Fresh Oil Sheen At Deepwater Horizon Site

Thursday, October 11, 2012

The U.S. Coast Guard has matched samples of a recently detected oil sheen in the Gulf of Mexico to oil from BP’s infamous Macondo well. The site of the sheen is close to the sunken Deepwater Horizon rig.

The sheen was reported by BP in mid-September about 50 miles off of Louisiana. The coast guard has now confirmed that test samples indicate that the sheen correlates to oil that originated from BP's Macondo Well.

Neither BP – who operated the well that launched the U.S.’s worst offshore oil spill – nor Transocean, who owned the drilling rig, had any comment on the recent discovery.

The Chicago Tribune reports that officials believe that since the leak was believed to be completely killed off after the well was capped with cement in September 2010, the sheen is most likely coming from the seafloor wreckage. However, the official source of origination is currently unknown.

The Coast Guard notified BP and Transocean that either of them may be held responsible for any cost associated with additional assessments/operations related to the sheen.

A U.S. lawmaker said the U.S. government should require BP to utilize remotely operated undersea vehicles to survey the ocean floor around the site. Another U.S. Representative said BP must do everything in its power to ensure this well does not rupture or leak, and they should be held responsible if it does.

The oil giant still owes billions to residents and businesses in the Gulf and the U.S. government.

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