Drilling Moratorium Costing Gulf Docks Business

(CBS)  As the Obama administration's six month moratorium on deep sea drilling winds through the courts, tens of thousands of oil workers are in limbo.

In Louisiana, oil is a $70 billion business. If the moratorium becomes permanent, it could cost the state more than the spill itself.

Special Section: Disaster in the Gulf

Much of this coast lives off deepwater drilling. BP has set up a compensation fund for them, but it's not nearly enough. At one dock, what matters is what you don't see, CBS News Correspondent Mark Strassmann reports.

There's so little activity, Dwayne Rebstock could lose his company. His 30 employees load and unload ships that service deepwater drilling.

At Port Fourchon, La., they last unloaded a ship three weeks ago. Rebstock's business is down 90 percent and it's all because of the moratorium.

"Everyone's in the same boat we are," Rebstock said.

All 33 deepwater rigs have shut down production because of too much uncertainty. A six-month federal moratorium was lifted, but another's on its way.

BP has set a compensation fund of $100 million, but this industry could lose as much as $330 million a month in wages with a 120,000 jobs on the line.

More oil washed in Tuesday. Every new wave is another reminder of why the Obama White House imposed the moratorium in the first place.

Louisiana's leaders want more help.

"Our people want to go back to work," Louisiana Republican Gov. Bobby Jindal said.

If employees like Mark McGiver are laid off, the 51-year-old grandfather says BP's compensation may be his only hope.

"I get up at 2 o'clock, sit with the wife, talk about what's going to happen," said McGiver. "I leave at 3:30, 4 o'clock hoping I can make it another day."

Rebstock has started laying off employees. He guesses at this rate, his company will survive a month more, maybe two.

[newsterI]

Drilling Moratorium Costing Gulf Docks Business"

Too bad, it's called a disaster of epic proportions, so in times of a disaster everything STOPS till it's fixed.

[ajvw]

so here we are in day 70 and the gov is finally getting around to the paperwork which will allow countys that offered help on day 1 to come in.

[ianlou]

I find it interesting how "worked up" the media and the government gets about all the Thousands of jobs negatively affected by this oil spill while the continued loss of Millions!!!! of American manufacturing jobs barely gets a mention anymore.

I'll wait till the cities in the gulf states start looking like the cities in the Rust Belt before I start sharing any tears.

By the way, Looking for beautiful sugar-sand beaches this summer? Try the Great Lakes.

[user000049586849302948602]

Correction: BPs corporate greed and malfeasance, which necessitated the moratorium, is costing US ALL.

[endurorob_5]

It's the typical liberal overreaction that is costing.

[us_1776]

What we need to be doing is what many of the European countries are now doing. There are countries in Europe that are on track to be completely energy independent by 2030 using alternative energy technologies. And there is no reason that the United States cannot do the same. We need to get off of this oil rollercoaster once and for all. And the technologies are now available to help us do that. I'm tired of seeing our hard earned tax dollars going towards trillion dollar follies in needless wars over oil. It's time that this nation led once again in technological innovation by achieving energy independence using alternative energy projects coupled with some 'modern' nuclear power.

[bajajohn1]

Jindal and others wanted the offshore drilling. They got the permits from Bush to continue the drilling. Then they scream and hollar about the size of the federal government, the deficit and pray the wars continue. They want more offshore drilling, more taxes means more jobs and a fatter state government. The Louisianans want their cake and they want to eat it too. They scream when the oil washes on shore and destroys their fishing business. They blame the federal government. They scream some more, they want more federal help. Then they say the government is too large. The feds slap a moratorium on deep sea drilling. The Jindal's scream again. Lopouisianans voted Republican and you got what your wanted. Scream some more, it won't do any good. You did not vote for the President anyway.

[screaminraven]

Blaming the drilling moratorium for lost business is LUDICRIOUS! If the riggers on Deepwater Horizon found excessive methane gas and thought throwing seawater in the well instead of drilling mud was strange (at best) then they should've grown a pair and called OSHA and/or the media. I grew up in a town where it was a weekly experience to hear of men who fell into molten vats of steel and be killed processing steel...All those jobs went overseas and the steel workers have gotten new careers and are alive. The second largest business was Westinghouse building nuclear power plants. I went to school on scholarship while working three jobs and tutoring to become a nuclear fuel process and control designer, in seven years my job and everyone elses was shut down because of Three Mile Island...The Circle W hired the best scientists throughout the world when Westinghouse turned them down they worked for NASA...Now I don't see any of that talent and work ethic being lost in the Gulf yet the country left Pittsburgh out to dry with Reagans talk of union busting and oil companies throwing slush funds to Nixon and Reagan to listen to the environmentalists and shut down alternative fuel and the American future. Do I care the riggers lose their jobs? I care that BP and the other oil companies disobeyed law, lied on leasing applications they had contingency plans THAT WORKED in case of a failure and that THE OIL COMPANIES DON'T GIVE A CRAP ABOUT ANYONE LOSING THEIR LIVES OR JOBS AND LEAST OF ALL CARE NO ONE WILL BE ABLE TO LIVE IN THE GULF IN SEVERAL MONTHS IF THIS SPILL CONTINUES. If the riggers want to drill leave the Gulf and work, don't kill off a quarter of the country because you didn't open your mouths about violations of law to environmentalists, the media and government officials that would listen (obviously not your locals, then come looking for sympathy. We don't have any sympathy because all of us out here have had to go look for work after abiding law and sacrificing for the jobs we lost. Your leaders should call some officials in Pittsburgh and find out how we came back to be a G20 city 20 years after EVERYONE LOST THEIR JOBS IN THIS CITY

[tabigirl]

So basically whats going to happen is we are not going to be drilling in the gulf anymore so we will be more dependent on foreign oil. YEA!!! NOT! What are these people thinking? Put a cap on BP not the rest of the companies. All that does is make us depend on foreign oil and if the cap in trade goes into effect also foreign oil will be cheaper. So our dependence on foreign oil will be solidified. Then we will have to go into another oil war...cause face it we can call Iraq what ever we want but the truth is it's a war over oil.

[newsterI]

"So our dependence on foreign oil will be solidified."

No, every new MOUTH TO FEED means our dependence on foreign oil increases dramatically.
Cars get 300% more MPG today than their 70's counterparts yet we import MORE oil than ever, why? because we DOUBLED the us population from 150 million in 1950 to over 305 million in 2005, as a result we use massive amounts MORE dirty oil DESPITE aggressive recycling, cutting back, conserving, better appliances, more insulated homes, lower thermostats etc.
Wake up and smell the diapers, every new mouth is another nail in the coffin in this planet and continued sustainability with life as we know it.