Oil Spills and Prevention

After the tragic BP oil spill in 2010, Louisiana Governor Bobby Jindal was quoted saying “the day that we’ve been fearing is upon us.” It is obvious that oil spills are a major concern throughout the world and pose a menacing threat to our environment and our public health. When hearing the phrase “oil spill,” many immediately think about death, destruction and disaster. Unfortunately, a majority of people only acknowledge the devastating and highly publicized oil spills, but what they don’t see and acknowledge is that millions of gallons of oil quietly end up in the seas every year, mostly from non-accident sources. Throughout history there have been countless oil spills, some of the biggest including Amoco Cadiz, Arabian Gulf, Exxon Valdez, Megaborg, and many more. All of these spills serve as vivid examples of the risks inherent in oil shipping, offshore drilling and other uses of oil.
When examining oil spills it is necessary to fully understand the causes. Oil pollution is caused by a number of factors, for example, people making mistakes or being careless, equipment breaking down, natural disasters such as hurricanes and deliberate acts by terrorists, countries at war, vandals, or illegal dumpers. Oil spills can range from small to big, but any oil spill can be majorly damaging. According to Miller, oil is the “lifeblood” of most of the world’s economics and modern lifestyles and is the worlds largest business. In addition, oil is used to grow most of our food, transport people and goods, and make most of the things we use everyday. Because our society is very focused on the economy and achieving the highest standards of living, the heavy dependence on oil is unlikely to change, and this immense dependence brings increased production of oil. With all the oil demands, oil companies are likely to take shortcuts to make the most profit, which is a big reason why oil spills occur. A prime example of carelessness in the process of transporting oil can