Macon do Memory Fades, But Leaves Permanent Scar

摘要

Five years on, the dust from BP's Macondo disaster in the US Gulf of Mexico has by and large settled. The accident did not lead to a freeze in the oil and gas sector—despite a temporary halt to drilling in the US Gulf itself, offshore operators were able to secure new drilling permits within a year,, while the US onshore has enjoyed a shale-driven boom. But Macondo has had a more enduring but less visible impact in terms of the industry's reputation. The oil sector was quick to respond to the crisis in some respects, but also missed opportunities to implement lessons learned beyond the US Gulf of Mexico that could have strengthened that "social license" to operate (PIW Feb.23' 15). In terms of direct impacts, Macondo spurred US President Barack Obama to delay oil and gas lease sales in the Atlantic onshore until at least after 2020, and prompted the disbanding of the discredited Minerals Management Service and its replacement by the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management. It also, in conjunction with Royal Dutch Shell's ill-feted 2012-13 exploration campaign, led to tighter oversight of Alaskan Arctic drilling (PIW Jan.28' 13). But Macondo did not result in any maj or legislative changes, such as higher safety fines or a permanent restructuring of offshore regulatory agencies, which Congress debated but never approved (PIW Aug.9' 10).