Coast Guard OKs controlled burn to deal with Gulf of Mexico oil spill
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The U.S. Coast Guard has approved a plan to have a controlled burn of oil leaking from an exploded drilling rig in the Gulf of Mexico, officials said Wednesday.
Speaking at a news conference that included state and industry officials, Coast Guard Rear Adm. Mary Landry said she had approved the burn as one of a group of tools to deal with the spill from the rig leased by the oil company BP. The burn is expected later Wednesday.
“I approved BP’s plan to execute a controlled burn in a small area in the sea.” Landry said. She emphasized that the burn was just one of several techniques to be used, including employing chemicals to disperse the spill and skimming the leak off the surface.
Landry said a 500-foot boom will be used to contain several thousand gallons of the oil on the surface. The Coast Guard has indicated that the oil will then be towed it to a remote area, set on fire and allowed to burn for about an hour.
The admiral described the situation as very serious, but she insisted it was too soon to call it catastrophic. “We continue to remain in a very forward-leaning posture,” she said.
The exact timing of the burn will depend on the weather, said Doug Suttles, chief operating officer of BP Exploration and Production.
“We can burn at any point,” he said at the news conference. “Weather has a big impact. We fully expect a burn today and to report results tomorrow.”
The Transocean Deepwater Horizon drilling rig, 130 miles southeast of New Orleans, sank on April 22. A flyover on Tuesday showed a rainbow sheen approximately 600 miles in circumference with areas of emulsified crude oil. The edge of the sheen is approximately 23 miles off the coast of Louisiana, according to officials.
“We have projections where the oil will go,” Landry said, “and we have plans to bring resources to bear.” She said BP has marshaled significant resources, and she praised the company for being “forward-leaning” in dealing with the spill.
Officials said there are believed to be seven whales in the spill zone, but none of them are distressed.
According to the Coast Guard, more than a quarter of a million gallons of an oil-water mix have been recovered. About 70 response vessels are being used in the operation, including skimmers, tugs and barges. More than 1,000 people on and offshore are also involved.
-- Michael Muskal
