efforts to halt the flow of oil into the Gulf.  Administration officials have said that the government lacks expertise and technology, including deep diving subs, to perform the work. At some point, if BP is unsuccessful, it is likely that the government will take over and soon, perhaps enlisting other  deep well oil companies to work in combination with BP.  Shouldn’t this happen now? Evidence already exists that the oil has hit the gulf stream and is being carried into Florida’s waterways and is expected to run up the East Coast. No one has estimated the probable losses resulting from the event or modeled the potential harm that could befall our nation from a continuation of the leak. This is not to question the good intentions of the BP engineers who are engaging in present efforts. It is assumed for purposes of this discussion that they are well intentioned and doing everything within their power to halt the flow of oil. What is unclear to me at this time is whether our government has put out a call for the best and brightest engineers, undersea contractors, academics, oil capping experts and others to contribute their energies in an organized effort to halt the flow of oil. Certainly the resources of the federal government and the incredible pool of talented minds in our nation can come up with something notwithstanding that the leak is a mile underground.  In addition to the existing problems, computer models estimating worst case scenarios with timetables should be released to the public for analysis.