All Talk, Little Action

After the oil spill disaster in the Gulf of Mexico, President Obama promised much, but he has changed very little thus far. Setting limits on the oil industry is proving to be more than just a difficult task for him.

President Obama promised a lot of changes after the catastrophe in the Gulf of Mexico, but has done little to bring those changes about to date. It is true that no new deep water drilling permits are being granted in the region, but that’s far from what is needed. Further measures must be taken, such as stricter regulation of oil companies or perhaps a total ban on deep sea drilling.

It sounds good to say that further permits will only be granted with considerably stricter environmental controls attached, but that’s not the real problem. Drilling for oil in deep sea locations carries a huge risk that isn’t minimized by stricter regulations alone. Each new well represents a threat to the environment because 100 percent guarantees are impossible, and even the best technology can fail. Additionally, the strictest regulations are worthless unless they’re adhered to. That was shown by the crash of the Deepwater Horizon platform. It was a disaster that probably could have been averted had everyone involved worked according to the existing regulations.

Obama is finding it difficult to set limits on the oil industry. To mention just one example, BP and other companies still are held only partially liable for damages they cause. The remainder comes out of the taxpayer’s pocket. The government is open to accusations that it has not done enough to prevent future oil disasters such as this. And that is a result of the fatal dependency the American economy has on its principal energy source.