Gulf Oil Spill + News + Methane Red Alert

Shell shuts wells to Brutus platform after spill off Louisiana

“A 2,100-barrel oil spill in the U.S. Gulf of Mexico forced Royal Dutch Shell on Thursday to shut in all wells that flow to its Brutus platform, federal regulators said.

The U.S. Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement (BSEE) said a 2 mile by 13 mile (about 3 km by 21 km) sheen was visible in the sea about 97 miles off the Louisiana coast.

The sheen is near Shell’s Glider Field, a group of four subsea wells whose production flows through a subsea manifold to the Brutus platform, which sits in water with a depth of 2,900 feet (884 m). . . . ”  (more)

http://www.reuters.com/article/us-louisiana-spill-shell-idUSKCN0Y32XW

Fuel Fix says it’s over 88,000 gallons ….

Coast Guard says Shell line leaks 88,200 gallons into the Gulf

Good graphics here:

LINK –  http://youtu.be/0wkLXWN0e5Y

(5-3) Offshore drilling regulator warns of bolt failures in Gulf of Mexico

“The federal government’s top offshore drilling regulator warned Tuesday that metal bolts used to hold together drilling equipment under the surface of the ocean were failing faster than anticipated.

Brian Salerno, director of the Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement, said so far the failures had not resulted in any major oil leaks or other incidents but the rapid corrosion concerned inspectors. . . “

NY Times – E.P.A. Methane Leak Rules Take Aim at Climate Change

“WASHINGTON — The Obama administration on Thursday unveiled the first federal regulations to control emissions of potent planet-warming methane gas that could leach from new oil and gas wells, the next step in President Obama’s effort to combat climate change.

The methane rules, the final version of draft regulations put forth last year by the Environmental Protection Agency, require oil and gas companies to plug and capture leaks of methane from new and modified drilling wells and storage tanks, not older, existing wells….”

http://www.nytimes.com/2016/05/13/us/obama-methane-epa.html

Bacteria more effective on oil spills without dispersants, study finds

“EDINBURGH, UK – Heriot-Watt University claims to have cracked the genetic code of the marine bacteria that helped “eat” the oil spilled from the Deepwater Horizon.

Dr. Tony Gutierrez, Associate Professor of Microbiology at the university, was in the US at the time of the spill and shortly after was able to perform experiments with samples from the oil-contaminated waters containing species of bacteria that fed on the oil.

Analysis showed that certain bacteria had thrived on the escaped oil, devouring it as a preferred food source.

In a paper published in Nature Microbiology, Dr. Gutierrez and his colleagues from the University of Texas and University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill reveal the genetic pathways these bacteria use to consume the oil; the conditions they thrive in; the type of oil hydrocarbons they can eat; and how they “co-operate” during an oil spill. . .  .”

http://www.offshore-mag.com/articles/2016/05/bacteria-more-effective-on-oil-spills-without-dispersants-study-finds.html

METHANE RED ALERT!!

LINK –  http://youtu.be/p55ChAt1bj4

LINK –  http://youtu.be/5ybLHtyaUsE   <MORE on this in COMMENTS ˅