Topic: Offshore Drilling for Oil
Format: Collection of informative websites and free courses
Reviewer/email: Mike G – greers_pm@yahoo.com
A couple of years ago I conducted a series of project management workshops for a major global oil exploration company. I was very pleasantly surprised by their commitment to the environment and protecting natural resources in their operations. While working for them, I became impressed by their computer-based exploration technology, graphical data integration from globally dispersed sources, and the laser-like precision they claimed for their drilling capabilities. (For example, they told me they had the ability to “drill horizontally through the earth’s crust and hit a tennis court sized pocket of oil 5 miles away!!” Whoa!) But, like everyone else, I am a bit worried when I hear the Bush administrations latest pleas to begin full-scale offshore drilling. We need the oil, sure. But what’s really at stake, I’m wondering?
In my efforts to teach myself about what’s involved in this debate, I’ve discovered (naturally!) some great free training and info sites that will help you get your facts straight when you engage your friends or congress person in the argument. In this post, I share them with you.
Below are several websites which will help you teach yourself some of the science, the mechanics, and the issues related to offshore drilling. This way, you can become a more informed citizen and help shape government policy, should you wish to become active in this debate. I’ve listed the sites in relation to the broad questions they will help you answer.
- How is oil drilled offshore? (What are the basics of offshore drilling?) – The World Petroleum Council has a great little introduction to the mechanics of offshore drilling. Founded in London in 1933, it’s “an international, unbiased, non-political organization that provides a forum for global issues on energy and petroleum and related matters. The mandate of the WPC is to promote the management of the world’s petroleum resources for the benefit of mankind…[through] the application of scientific advancements, technology transfer and the consideration of economic, financial, management, environmental and social effects on petroleum issues.” Here’s the URL of their intro piece:
- What is the science behind keeping the drilling platforms floating, safe, and operational? There are several relevant websites provided by the Open Course Ware initiative from Delft University of Technology in the The Netherlands. Two of the more specific questions these serious, college-level courses try to answer are:
- How are offshore drilling platforms designed, engineered, and used? (I.e., What’s the science and history of the tension leg platforms (TLPs) used by most offshore drilling platforms in the Gulf of Mexico and elsewhere?) To find out, go to this URL and scroll down to the student project that resulted in an entire website labeled “Mooring a Tension Leg Platform:
- What are the science, math, and engineering issues faced by those trying to build and manage offshore drilling operations? (I.e., What’s involved in the field of Offshore Hydromechanics?) This is a serious, college-level course (though you can skim through it and investigate the topics as deeply as you wish). Go to:
- What are some of the offshore drilling issues addressed by the U.S. Department of the Interior, Minerals Management Service (MMS)? Here are just a few of the questions examined in the MMS’ “Answers to Questions About Offshore Oil and Gas:”
- Why drill offshore?
- How much oil is spilled or “leaked” from OCS oil and natural gas operations?
- Who makes sure that the oil companies operate safely and do not pollute?
- Why not move the platforms further offshore where they cannot be seen?
- Where does tar on the beach come from?
- For the answers to these and other questions, go to:
- Finally, what are the legal responsibilities and strategic initiatives undertaken by the U.S. Dept. of the Interior’s Minerals Management Service (MMS)? (A review of this stuff will provide you with a fairly clear picture of the breadth of the issues we’re all going to have to resolve when figuring out how — or whether — the U.S. can safely and responsibly drill for oil offshore.
By spending some time with the training and reference resources above, you’ll be much better prepared to argue the topic this political season!
