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  1. Zippo says:

    The largest US spill is missing from the chart: The “Lakeview Gusher” spill in 1910 in Kern County, California reportedly spilled 1.2 Million tons of crude.

    Check it out.

  2. ManBearPig says:

    Given that BP is having a hard time picking a number, how sure are we about the size of the deep water horizon spill?

  3. Greg Allen says:

    Remember this map when you hear oil company apologists talking about this current spill being unusual or unforeseeable.

    Advocates of off-shore drilling know perfectly-well that it trashes the hell out of nature and out of industries that depend on the seas.

    The people aren’t “pro job” — they are pro oil industry. To hell with other jobs.

  4. Greg Allen says:

    … on a hopeful note.

    I never saw signs of the Saddam’s Gulf oil disaster.

    Maybe I didn’t know what I was looking for. The beaches in the Gulf that I saw (and a I saw quite a few) where not life-rich compared to other warm waters I’ve seen. Maybe the oil contributed to that.

    But, in any regard, it seems cleaned-up — which is a hopeful sign.

    Also, calling this a “spill” seems highly inaccurate? It was intentional destruction of the environment by Saddam.

  5. bobbo, are we Men of Science or Devo says:

    Whats the evidence that it takes 50 years for Mother Nature to clean up a spill?

    I think that chart is “missing” many more spills, mostly small, but some large.

    BTW–“if its true” that BP has been requiring clean up crews to not wear protective covering/masks in order to not look bad for the tv camera’s, seems to me the exec’s making that PR move should be charged criminally with assault and battery and jailed. Seems to be about the only thing a modern capitalist understands.

  6. sargasso says:

    Cold climate oil spills are worst. The chemistry of breakage and dispersal slows down to almost zero, and the high viscosity of oil in cold seas makes it more deadly to wildlife. Just wanted to add.

  7. Tippis says:

    …also, this map seems to be missing the continuous Nigerian oil spill that is up to 1.5 million tonnes at last count.

  8. SparkyOne says:

    I call BS. I don’t see that stir fry from last night.

  9. Peter says:

    The numbers for the deepwater horizon are sadly dated. It’s now the fourth biggest oil spill the world has seen, and it ain’t over yet.

  10. nrdoder says:

    Excellent graphic

    Puts it in perspective

  11. SteveStyle says:

    There’s been some reaction in the UK to the heavy handed treatment of BP, although no-one has been defending them as such.

    It’s been pointed out that America protects it’s own companies when they pollute other countries, just ask the people of Bhopal.

    No-one is suggesting that BP shouldn’t pay, but there are a lot of cries of hypocrite.

  12. GregAllen says:

    >> SteveStyle said, on June 16th, 2010 at 4:10 pm
    >> There’s been some reaction in the UK to the heavy handed treatment of BP, although no-one has been defending them as such.

    It’s unfortunate that “BP” has “British” in the name.

    But the hatred of them as a corporation is not inherently anti-British.

    If it had been Exxon or Shell (and it could have), the anger would be the same.

    I think most Americans still have the same fondness for England as usual. I certainly do. We understand that BP is a soulless, amoral, multi-national corporation rather than anything uniquely British.

    I hope the British understand that too. If they start defending B.P, this could become a nationalistic conflict.

  13. valcs says:

    wow, what a waste. Now I understand why is the fuel so expensive. (ok black humor, kill me)

  14. Mr. Fusion says:

    The Gulf War spill was on land. I’m not sure if any oil made it to the Gulf of Arabia.

  15. GregAllen says:

    >> Mr. Fusion said, on June 16th, 2010 at 5:53 pm
    >> The Gulf War spill was on land. I’m not sure if any oil made it to the Gulf of Arabia.

    It was an attack on the Kuwaiti oil rigs as he retreated, right? I assumed that some of those where off-shore.

    Well, if it where only on-land, then that would explain why I never saw any oil on the beaches!

  16. DeadOilCoveredBird says:

    If you go by the newly released flow rate numbers, the DH is probably currently anywhere from half as big as Ixtoc to maybe a little bigger. Will it become the new all-time champion?

  17. Alf says:

    May be 50 years is the time it takes to forget and accept the damage done. It is difficult for me to believe that the damage to the environment, jobs and lives is repairable at all. We might understand the toll better if the damage was translated into dollars. That might put things in perspective.

  18. The only way not to spill is not to drill. We must get off this disgusting substance for so many reasons.

    This list shows that oil spills have been increasing in frequency and severity as we have increased our use of oil. Spills are not the exception; they are the rule.

    http://tinyurl.com/3ckvvk

    They will continue to happen and continue to get more frequent and catastrophic until we get off oil and onto clean energy.

  19. Rick says:

    The effects of all these spills is quite apparent. The oil doesn’t magically disappear, and wildlife and vegetation are affected for centuries. The Lakeview gusher area is a dead zone, possibly for hundreds of years to come.
    You can’t just wash the ducks and set them free, the effects are much bigger.

  20. ECA says:

    can I suggest FOOD SOURCES.
    PINT IT OUT to these idiots.
    Ducks
    geese
    fish
    SALMON
    TROUT
    pick one.

  21. I'm Abe Lincoln And I Been A Thinkin' says:

    You want clean energy? Find one that’s cheaper than oil – naturally, not artificially due to cap&tax. It is a crime against humanity to force the price of oil higher to induce people to switch to something else because you’re intentionally making everyone poorer. We’ll switch when it makes sense.

  22. Alisha says:

    Some say the size of the current Gulf of Mexico oil spill, could rival even that of the huge Exxon Valdez oil spill. What are the biggest 5 or so oil spills in history

  23. Mr Pedantic says:

    The relative size of the spills in the graphic are very misleading as their height is proportional to the size of the spill rather than the area. So the Gulf war spill which is about 3 times the size the Ixtoc spill is depicted as 9 times the size.

  24. smartalix says:

    21,

    Not factoring in the cost of the ecological impact makes your argument foolish. How much does your gas cost if you count damage to the environment from oil spills? What would you say to a Louisiana fisherman about the cost of his way of life?

    Alternate energy is more expensive on the surface (no pun intended), but a wind farm or solar plant does not destroy the local environment when it fails.

    Not to mention the political issues of giving people who hate us billions of dollars as year to fund actions against us – not very smart, IMHO.

    Try again.

  25. Lil*bo*peep says:

    Are they seriously asking me to believe there haven’t been any significant spills in Russian waters?

  26. Hmeyers says:

    Chart Copyright (c) 2010 British Petroleum.


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