“Not One Drop Of Oil Spilled”? Not Quite

Analysis: Advocates Repeat False Claim About Environmental Safety Of Offshore Drilling

(CBS)  By CBSNews.com producer David Morgan.

It has been a common talking point among advocates of increasing offshore oil drilling that Hurricanes Katrina and Rita caused no environmental damage when they decimated the oil infrastructure in the Gulf of Mexico in 2005.

This is aimed at assuaging the fears of many who believe opening up additional tracts of offshore areas to oil exploration will pose hazards to the environment and to tourism.

Ever since President Bush and Sen. John McCain announced last month that they would support expanding drilling beyond currently-allowed offshore leases (and Mr. Bush even signed an executive order allowing it), officials and pundits have continually put forth a dramatic talking point in the media about the safety of offshore drilling, even in the midst of a natural disaster.

As former Sen. Trent Lott told MSNBC on Tuesday, "We didn't have one drop of oil spilt when we had the biggest hurricane in, you know, recent history, Hurricane Katrina."

Former Gov. Mike Huckabee, R-Ark., also told Fox News on June 27, "When Katrina, a Cat-5 hurricane, hit the Gulf Coast, not one drop of oil was spilled off of those rigs out in the Gulf of Mexico. So we know that the technology to drill offshore is extraordinarily safe and environmentally friendly. And it's not something that we have to be as worried about as we do a refinery on shore or some other type of issue."

Newspaper columnists and editorial boards also jumped on the "not one drop" bandwagon. The Wall Street Journal published an editorial on June 12 saying, "Hurricanes Katrina and Rita flattened terminals across the Gulf of Mexico but didn't cause a single oil spill."

Meanwhile, on Monday Nancy Pfotenhauer, an energy lobbyist and senior energy adviser to McCain, said on MSNBC, "We withstood Hurricanes Rita and Katrina, and we didn't spill a drop."

And the Washington Post on Monday quoted Sen. Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., as saying, "I think people are reassured that not a drop of oil was spilled during Katrina or Rita. Those rigs in the Gulf, there was not a single incident of spillage that anyone reported."

Others have used slightly hedged terms, such as Gov. Bobby Jindal, R-La., who told Fox News on June 26, "That’s one of the great unwritten success stories, after Katrina and Rita, these awful storms - no major spills." And Interior Secretary Dirk Kempthorne told the Fox Business Channel, "When Katrina and Rita hit the Gulf Coast where we have about 4,000 oil and gas platforms … we had no significant oil spill." (July 15)

Gee, if so many people believe it, it must be true - except it isn’t.

In May 2006, the U.S. Minerals Management Service (MMS) issued a report stating that as a result of both Hurricanes Katrina and Rita, the number of pipelines damaged was 457, and the number of offshore platforms destroyed was 113, with a total of 146 oil spills recorded.

A study of environmental impacts written for MMS by Det Norske Veritas and Company and published March 22, 2007 told an even more detailed story.

As a result of both storms, a total volume of 17,652 barrels (or roughly three-quarters of a million gallons) of total petroleum products, of which 13,137 barrels were crude oil and condensate, was spilled from platforms, rigs and pipelines. 4,514 barrels were refined products from platforms and rigs.

There were 542 reports related to offshore pipelines that were damaged or displaced, of which 72 resulted in spills that had a volume of one barrel or more of crude oil or condensate. These pipelines were reported to be dented, kinked, pulled up, twisted or bent, pinhole or valve leaks or other damages.

The 72 pipeline spills were accountable for about 7,300 barrels of crude oil and condensate spilled into the Gulf.

The report noted that response and recovery efforts kept the environmental impacts to a minimum, with no onshore impacts from these specific spill events.

However, MMS also noted that an estimated 8 million gallons (or 191,000 barrels) of oil was spilled from nine onshore facilities in the Louisiana Delta, where large holding tanks were breached by Katrina.

The graphic below shows all 542 pipeline damages reported for both Hurricanes Katrina (299 reports) and Rita (243). Damaged pipelines are in red; undamaged active pipelines are shown in gray. Pipeline breaks accounted for approximately half of the more than 17,000 barrels of oil leaked into the Gulf. (Source: MMS)

(MMS)

[patriot12436]

So if nothig was spille why were the prices allowed to be gouged over it ?

[elz523]

Sounds like the Republicans are all reading from the same script, which was, no doubt, supplied to them by their oil company buddies. Just another example of them beleiving that is they all say something and they say it often enough, that the American public will beleive them, whether or not what they say has any basis in fact. What is truly disappointing is that they are often right in this beleif.

[wogerwabbit]

I am a Rupublican.

Tell me what to think.

I believe.

[buttonjockey]

: So if nothig was spille why were the prices allowed
: to be gouged over it ?

First off, plenty WAS spilled, as the article plainly documents but our high gas prices after Katrina came largely from refinery damage in the gulf region. We have a lot of them there.

[flajoe1]

So it''s business as usual, lie and keep telling the same lie over and over and the sheep will follow.

It''s not just the major spills it''s that these rigs are constantly weeping small amounts of oil and other petroleum products that end up on the beach.

[downtowner97]

Here in the spin zone called the United States, 9,000,000 gallons of oils is "Not a drop". Many people have known these numbers for years, especially those living in New Orleans who had to wade around in it looking for a way out of the city.

The missing piece of this article is that fact that the oil companies didn''t have to bother cleaning up the oil in any way. They just got to raise their prices and make insurance claims to fix the oil rigs and pipes. We the people got to pay for the cleanup. The oil companies had already counted those 9,000,000 gallons of oil as theirs, so they got to write off the loss on their taxes.

We need to get off of oil.

[ubrew12]

Republicans have never claimed that Katrina didn''t spill any oil.

(now, repeat as necessary until everyone believes it)

[irliberal]

Ubrew: Liar

As former Sen. Trent Lott told MSNBC on Tuesday, "We didn''t have one drop of oil spilt when we had the biggest hurricane in, you know, recent history, Hurricane Katrina."

[randynason]

This news item tells the whole story and the real truth. As is common place, political rhetoric, the corporations and their lapdog politicians who love to earmark for their buddies are lying through their pearly whites to get what they want at the expense of both the environment and the people who vote these monsters (politicians) into office. It''s high time to say "NO" to anything they want. No expansion for you. No increased salary for you. No more elected term of office for you. Beat it.

[openureyes2]

Amazing the exact number of barrels leaked reported in this obviously left leaning article. All are concerned with the honesty of politicians (don''t you already know, they don''t know nor can they tell the truth). First point, the amount spilled would be a total unknown as there is no way to gather and measure the volume (duh). Second point is that the % of rigs destroyed was not 100, so with luck the future rigs can be made to withstand such a storm, as will the pipelines. Until the automakers get out of bed with the petroleum lobby we''ll be stuck on oil so drill we should, and must. Need a President that has the guts to mandate a yearly improvement in mileage or stop manufacturing the cars (can and should be done). Enviromentalists don''t like solar, wind, or wave power generation, so until we get them on the same page then we will need to have plenty of "global warming". Vote all of the retards in washington out, and put some plain folks who have to put 40 hrs a week in office, I guarantee that things will change for the better.
I think it was Shakespere who said: 1st thing we do is kill the lawyers...

[brianbwb-2009]

Posted by IRLiberal

Ubrew was just being sarcastic, he usually is on the side of common sense. There is no need to impugn his statement, the names are clearly stated in the article.

Former Gov. Mike Huckabee, R-Ark., Sen. Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., Sen. Trent Lott. R-Hell., Gov. Bobby Jindal, R-La., Interior Secretary Dirk Kempthorne, and Nancy Pfotenhauer, an energy lobbyist and senior energy adviser to McCain.

What political party do all these liars belong to?

[nextgenman]

Republican criminals like Trent Lott and religious nuts like Huckabee always believe that if they just say it, it must be true. Lying has become a staple for Republicans.

[gunfighter51]

Good reason to drill in Alaska.
Of course that will not fly with the left either.
We could strike oil on the moon and the left would find some problem with it.

I have a question for you enviromentalist''s out there who love wind power, are you going to allow us to erect 50,000 windmills in the gulf of Mexico and off the coast of California? How about off the East coast?

[samthetvcat]

---"Thanks, David Morgan. Good work getting the facts out."---
Posted by CBS_Oliver

Somebody beat me to it - yeah, thanks for the report . . . it''s fantastic!

[pvperson]

Gunfighter51 , I have a better question. Where do you live? I''m sure there must be something we could plan for your area that you won''t like. Strip mining, refinery, something. Everything''s great as long as it''s in some else''s backyard, RIGHT?

[joesemmes]

Great Reporting! Why didn''t CBS report it AS IT WAS HAPPENING? Brought to by the same great reporting that destroyed the life of Richard Jewell. You can count on CBS for consistent reporting of things that never happened. But hey! It''s about ratings isn''t it!

[steeepe]

The GOP doesn''t care about facts. Drilling won''t help U.S. consumers because the oil will just get sold wherever, probably to China. You can''t force the oil companies to sell it to the U.S. consumer. Fossil fuels = fossil thinking.

[ofbyfor1]

Gee, who woulda thunk. Must be that dang librul media agin!

[ofbyfor1]

Great Reporting! Why didn''''t CBS report it AS IT WAS HAPPENING? Brought to by the same great reporting that destroyed the life of Richard Jewell. You can count on CBS for consistent reporting of things that never happened. But hey! It''''s about ratings isn''''t it!

Posted by JoeSemmes at 04:12 PM : Jul 19, 2008

Are YOU claiming that this never happened, @$$hole?

[ofbyfor1]

You better believe it. This environmentalist thinks 50,000 wind turbines would be JUST GREAT. If we ever finally do so, we''''ll all be better off for it.

Posted by diatreme at 05:50 PM : Jul 19, 2008

Same here. As a matter of fact, I''d rather see wind turbines on public lands than snowmobiles.

[mspeacock2]

Great reporting....there should be more of this regarding offshore drilling. Instead, it''s become a partisan issue like any other, and the reporting and discussion about it mindless. As though only Democrats should care about environmental hazards in this country? Republicans have gotten hoodwinked (not the first time, and surely not the last) into believing that offshore drilling is going to save them money at the pump next month? or create more independence from Saudi Arabia? The hard facts show that its simply not true--ANWAR contains no more than a year''s worth of oil for American consumption--why continue trying to get in there--as Bush has been doing since he got into office?

It''s the influence of oil companies and energy lobbyists, and the Republican politicians who are in their very deep pockets....that''s all this issue is about. Yet why do economically challenged Republicans continue to allow themselves to be so gullible to these forces? It''s not as though they have stock in Exxon--they are NOT going to profit, they''re just mindlessly parroting what they hear and spitting out the same old tired idiocy of "those them there liberals...."
don''t they care about the environmental health of this country?

[daysrnumbrd]

The GOP doesn''''''''t care about facts. Drilling won''''''''t help U.S. consumers because the oil will just get sold wherever, probably to China. You can''''''''t force the oil companies to sell it to the U.S. consumer. Fossil fuels = fossil thinking.

Posted by steeepe at 05:41 PM : Jul 19, 2008

Even if the oil companies sold the oil to the U.S. they would still be getting the going price of oil.

Alaska oil is no cheaper than mid east oil.

Posted by rharrin1 at 06:18 PM : Jul 19, 2008
.........

Good, those above statements saved me time in having to post the obvious.

But now that those facts have, once again, been preached to the intellectual choir... it makes me wonder if those politicians who call for "more drilling" are just trying to cover up the obvious leak in the oil system...

...which is the Enron loophole. Plug up that hole, and oil prices will drop nearly in half in just a few days (according to various hedge fund and oil industry insiders testifying to Congress a few weeks ago).

[vnveteran72]

Rowdy was on here talking about during Katrina how there wasn''t "One Drop Spilled".....LMMFAO.....
Even a Retardd like her couldn''t have believed such Fantasy, especially since it was Reported by the Government AND the Oil Companies that there were indeed Numerous and Serious Leaks.......Neocons will claim ANYTHING, no matter how outrageously ridiculous, as long as it puts Cash in their Pockets or Furthers their Criminal and Treasonous Agenda of Greed. Even T.Boon Pickens, a Life-Long Oil Junkie, says we can''t drill our way out of this situation.
Get a Clue, Neocon Morons.....

[daysrnumbrd]

Fossil fuels = fossil thinking.

Posted by steeepe at 05:41 PM : Jul 19, 2008
.........

Excellent statement!

[jimfinster]

A lie travels around the world before the truth gets to the end of the block.

[aj4321-2009]

Another example of McBush''s campaign of lies and misinformation.

[oneworldusa]

Course, in this one instance, the repubs could be right that no oil was spilled, or minute amounts. It could be the fuel companies faked the amounts they say were spilled to spike our prices up right then.

Either way, I don''t trust any of them.

[l8c6]

Good reason to drill in Alaska.
Of course that will not fly with the left either.
We could strike oil on the moon and the left would find some problem with it.

I have a question for you enviromentalist''''s out there who love wind power, are you going to allow us to erect 50,000 windmills in the gulf of Mexico and off the coast of California? How about off the East coast?

Posted by Gunfighter51


The Exxon Valdez oil spill occurred in Prince William Sound, Alaska, on March 24, 1989

The mess still remains and Exxon with it''s endlessly deep pockets fought it with their attorneys spending millions to save them billions in restoration fees...or are they just nasty pigs who would spend their last dime fighting...it wouldn''t be the first time in history corrupt oligarchs put their hubris before sensibilities.

There are many very wealthy republicans connected with the oil industry that don''t want this stink and eyesore in their neighborhood. NIMBY right wingers. The elite fly the jets around the world lobbying that the airports and routes go over the poor neighborhoods. It''s the way of the self-righteous. He*ll is for the elite. Antisocials don''t care. Poor antisocials do prison time, elite antisocials do their time in he*ll.

[l8c6]

Wow, the lies of the steaming piles of excrement right wing republicans. The party of outrageous lies. Like a nazi once said, the people will believe the big lie much more readily than the little lie.

It was on the news after Katrina that many New Orleans property owners noted petroleum stink had brought them great property damage. This news was SNUFFED by the corporate media. Our media is worthless for the most part in spite of the fact these little news blurbs come out.

It''s just amazing how acceptable telling a lie has become for the politicians and the oil companies.

[l8c6]

Former Gov. Mike Huckabee, R-Ark., also told Fox News on June 27, "When Katrina, a Cat-5 hurricane, hit the Gulf Coast, not one drop of oil was spilled off of those rigs out in the Gulf of Mexico.

For Huckabee to tell such a big lie. Shame on him this "man of God" I saw a video of Huckabee preaching. He basically believes men like him should be in charge of people because humans are largely evil and cannot be left to their own devices.

Evangelicals are a threat to the people''s freedom.

[stick1770]

any of you knuckleheads ever think about all the oil/gas that escapes naturally every year all across the earth? Apparently the earth can recover from such stuff naturally. There is a ton of oil off California that washes up every year from natural fissures in the ocean floor. Lets sue the earth.

[demwatcher]

"Fossil fuels = fossil thinking.

Posted by steeepe at 05:41 PM : Jul 19, 2008
.........

Excellent statement!

Posted by DaysRnumbrd at 06:25 PM : Jul 19, 2008"

From the brains of dinosaurs.

And just look at all of the pharmaceuticals that we WOULD NOT have if not for fossil fuels, for just ONE example.

Oil is NOT just used for fuel, dummies.

[demwatcher]

Do you mean that NONE of you have heard about these spills cause by Hurricane Katrina before today?

Whatsa matter? Live under a rock?

This is the NON-NEWS story of the day.

[stick1770]

You same people complaining about oil are the same ones causing millions of gallons of oil to be used to make bottles for water and the gas to transport it all across our country because your to stupid to just buy a filter and get it out of your own tap. IDIOTS!

[andor3]

interesting... a big lie is told and repeated. a damaging lie.

it is exposed in broad daylight

will there be any repercussions for those who started and spread this fallacy, some obviously intentionally and many knowing that it was false?

[rudy654-2009]

Posted by Stick1770 at 07:37 PM

Yep, I knew that as soon as I saw you labeling people idiots, that you were a duped Limbaugh cultist who has no mind of his own. Typical mental disorder, idiot.

[rudy654-2009]

Interesting how we no longer can trust the news sources who continue to buy the canned spam from the existing powers.

[irliberal]

Posted by IRLiberal

Ubrew was just being sarcastic, he usually is on the side of common sense. There is no need to impugn his statement, the names are clearly stated in the article.

Former Gov. Mike Huckabee, R-Ark., Sen. Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., Sen. Trent Lott. R-Hell., Gov. Bobby Jindal, R-La., Interior Secretary Dirk Kempthorne, and Nancy Pfotenhauer, an energy lobbyist and senior energy adviser to McCain.

What political party do all these liars belong to?

Posted by brianbwb at 02:15 PM

Ohh, sorry Ubrew. I didn''t realize you were being sarcastic. No smiley faces, no winks, no nothing. Just a reliance on the fact that I am supposed to recognize your name. Which I didn''t. 8-)

Everyone needs to be careful with the sarcasm. If they want to be taken seriously, they can''t be if they''re relying on name recognition of those who constantly post here (as opposed to those of us who do not).

[daysrnumbrd]

Oil is NOT just used for fuel, dummies.

Posted by DemWatcher at 07:33 PM : Jul 19, 2008
...........

No ***** Sherlock!

But the amount of oil needed to produce various materials, such as plastics, is minimal compared to the amount needed to produce fuel for machines/engines.

Greatly reduce the need for oil to fuel our cars, planes, trains, and other machinery, then there would be plenty of U.S. oil production for the legacy machines that would still run on refined oil, as well as the other materials that are produced from oil.

So in the context of fueling our mobility... then it can be said that "fossil fuels are for fossil thinking."

[irliberal]

So in the context of fueling our mobility... then it can be said that "fossil fuels are for fossil thinking."

And the Republican party is going extinct. It all works together, you know. I like it.

[jmurrieta1]

Not to mention the Santa Barbara Channel blowout of a few years back.

Hence:

Ahnold to Bush: "Terminate this, moron!"

[demwatcher]

So in the context of fueling our mobility... then it can be said that "fossil fuels are for fossil thinking."

Posted by DaysRnumbrd at 08:41 PM : Jul 19, 2008

Read my post again, lamebrain. You people are the ones just putting oil in the context of ONLY FOR fuels. That is asinine because we DO NOT ONLY use petroleum for fuel.

The ORIGINAL post I quoted made the BROAD statement against fossil fuels.

If you want to just keep looking at just one facet of the picture, then your pigeon-hole view is worse than fossil thinking, it is idiotic, SHERLOCK.

[demwatcher]

"And the Republican party is going extinct. It all works together, you know. I like it.

Posted by IRLiberal at 08:44 PM : Jul 19, 2008"

Interesting logic, considering that the Do-Nothing Democrat Congress has allowed gas prices to more than DOUBLE since they took control a year and a half ago. AND they are planning to add MORE taxes to oil. Thank you, Dumbocrats!

It doesn''t look like extinction for the Dems, more like MASS SUICIDE!

[edintex]

Funny thing though, I live on the Texas coast. Indded, I was out there on the water today. I was also able to view the coasts of Texas and Louisianna after the storms. Did not see ANTYTHING spilled on the beaches. Must be "estimates" by the liberals in the mining and minerals based on reported ruptures.

Today, I pulled up to a gas production rig in Galveston Bay and proceeded to catch several 24 inch plus trout with no effort. I wish there were more rigs closer to shore so I could wade out to them & catch nice fish WITHOUT a boat.

[ubrew12]

edintex said: "[I] Did not see ANTYTHING spilled on the beaches. Must be "estimates" by the liberals in the mining and minerals based on reported ruptures."

Someone doing their job reports something you don''t like, so now they''re liberals? You don''t think they know better what they''re talking about than you? You went to the beach, and THAT''s your estimate of spillage? You want to be taken seriously?

Stick to fishing.

[cbsblogger]

Another lie to protect the corporate interests. It started with Ken Lay and Enron and then became a way of life for them.

[ivandrago]

To be fair the measurement of a drop is much bigger for a republican.

[erichsh]

ainttaken, are you as obnoxious, arrogant, and condescending in real life as you are in these posts? Whatever points you may try to make are completely drowned out in your vile tirade. The sad part is that your ilk personifies the far left blowhards.

[stick1770]

Hey aint...get your head out of your rear and maybe you could carry on a conversation. You are a lib moron, but it''s ok. The congress sat on their hands and did nothing for years. Now their solution is tax everyone and give it to them to dish out how they see fit after they take their cut. How about backing off and letting the markets and business handle it just like it''s working now. Price goes high, demand goes down, price goes down. Wow it''s actually working like it''s supposed to. What a miracle. Do you think that the dem''s plan of taxing people and oil companies will reduce costs? Adding more taxes will actually drive up the cost and once they get the money and budget that in, it will never go away. But throw out some more cursing, it shows your true IQ. Brilliant.

[dnsallday]

Don''t blame the Republicons. I''m sure it was an honest mistake. It would be hard for them to know that there were significant oil spills, after all they have had their hands over their eyes for the past 7 years.