A citizen of Plaquemines Parish, La., makes his opinion clear with a road sign along La. Hwy. 23, south of Belle Chasse Tuesday, July 13, 2010. (AP Photo/Chuck Cook)
BP Oil Spill Update: July 15, 2010 – DAY 86
Wednesday, July 14, 2010 – DAY 85
BP put two projects meant to cap the gushing oil in the Gulf of Mexico on hold Wednesday. As of Wednesday evening, one just got the okay to proceed with testing.
THE WELL CAP
BP and the government said more analysis was needed before testing could proceed on a new temporary 75-ton well cap — the best hope since April of stopping the geyser. As of Wednesday evening, the federal government gave BP permission to go ahead with testing its new, tighter cap after a daylong delay to satisfy worries about whether the work might make the leak worse. BP had put a rush on weekend preparations and had the 75-ton cap in place Monday atop the well. The device is meant is to stop the oil and pump excess to ships,. BP was getting ready to test pressure on the well by closing valves in the cap when the government intervened late Tuesday. Officials say the delay was necessary to settle lingering questions about whether the cap, once the valves are closed, could force oil under pressure to create new leaks. The test involves slowly closing the valves of the cap, ultimately blocking the flow of oil entirely. High pressure is a good sign, because it means there’s a single leak. BP will monitor the results of the gradual test every six hours and end it after 48 hours to evaluate the results.
THE RELIEF WELLS
Work on a permanent fix, relief wells that will plug the spill from below with mud and cement, also was halted for up to 48 hours as a precaution because it’s not yet clear what effect the testing of the new cap could have on it. BP said on Tuesday that it halted work on a second relief well, but that holdup was expected. The company is drilling the second well as a backup in case the first doesn’t work.
The relief well’s timeframe has always been hazy, with company and federal officials giving estimates ranging from the end of July to the middle of August before it can be completed.
MARINE LIFE
Scientists in New Orleans are reporting early signs that the oil spill is altering the marine food web by killing or tainting some creatures and spurring the growth of others more suited to a fouled environment. Near the spill site, researchers have documented a massive die-off of pyrosomes — cucumber-shaped, gelatinous organisms fed on by endangered sea turtles.
MORE TESTIMONY SCHEDULED TO BEGIN JULY 19
A government investigation of the deadly explosion is set to resume next week. The Coast Guard and Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, Regulation and Enforcement have scheduled five more days of hearings, from July 19 through July 23, at a hotel in the New Orleans suburb of Kenner. A panel of officials from each agency heard six days of testimony in May from rig workers, company executives, government regulators and others. A witness list for next week’s hearings wasn’t immediately released.
THE NUMBERS
As of Wednesday, the 85th day of the disaster, between 92 million and 182 million gallons of oil had spewed into the Gulf.
BP Oil Spill Update: July 15 (Day 86)
With AP
