美國總統歐巴馬1日任命海岸防衛隊中將司令官艾倫(Thad Allen)為深水平面(Deepwater Horizon)鑽油平台漏油事件的指揮官，處理墨西哥灣水下一英哩深處，從破裂油井所流出的大量原油。
美國國家海洋和大氣管理局(NOAA)在上週稍早時表示，沉沒的鑽油平台深水平面的管線已經散落在5000呎的海底下，有三個已知的破裂處每天滲漏出大約5000桶原油。
5月1日下午為止，已經有些許油污被沖刷到路易斯安那密西西比河口與其堰洲島之上。
歐巴馬總統計劃在5月2日視察該區以評估情勢。他也呼籲在有防止類似災害再度發生的新保護措施實行之前，停止任何新的海上鑽油平台計畫。
「總統所要確定的事情之一是，在油污清除乾淨、油井被封閉以及漏油被止住之前，我們不會休息，」總統國土安全助理布南(John Brennan)1日告訴記者說。
現在漏油所污染擴散的已經達到3515平方英里，相當於波多黎各的面積大小，已經成為國家層級的漏油事件。
專家們擔心，深海水平的漏油事故將導致德州到佛羅里達州之間沿岸的生態浩劫，嚴重影響海龜與數百種海鳥的棲息地，並且危及墨西哥灣的捕撈業。
艾倫上將訂出了四個災後處理程序。「首先，要從源頭止住漏油；其次是要從海上處裡油汙；第三點是保護岸上的自然資源；第四點則是減少並恢復受影響的地區，」他說。
艾倫並且說道：作為國家事故現場指揮官，我認為英國石油(BP)有責任完成上述任務。
他說：「英國石油所面臨的重大壓力在於提供技術解決方案，以阻止井口以及輸油管線的漏油，然後完成減壓井的鑽探，減輕目前油井的壓力，以便將其封住。只有在油井封閉之後，威脅才算解除，」他說。
目前已經在浮油汙染的海面上噴灑了超過14.2萬加侖的化油劑，噴灑的工作將由兩架美國空軍的大型運輸機持續進行。
「我們有充足的各項材料可以使用，但我們必須能夠把它噴在油汙處，而真正的挑戰是準確預測油汙的路徑。不過我認為在未來的72至96小時內，我們必須特別注意密西西比與阿拉巴馬所受到的影響，」海軍上將說。
在海面上，BP公司表示，在離岸數哩漏油汙染處直接燃燒石油的同時，該公司正擴大動員海岸線保護小組、各項設備以及人員的連繫。目前有超過2500名人力參與救災，至於路易斯安那、密西西比、阿拉巴馬和佛羅里達等州正為大型的清理與保護工作進行準備。
美國聯邦礦業管理局已與漏油區的石油與天然氣供應商建立聯繫。有兩個平台已經停止作業，另外有一個也因安全考量而將人員疏散。墨西哥灣的天然氣日產量大約下降不到一成，也就是每天停產620萬立方英呎。
美國海岸防衛隊用以處理國家層級漏油事件的經費來自美國石油洩漏責任信託基金(U.S. Oil Spill Liability Trust Fund)。基金來自輸入到美國的原油稅，每桶8美分。艾倫說：「該基金目前已累積了16億美元。」
Admiral Thad Allen, commandant of the United States Coast Guard, was today appointed by President Barack Obama to be incident commander for the Deepwater Horizon oil spill - a massive oil slick flowing from a broken wellhead a mile beneath the surface of the Gulf of Mexico.
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration had said earlier this week that 5,000 barrels a day were spilling from the three known leaks in the 5,000 feet of pipe from the sunken wreck of the Deepwater Horizon oil rig now strewn across the sea floor.
As of this afternoon, a light oil slick had washed up on the Louisiana shore at the mouth of the Mississippi River and on the barrier islands.
President Obama plans to visit the area Sunday to assess the situation. He has called a halt to any new offshore drilling projects unless rigs have new safeguards to prevent a similar disaster.
"One of the things the President wants is to make sure is that we're not going to rest until these leaks are stopped, the well is capped and oil is cleaned up," John Brennan, assistant to the President for homeland security, told reporters today.
Declared a Spill of National Significance, the oil now is estimated to cover an area the size of Puerto Rico, which has an area of 3,515 square miles.
Experts fear that it will result in an environmental disaster as the oil slick being spread from the Deepwater Horizon accident threatens the Gulf shoreline from Florida to Texas, the Gulf of Mexico commercial fishing and shrimping industry and habitat of hundreds of bird species and endangered sea turtles.
Admiral Allen set forth four operational priorities to be accomplished. "Number one, the ability to stop the leak at its source; number two, the ability to attack the oil at sea; number three, to protect the resources ashore; and number four, to recover and mitigate the impacted areas," he said.
BP is the responsible party for accomplishing these tasks, and Admiral Allen said that he, as the National Incident Commander, is the accountable party.
He said there is "extensive pressure on British Petroleum to come up with technical solutions to first stop the leakage that is apparent around the wellhead and the pipe riser, and then to facilitate the drilling of a relief well which will relieve the pressure on the current well and allow it to be capped. Only that remove the threat, when the well is capped," he said.
More than 142,000 gallons of dispersant has already been sprayed on the oil slick from the air and that effort will continue with two high-capacity aircraft from the U.S. Air Force.
"We have an inordinate amount of boom and other types of materials, but we need to have it where the oil is going to be and the real challenge is trying to predict that. But I think we need to be looking at the implications for Mississippi and Alabama over the next 72 to 96 hours," the admiral said.
At the surface, BP's says the company's response is expanding to mobilize shoreline protection teams and equipment and community liaison staff, while planning for in-situ burning of surface oil several miles offshore. Over 2,500 personnel are now involved in the response effort and preparations are being made for a major protection and cleaning effort on the shorelines of Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama and Florida.
The federal Minerals Management Service is in contact with all oil and gas operators in the oiled area. Two platforms have stopped production and one has been evacuated as a safety measure. Some 6.2 million cubic feet of natural gas is shut-in, which is less than one-tenth of a percent of daily gas production in the Gulf of Mexico.
The U.S. Coast Guard's response to a spill of national significance is funded through the U.S. Oil Spill Liability Trust Fund. This, in turn, is funded from a tax on crude oil that is imported into the United States country, an eight cent a barrel tax. Admiral Allen said "that fund is $1.6 billion right now."
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In my healing journey and learning to attain the breath awareness, I become aware of the reality that all the creatures of the world are breathing the same breath. Take action, here and now. From my physical being to the every corner of this out of balance's planet.
