The U.S. Coast Guard said on Monday that it is investigating nearly 350 Oil spill In the U.S. Gulf of Mexico and its coastal areas Hurricane Ida.
Ada’s wind speed of 150 miles per hour (240 km/h) caused severe damage to offshore oil production platforms and onshore oil and gas processing plants. After the storm made landfall on August 29, about 88% of offshore oil production in the area remained closed, and more than 100 platforms were unused.
The Coast Guard has been conducting overpasses near the coast of Louisiana, looking for spills. It is providing information to federal, state and local authorities responsible for cleaning up the site.
The flight on Sunday found evidence of a new leak from an offshore oil well and reported that another leak that caused a continuous oil spill that lasted several miles was no longer active. It said it could not confirm the third report of oil near the rig.
Offshore oil producer Talos Energy Inc hired divers and a cleanup crew to deal with the Bay Marchand oil spill. The company said that the old pipeline damaged in the storm was obviously responsible for this.
Coast Guard spokesman Lieutenant John Edwards said the source of the Bay Marchand leak is still unknown. He said the team led by the Coast Guard “will look for all potential sources to ensure that any future risks are mitigated.”
Talos said that since it was first discovered last week, leaks along the Port of Fuljeong, Louisiana, have been significantly reduced. Spokesperson Brian Grove said that the company is not the owner of the pipeline and ceased production and operations in the area four years ago.
The Coast Guard stated that an offshore oil well belonging to S2 Energy Company is discharging oil about 5 miles (8 kilometers) from the Gulf of Marchand. The company told the Coast Guard that it has ensured the safety of the wellhead and no longer discharges oil.
S2 did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The Louisiana Department of Environmental Quality (LDEQ) said it is working with the Coast Guard and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to require companies responsible for any leaks to stop and clean up their emissions.
“If necessary, USCG and/or EPA can open up federal funding flows to cover mitigation costs,” LDEQ said.
EPA also stated that it is working with LDEQ and the Coast Guard.
The agency said in a statement: “EPA has received 39 reports related to hurricanes within our scope of responsibility and has been evaluating these reports and following up with responsible parties to ensure they are resolved.”
(Reporting by Arpan Varghese and Kanishka Singh in Bangalore, Gary McWilliams in Houston and Stephanie Kelly in New York, editing by Marguerita Choy, Matthew Lewis, Peter Graff)
