Behemoth Proportions: BP Spill Likely Larger Than Estimated

New evidence suggests that the BP Oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico may be far larger than the 5,000 barrels a day estimate given by BP and the U.S. government. Remember that BP initially reported that the spill was only 1000 barrels a day. That estimate was ratcheted up when the Coast Guard arrived and began to investigate the spill.

Ian McDonald, an oceanographer at Florida State has estimated the flow to be four to five times the government estimate. According to an article by Justin Gillis in the New York Times on Friday, May 14th, McDonald and other researchers are questioning the official government estimate of 146 gallons per minute. Alun Lewis, an expert in the area, estimated that the flow was much higher than the official tally after viewing film of the leak itself. NBC News, in a report by Thahn Truong, reported that as much as 70,000 barrels a day (close to 3 million gallons a day) may be leaking.

All told, the estimates by scientists seem to conclude that a minimum of one million gallons a day is leaking into the Gulf ecosystem. Tar blobs have begun to wash onto area beaches and the worst of the damage will likely not be known for some time.

BP: Beyond Preposterous.