Coast Guard Confirms BP Oil Sheen Near Deepwater Horizon Site In Gulf Of Mexico

Posted in BP British Petroleum,Deepwater Horizon,Gulf Coast on October 15, 2012

NEW ORLEANS, La. — The US Coast Guard confirmed that an oil sheen spotted near the site of the 2010 BP oil spill matches oil from the Deepwater Horizon disaster that occurred in the Gulf of Mexico.

According to Capt. Duke Walker, a probe started after a sheen was discovered Sept. 16 in the waters near the site indicating that the oil may have seeped from a mile-long metal tube, called the riser, which connected the Deepwater Horizon drilling rig to the Macondo well. Walker said the sheen does not pose a risk to the shoreline and cannot be cleaned up.

The tests of the sheen showed chemical signatures of Macondo oil mixed with drilling muds, which are lubricants used both in drilling the well and trying to plug it after the April 20, 2010 explosion.

“This led to the conclusion that the oil causing the sheen out at the surface is likely coming from the riser. The riser has drilling muds in it,” said Frank Csulak, the scientific support coordinator for the National Oceanic and

On Wednesday, October 10, the Coast Guard issued a news release stating that BP PLC and the rig’s owner, Transocean, were informed they may be held financially liable for the new oil.

Sources:
Weather.com
Huffington Post

Posted by Louisiana maritime lawyer