Faced with the planetary desperation to solve the massive oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico, various proposals have emerged in search of finding a response to this environmental disaster. Among these, some product of conscience, genuine concern, or simply the imagination of various actors in society, perhaps a combined response could be forged that allows, after anguishing weeks, to finally resolve this spill that will have serious consequences for the environment. The ecological devastation is already signed, however, each moment that passes unresolved could cost our planet even more dearly.
more
It is important to clarify that in parallel with the execution of a rapid and accurate response, work should be done to detect and punish other agents who have contributed to the start of this spill and the delay in dealing with it: corruption of authorities and corporations, incompetence, negligence, financial interests involved and, above all, our addictive dependence, as a contemporary society, on oil.
1) The oil processing machine
This technology has been offered by the company of Kevin Costner, the 90th Hollywood actor. Apparently, the machine developed by Costner and his group of investors can process, through biochemical processes, crude oil and extract its properties until it is simply transformed into water.
“Years ago, before I got involved in this, every time I heard about an oil spill I wondered how we couldn’t clean it up,” Costner said. “The machine is robust and works at a speed of 200,000 gallons per minute. It eliminates 99% of the oil ”he added to the American news network, ABC News.
More information about this proposal
2) Fungi to break down hydrocarbon contaminants
Proposal made by the brilliant scientist Paul Stamets, an expert in mycology and with extensive studies on the properties of fungi as agents that accelerate the decomposition of various contaminants. Fungi produce 120 enzymes, many of which break down a number of hydrocarbon toxins. In a study conducted by Batelle Laboratories, Stamets discovered that oyster mushroom mycelia reduced the hydrocarbon concentration in soil contaminated by diesel gasoline from 10,000 parts per million to just 200 ppm in 16 weeks.
This initiative is presented as a complementary alternative, which, in combination with other actions, could significantly reduce the levels of pollutants spread around the Gulf of Mexico. However, by itself it would be difficult for it to represent a true solution since to inhibit contaminants from this amount of oil would require more fungi than currently exist in the world.
More information about this proposal
3) Use straw to absorb oil
As many of us know, the straw used on farms to feed animals has incredible absorption properties. For this reason, and perhaps also out of desperation at the lack of solutions, attempts have been made to throw tons of this material into the affected area so that it can absorb the oil and then be removed. Florida authorities have already tried this on some of its coasts, however, they have been reproached by the federal government, since according to some specialists, if the straw were to sink to the bottom of the sea, it would simply hinder future combat efforts and would maintain the same level of contamination in the waters.
4) Nuclear explosions
Decades ago, the Soviet Union managed to seal several underwater methane gas wells by introducing nuclear bombs into them. The atomic explosion generated such heat that it melted the stone layers that surrounded these deposits, causing them to be permanently sealed. Although it seems like a rather crazy proposal, the truth is that it is one of the few alternatives that has a successful record.
«Probably the only thing left to do is create an armed system and send it down to about 18,000 feet, detonate it, and maybe it can bury the leak,» says Matt Simmons, a nuclear energy expert at a Houston research center. However, this measure has been flatly ruled out by the United Nations council, as well as by Steven Chu, US Secretary of Energy.
5) Fire
It seems that one of the seemingly logical alternatives points to combustion as an effective resource to make oil disappear from water. Common sense tells us that the fastest way to consume fuel is through fire. In fact, BP, the oil corporation responsible for the spill in the Gulf of Mexico, has conducted five controlled fires in the area in order to verify their effectiveness. And although this solution should not be completely ruled out, the truth is that the environmental contamination that would be generated, with the smoke produced by burning crude oil in the atmosphere, would add new consequences to this already historic ecocide.
It might interest you