Offshore Drilling Ban to be Lifted by Bush

[scaeagles]

Back to the subject of off shore drilling....

Some statistics I saw on a CNN report. I do not have a link.

Oil in the ocean comes from 4 primary sources.
63% is natural seepage from the ocean floor
32% is from consumers dumping stuff
4% is from tanker traffic
1% is from off shore drilling.

Also, in the 1970s, there was an estimated 3.6 million barrels that went into the ocean from off shore drilling. In 2004-05, only about 100,000 barrels did. Granted, I would assume that reduction has a lot to do with a reduction in the drilling. However, it makes economic sense for companies to not allow $140/barrel go into the ocean when they are drilling to capture it.

Edited to add: a supporting link (not the CNN report, but similar stats)

According to the U.S. Department of Interior, offshore operators produced 7 billion barrels of oil from 1985 to 2001 with a spill rate of only .001% [4]
In 2005, Hurricanes Katrina and Rita destroyed 115 Gulf of Mexico oil and gas platforms and damaged 535 pipeline segments, but there were no major oil spills attributed to either storm. [4]
Today, nearly all Outer Continental Shelf operators are collaborating with the Minerals Management Service and other federal agencies to implement Safety and Environmental Management Programs (SEMP); voluntary, nonregulatory strategies designed to identify and reduce risks and occurrences of offshore accidents, injuries, and spills [2]

Less than 1 percent of all oil found in the marine environment comes from offshore oil and gas development. According to the National Academy of Sciences, the majority - 62 percent - is the result of natural seeps through the ocean floor.