The deaths of 11 workers on the sunken
Deepwater Horizon oil rig and the resulting
environmental disaster are indicative of an
industry in overwhelming need of closer
oversight by the federal government, according
to a prominent maritime law firm
in Houston.
“This tragic oil rig disaster is almost
certainly the result of a management culture
that gives safety plenty of lip service
but not enough preparation and enforcement,”
said Jeffery L. Raizner, a partner
with the Houston law firm of Doyle
Raizner LLP, which specializes in maritime
accidents such as the Deepwater
Horizon’s explosion April 20. “Offshore
oil drilling companies must approach
safety with an eye toward the worst possible
things that can happen at sea – fire,
explosions, sinking.”
The maritime and Jones Act attorneys
at Doyle Raizner believe it is clear that
there are too many operations and too
many companies operating offshore to track
for the limited inspection resources of the
Federal government’s Mineral Management Service. The Jones Act pertains to the employment
and rights of individuals at sea.
“As a result, the oil exploration industry
that operates oil rigs and oil drilling platforms
is left to ‘regulate’ itself, leading
far too often to unnecessary death and injury
of oil rig workers, as well as environmental
damage, right off our coasts.
There are well-documented instances of
offshore injuries being concealed by offshore drilling companies even though they
are required to be reported to government
authorities,” said Raizner.
“Without a clear understanding of the
real risks and hazards being faced by the
workers in our offshore industries, there
is no real way for the risks to be properly
addressed. Whether looking at a driller,
roughneck, or floorhand, or even a supply
boat crewmember, their health and safety
is too important to be placed entirely in
the hands of self-interested industries.
There is no reason to believe that moving
out of sight of land means industry will
behave better.”
Also calling for health and safety improvements
in the oil industry is the
United Steelworkers (USW), union, which
represents oil refinery workers, including
those at the LyondellBasell refinery in
Houston, which had a fire in early May.
The fire was the latest in a series to occur
at refineries in May and exemplifies the
lack of safety within the oil industry, says
the union.
The fire occurred in a crude distillation unit where a mix of residual oil and diesel
fuel was burning. Fortunately, no one was
injured, but residents were told to shut
their windows and remain indoors until it
could be determined if there were any
health risks.
“This is another example of the need for
improvements in health and safety within
the oil industry,” said USW Vice President
Gary Beevers, who heads the union’s oil
sector. “On average, a fire a week occurs
at one of the nation’s refineries. Like the
lack of attention paid to health and safety
on the industry’s offshore oil rigs, the industry
fails to develop a safety culture
within the refining sector.”
From May 3-17 there were six reported
fires in the oil refining industry. More fires
than those reported are likely because refineries
have no legal obligation to report
every incident.
“While this is a dangerous industry,
there are too many workers losing their
lives,” said Beevers after the sinking of
the Deepwater Horizon rig in the Gulf.
“How many more workers have to pay the
price for the industry’s lack of a safety culture? The industry is long overdue for a
complete overhaul of its health and safety
provisions.”
The disaster appears to have one more
casualty, Chris Oynes, appointed during the
Bush administration to head offshore energy
oversight at the Mineral Management
Service (MMS). After 35 years of service,
he leaves a career tarnished by a photo of
him presenting Transocean, the Deepwater
Horizon’s owners, with a safety award.
His agency is blamed for severely lax
safety oversight and neglecting inspections
in BP’s massive Gulf of Mexico oil
spill, estimated to be somewhere between
5,000 and 70,000 barrels a day. Though
BP PLC had some success capturing leaking
oil from a riser tube on May 17, efforts
to drill a relief well were expected
to take up to three months.
“We are doing absolutely everything in
our power to eliminate the source of the
leak and contain the environmental impact
of the spill,” said BP Group Executive
Tony Hayward, who had earlier been
quoted in the press as saying the company
had not had the technology available to stop the leak, and that it should have done
more to prepare for such an emergency.
“We are determined to fight this spill on
all fronts, in the deep waters of the Gulf
of Mexico, in the shallow waters, and, if
necessary, on the shore.”
“BP will be paying the bill,” said President
Barack Obama. “But as President
of the United States, I’m going to spare
no effort to respond to this crisis for as
long as it continues. And we will spare
no resource to clean up whatever damage
is caused. And while there will be time
to fully investigate what happened on that
rig and hold responsible parties accountable,
our focus now is on a fully coordinated,
relentless response effort to stop
the leak and prevent more damage to the
Gulf.”
“We absolutely understand and share
President Obama’s sense of urgency over the
length of time this complex task is taking,”
said Hayward. “And while we continue in
these efforts, we are participating fully in investigations
that will provide valuable
lessons about how to prevent future incidents
of this nature.”
