http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_oil_spills
As we discussed in class, the oil industry plans to profit off of the loss of polar ice by drilling for oil that was previously unattainable. This idea is shocking for a number of reasons. For one, climate change is already an issue facing humanity and with a brand new untapped goldmine of oil slowly becoming more and more accessible it will be even harder to convince companies to move away from fossil fuels. Beyond this problem, we do not even have the technology to safely and effectively drill in deep sea oil fields. This was seen in the Gulf of Mexico, and oil companies continue to downplay how little control they actually have over these spills. As if drilling in deep waters wasn’t difficult enough, companies will be drilling in the much harsher arctic which is harder to quickly get to if a spill occurs. To add even more negatives to the list we do not have effective ways of cleaning up such spills. Currently we only really have three solutions for spills. One of our three possible solutions is simply to burn it once it spills. Intelligent right? Essentially, as we continue to look down the barrel of the gun that is climate change we continue to find more ways to make the situation worse. The scary part about all of this is that many oils spills happen around the world. In America, where we only get news that pertains to us, we do not even hear about these spills. I have attached a wikipedia list of oil spills that have been recorded, and I can guarantee most of us haven’t heard of more than one or two of them. As citizens, we really need to stay informed about these kinds of things. Share this with anyone who will listen.
