BP: Beyond Pollution

Image by SkyTruth via Flickr

The oil slick caused by a rig explosion in the Gulf of Mexico is an environmental disaster of the first magnitude.  It threatens everything from Texas to Florida in terms of wildlife, tourism and the livelihoods of seafood fishermen.  It will drive up the price of gasoline (already headed for three dollars a gallon), shrimp and crab.  And, for at least the time being, it will shut up the "Drill Baby Drill"  crowd who want to ring America's coasts with oil rigs.

BP, the company formerly known as British Petroleum, is responsible for paying the bulk of the cost of cleaning up the massive mess (expected to be in the billions), since it's their rig that burned down and took the lives of 11 workers.  But the taxpayers will also be on the hook for the amount of government personnel and eqipment needed to control the spill.  The well hasn't been capped yet, and 200,000 gallons a day have been spewing out into the gulf so far.

This could turn out to be President Obama's Katrina.  He's disappointed his environmentally-minded supporters for coming out in favor of so-called "clean coal" and for limited drilling for oil near the coasts--which he will probably have to put on hold while the cause of the BP spill is under investigation.

Most of all, though, the residents of the Gulf are about to get screwed.  If years of litigation by citizens of Alaska affected by the Exxon Valdez disaster (which just happens to be in Sarah Palin's backyard) failed to produce one dime out of ExxonMobil, how can these folks expect anything different from BP and its attorneys?

Like it or not, oil is what this society will be running on for the foreseeable future, whether it comes from here or somewhere else.  There are alternatives, but nobody said they were perfect.  Some examples:

Nuclear Power  Some are touting this as the best and cleanest kind of energy there is.  We can think of a few reasons why it isn't the safest:  Three Mile Island, Chernobyl, terrorism and where to put all that waste.  Also, would you really want someone like Homer Simpson working at a reactor near you?

Ethanol  In several states, there are laws requiring a certain percentage of it to be mixed in with the gasoline you buy.  It's great for corn farmers and the politicians who cozy up to them.  It's not so great for your car's engine, the world food supply, and the energy it takes to make ethanol to begin with.

Wind Power  Those modern-day windmills save plenty on electricity and its costs.  But they can also be unsightly and noisy, which is why some communities have sought to ban them.  Also, how would they work if the wind isn't blowing?

Solar Power  Put some of those panels on your roof and watch the savings go up, though it may not make up for how much you paid for it.  It also might be a problem on days when the sun doesn't shine.

Given the wants and needs of the society we live in, black, gooey shorelines are a small price to pay for getting around in the millions of gas hogs still on the road even after Cash for Clunkers ended.  If there is a new energy source that does the same job as oil, and is plentiful domestically, we'd love to hear about it.