http://www.flickr.com/photos/uscgd8/4542937668/ On April 20th, 2010, in the open ocean 42 miles southeast of Venice, Louisiana, a 560-million-dollar deep-water oil rig licensed to BP, experienced an explosion. Eleven workers were killed and 17 were injured in the explosion, with the other 98 on board exiting safely unharmed. After the initial explosion, the rig burned and two days later sank to the bottom of the ocean.

A few days after this shocking event made headlines, the resulting oil spill became apparent. Oil from the rig’s well immediately began to spew forth into the water column through a damaged well-head, forming a 5-mile long oil slick on the ocean’s surface in short time. Within two weeks, BP had tried and failed to use the well’s blowout protection, President Obama declared dedication of any and all available US resources to the purpose of resolving  the spread of this spill, BP stated that it would take all financial responsibility for legitimate claims and the cleanup of the spill, and began the two-month project of drilling a relief well.

In the following month, a fishing ban was extended to 19% of the Gulf of Mexico’s waters, all new drilling projects in the area were suspended, and several different remedial attempts were made, some simply failing and others actually increasing the oil’s flux into the ocean. The rate of the spill that began 51 days ago has not yet been determined, due to several factors including communication barriers between BP and external scientists, but the official government estimate is between 12 and 19 thousand barrels per day.

Although it was once thought that the spill could be contained offshore, the oil leaking into the Gulf of Mexico has now reached over 120 miles of coastline. Tar balls are washing up on shore, animals are being covered in oil with a plethora of horrifying effects. It is not clear what the effect of the toxic oil dispersants being used will be on the delicate marine and coastal wildlife. Though it sounds extreme, it has been discussed that there is serious potential for this oil spill to be considered ecocide, or to reach that level in the coming months or years. I won’t link you to the videos of oil-covered struggling or already-deceased wildlife—seek them out at your own risk (of heartbreak).

As these negative events continue to affect the shorelines, locals are concerned. The fishing ban is necessary, but is just a concrete representation of the loss of money on the part of the fishing industry. The coasts are soaked in oil, animals are dying, and the tourism business is not looking good, either. “My concern is after everything is cleaned up, if they can clean it all up, and they leave, what is our business going to be like?” said Dudley Gaspard, owner of the Sand Dollar Marina and Hotel on hard-hit Grand Isle, Louisiana. While all of these local businesses are concerned, so are the oil drilling workers who operate in the Gulf. The six-month moratorium on deepwater drilling that has been imposed has the potential to eliminate as many as 20,000 jobs, according to some; the ban on shallow water drilling has been lifted. BP’s stock value has dropped dramatically, as would be expected during a crisis such as this.

On June 4th, a partially successful capturing system was put into place. BP has lowered a cap over the leaking well, sucking some of the leaking oil up through a mile-long pipe it is connected through. There are vents in the dome-shaped cap that allow some oil to escape, and oil is also billowing out from below the hood. While this is not a large step forward, it is a step: some oil is being captured. BP’s most recent estimates suggest they were able to capture 10,500 barrels of oil in 24 hours using this method, and they expect they will soon be able to use an additional containment system to increase this control. They have even made preparations for the event of a hurricane.

Here is a video of the underwater spill in action:

There is some murmur that this oil spill may be the push that the U.S. needs to secure clean energy and energy efficiency legislation. Thus far, concrete statements have only been made about the wish to change legislation revolving around oil drilling. House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi, after meeting with several committee heads, told reporters a wide range of legislation was being considered, including oil leasing reform, liability reform, ensuring worker safety and the “integrity of the certification process” when oil companies want to start a new offshore drilling project.