What are your thoughts about the oil leak in the Gulf Coast?

[angie1976]

I am just heartbroken about the oil leak in the Gulf Coast, that has been spewing out roughly 200,000 gallons of oil per day since late April. The leak is from an underwater oil pipeline 40 miles off the coast of Louisiana, and could end up being orders of magnitude worse that the Exxon Valdez oil spill during the 1980's. The Louisiana wetlands are in jeopardy, along with thousands of species of fish, birds, shell fish, and other animal species.

I am also a bit concerned about the affect that this leak is going to have on the price of gasoline. Who will have to pay the cost of repairing the damage to the country side, animal life, pipeline, etc.? Will the government end up paying for this disaster, and if so, is it going to put an even larger strain on the current financial instability of the United States? Is it possible that British Petroleum (BP) can be held solely responsible, and forced to pay the astronomical amounts of money required to mitigate this disaster?

What are your thoughts on this subject?

[JTulo]

i already have a "doom and gloom" attitude (as my mom says) about the state of the world. I feel like we're already running out and wasting water and other natural resources and this is just another HUGE mistake that is going to cost this country and the world. It's so tragic. i wish people would be more responsible when it comes to mistakes like this. Even in Colorado, two truck drivers in 2 weeks spilled asphalt into a river, (on the same road in the same spot). Come on people! Be more responsible!

[SallySue15]

I agree that the situation is pretty glum. BP is now in the process of drilling relief oil wells, in hopes of stopping, or at least slowing the the oil leak. It is estimated that at least 125 million gallons of oil has been leaked into the ocean since the leak began in April. They are hoping that they will be able to stop 90% of the oil from reaching the ocean by the end of June.

I have no idea what type of long-term effects this will have on the lives of the fishermen, people, and wildlife living in the Gulf Coast, but I am positive that the damage will remain for years, if not decades.

This situation is beyond tragic, in my mind, I think it is criminal. All for the love of oil, our ability to own and drive vehicles, and make plastics. This is a pretty high price to pay for the modern conveniences that we all hold so dear.

The whole situation really saddens me!