Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill and Violations of the Clean

Water Act

By: Forrest France

EHS 535: Environmental Law

• Semisubmersible oil rig

• Owned by Transocean

• 12 year lease by BP

• Operated in the Gulf of Mexico

• BP was the responsible operation entity

1,1

• Oil rig eventually sank

• 11 people died on the oil rig

• Drilling exploratory wells in the Gulf of Mexico

• Hit a pocket of methane gas, mud, and seawater in the bedrock

• 36 hours of firefighting

2,3,2

• Blowout preventers stop crude oil from escaping the well in emergencies

• Use hydrolic pressure to sheer and seal the wells

• Due to numerous failure the well could not be sealed

4,3

• Sea Turtles stranded at 5x the normal rate

• Ulcers and internal bleeding in marine mammals

• Loss in recreational use causing economic loss

• Human health decline

5,6,4,5

Code of Federal Regulations

• Mineral Resources

• Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement for the Department of the Interior

• Offshore work

7,6

• 30 CFR 250

• Oil and Gas and Sulphur operations in the outer continental shelf

7,8,7

30 CFR 250.107

• Maintain all equipment and work areas in a safe manner

• Control, remove, or correct any gas accumulation or fire hazard

7,8,8

30 CFR 250.300

• Pollution Prevention

• Cleanup will be at the expense of the lessee and may have intervention by the government at the expense of the lessee

• The lessee will not create conditions that pose unreasonable risk to public health, life, property, aquatic life, recreation, etc.

7,8,9

30 CFR 250.401, .440, .442, .446, .451

• How to keep wells under control

• Best available and safest drilling technology

• Correct use and maintenance of a blowout preventer

7,8,10

30 CFR 250.420

• Well casing program requirements

• Cementing program requirements

• If followed there would have been no explosion

7,8,11

• Violation of the Clean Water Act

• U.S. Code 33, Chapter 26, Subchapter 3, Section 1321

• Gross Negligence and Willful Misconduct

9,10,12

Trial – Phase 1

• BP = 67% of the liability, Transocean = 30% of the liability, Halliburton = 3% of the liability

• CWA states a minimum fine of $1,100 per barrel of oil spilled

• Gross negligence caused the fines to reach $4,300 per barrel of oil spille

9,10,13,14

Trial – Violation of CWA 33 U.S.C. 1321 (b)(3)

• Discharging oil or hazardous substances is prohibited

• Covers water, shorelines, and areas of the continental shelf

9,10,15

Trial – CWA 33 U.S.C. 1321 (b)(7)(D)

• $4,300 per barrel of spilled oil

• One of the heaviest fines in the united states

9,10,16

Trial – Phase 2

• BP states 2.5 million barrels of oil

• Court decides 4.2 million barrels of oil

• Numbers are being appealed

9,10,17

Today

• Appeals still being issued

• Years before final decisions will be made

• Does not cover potential new cases brought against BP

9,18

Summary

• Violated CWA by polluting

• Maximum fines in place

• Appeals still being filled today

• Operated by Transocean but leased by BP

• Numerous failed systems led to the leaks

• Violated numerous sections of 30 CFR 250

Information Sources

• RigZone. (n.d). Rig Data: Deepwater Horizon. Retrieved from http://www.rigzone.com/data/rig_detail.asp?rig_id=153

• BP. (2014). Deepwater Horizon Accident and Response. Retrieved from http://www.bp.com/en/global/corporate/gulf-of-mexico-restoration/deepwater-horizon-accident-and-response.html

• Pallardy, R. (n.d.). Encyclopedia Britannica: Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill of 2010. Retrieved from http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/1698988/Deepwater-Horizon-oil-spill-of-2010

• Gold, R. (2014). Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill Liked to Failed Blowout Preventer. Retrieved from http://www.wsj.com/articles/investigators-fault-blowout-preventer-in-deepwater-horizon-oil-spill-1401984643

• National Wildlife Federation. (n.d.). How Does the BP Oil Spill Impact Wildlife and Habitat?. Retrieved from http://www.nwf.org/What-We-Do/Protect-Habitat/Gulf-Restoration/Oil-Spill/Effects-on-Wildlife.aspx

• Columbia University. (n.d.). Oil Spill has Far-Reaching Effects on Children and Families. Retrieved from http://www.mailman.columbia.edu/news/oil-spill-has-far-reaching-effects-children-and-families

• Cornell University. (2012). 30 CFR Part 250 – Oil and Gas and Sulphur Operations in the Outer Continental Shelf. Retrieved from https://www.law.cornell.edu/cfr/text/30/part-250

• Bureau of Ocean Energy Management. (n.d.). Deepwater Horizon Reading Room. Retrieved from http://www.boem.gov/Deepwater-Reading-Room/

• U.S. District Courts. (2015). MDL-2179 Oil Spill by the Oil Rig “Deepwater Horizon” Current Developments. Retrieved from http://www.laed.uscourts.gov/OilSpill/OilSpill.htm

• Cornell University. (n.d.). 33 U.S. code 1321 – Oil and Hazardous Substance Liability. Retrieved from https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/33/1321

Video Sources

• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ECamImhCNuY

• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rirjt19lebI

Picture Locations1. http://assets.inhabitat.com/wp-content/blogs.dir/1/files/2010/10/Another-Oil-Explosion-3.jpg

2. http://media-3.web.britannica.com/eb-media/58/139558-120-697CA44D.jpg

3. http://www.wsj.com/articles/investigators-fault-blowout-preventer-in-deepwater-horizon-oil-spill-1401984643

4. http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/fc/Oiled_Bird_-_Black_Sea_Oil_Spill_111207.jpg

5. http://www.nationofchange.org/sites/default/files/GulfOilSpillTrialContinues903013.jpeg

6. http://kenan.ethics.duke.edu/regulation/files/2012/08/natl-archive.jpg

7. http://img1.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20120626172745/hypotheticalhurricanes/images/f/f9/Gulf_of_Mexico_Blue_Marble.png

8. http://jimbaston.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/11/no-maintenance.png

9. http://www.polarishd.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/04/Fishing.jpg

10. http://i.bnet.com/blogs/blow-out-preventer.gif

11. http://wellsaidcabot.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/10/well-casing.gif

12. http://www.jkeylegal.com/index_files/justice-scales.png

13. https://www.maatakaful.com.my/wp-content/uploads/2011/12/general_public_liability.jpg

14. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Deepwater_Horizon_litigation#/media/File:Carl_J._Barbier.jpg

15. http://www.oilspillnews.net/wp-content/uploads/2010/12/1292785236-32.jpg

16. http://pixabay.com/p-400301/?no_redirect

17. https://quenchnj.com/app/uploads/2015/03/barrel-oil-costs.jpg

18. http://aldermanlawfirm.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/09/court-gavel-23.jpg