Learning from BP’s mistakes

Among the greatest ecological disasters in history, the BP oil spill is pumping an estimated 30,000 barrels of oil into the ocean every day and is rapidly destroying the Gulf region's ecosystem and economy. Congress laid down their gauntlet, and the man who runs one of the world's most powerful oil companies looked like nothing more than an incompetent coward.

BP CEO Tony Hayward seems to refuse to take responsibility for what can only be described as a catastrophic atrocity. Although BP is spending billions of dollars to restore order, there are on-going legal battles regarding how much they should be responsible for. BP should assume sole responsibility for everything that's happened, and if that means the company loses over 20 billion dollars, it will serve as a lesson for the remaining oil companies in the world.

There is evidence to suggest that BP could have prevented this problem had the company and its pseudo-leader heeded their own rig-workers' warnings. BP engineers had expressed concerns regarding the amount of pressure the metal casing could withstand, but their concerns were ignored as BP tried to save a few million dollars.

This disaster has led to a strengthened cry for stopping deep-sea drilling from newly concerned citizens and previously concerned critics alike. However, before jumping to such brash conclusions, we need to look at other oil companies and the world we live in. I understand that we must protect the environment, but we cannot let the failures of one company deter us from exploiting a rapidly depleting natural resource.

No matter how technologically advanced we may be, the world is not ready to make the transition from fossil fuels. The alternative energy technology has seen incredible developments in the past few years, but it will be quite some time until the world no longer relies on fossil fuel. Until that day comes, we have no choice but to search for new sources of oil. If it happens to be in the depths of the ocean, serious safety measures need to be taken. BP has set the benchmark for failure, but I seriously doubt Exxon is looking to repeat the same mistakes.

So condemn BP and condemn Hayward, but don't condemn off shore drilling altogether. We are an oil-dependent people, and deep sea drilling must continue, but with no room for error.