An article at http://news.xinhuanet.com/english2010/indepth/2010-10/18/c_13563064.htm states that many Canadians are against having crude oil tankers ship oil from Canadian coastlines to other parts of the world. They fear for the loss of habitat in case of a disaster and many realize that they have not given serious thought to a plan in case of an oil spill related emergency. Due to recent events, I believe the world in general is more aware of risks associated with oil production, and people percieve it as more of a threat now, even though the level of the threat has not really changed. However, this is a good thing in cases like the one in Canada because people are putting mroe thought into whether the risk outweighs the benefits, mitigation and emergencty plans to control the oil spills if they occur.
In related news, an oil spill just recently occured in a steam leading to the Caribbean Sea, apparently due to thieves trying to steal oil, which is now causing problems in the Caribbean. The pipeline was fixed but already about 20,000 gallons was lost. The way the article describes the situation is very suspicious becuase it says that the area that the theives tried to steal from was sparcely populated. This just makes it seem very easy for people to come along and try to steal oil. As of right now it is just speculated that the spill was caused by people trying to steal oil, and maybe more news will be uncovered later in the development of the story. In any case, the Ecopetrol, a Colombian oil company who own that pipeline, has not taken away the same lesson from recent events like they have in Canada. Their emegency plan stopped the spill, but not before it released 20,000 gallons of oil into the water. Also, if the thievery thing is true, they probably don't have a very secure pipeline that is monitored and difficult for civilians to encounter and break into.
Links:
Canada story:
http://news.xinhuanet.com/english2010/indepth/2010-10/18/c_13563064.htm
Story on Colombian pipeline:
http://colombiareports.com/colombia-news/news/12437-fuel-spill-creates-environmental-emergency-near-santa-marta.html
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