Donate Bitcoin

Donate Paypal


PeakOil is You

PeakOil is You

Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill Capped Three Years Ago

General discussions of the systemic, societal and civilisational effects of depletion.

Re: Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill Capped Three Years Ago

Unread postby hvacman » Tue 04 Oct 2016, 14:43:41

ROCKMAN wrote:Hman - Exactly. And I wonder how many of those accidents are a result of the corporate culture attitude: "If you don't cut faster I'll give your job to someone who will".


Actually, as far as taking "short-cuts", it's as much personal greed as corporate culture. Many of the fallers (about the most skilled/dangerous job in the woods) are independent contractors and paid by the board-foot of cut timber. They are their own boss and take their own risks. Cut more board-feet per day, make more money. Many of the buckers (who cut off the tree limbs after the tree has been felled and cut ("buck") the trunk into 20' or 40' logs)_ and choker-setters (who put the cable loops ("chokers") around the bucked logs so they can be hauled out to the log deck by a high-line, cat, or skidder) may work for the faller, but frequently are also paid piece-rate. But they don't have as much control over the production as they can't buck or set the chokers on trees that aren't down on the ground.

But avoiding greed/short-cuts only can make things so safe. Cutting down and cutting up big, heavy, tall, live things on steep ground, with in all kinds of weather, using powerful, heavy, razor-sharp tools - every precaution only improves your odds. Sometimes bad things happen and a 10-ton 200-foot-tall tree falling onto or rolling over a 180 pound body, you know what the physics add up to.

There are so many who see loggers as evil incarnate. I've known a lot of loggers, though, and watched first-hand as they plied their craft. I have nothing but fierce admiration for them and always try to remember the skilled risk-takers behind every 2x4 I pick up at Home Depot.

The story is just same same out in the oil-patch. As Deepwater Horizon graphically reminds us.
hvacman
Tar Sands
Tar Sands
 
Posts: 594
Joined: Sun 01 Dec 2013, 13:19:53

Re: Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill Capped Three Years Ago

Unread postby ROCKMAN » Tue 04 Oct 2016, 17:11:01

Hman - That's the type of situations I thought you meant. I suppose you could break dangerous attitudes into two clusters: tactical (the boots on the ground as you describe) and the strategic (corporate)...like what subcontractors to use. About two years ago I handled a JV with a partner that opporated the wells. To save money they used one of the most unsafe drilling contractors I've seen in many years...a "strategic" decision I had no control over. But I wouldn't allow any of my personnel not just on the rig but even on the drill site. My tactical authority. I was the only one that went onto any of the drill sites. And I would park as far from the rig as possible. Really. LOL.

And 6 months ago drilling for a different company the same contractor had a blowout because the BOP didn't work. The hand up in the derrrick on the "monkey board" was slammed so hard against the safety rail it broke his back.

On the DH blowout there were specific tactical mistakes made by some of the hands on the rig that didn't prevent the situation from becoming fatal. But that situation developed as a DIRECT result of a strategic decision made in BP's officd to save money. A decision to follow a procedure I've never seen another operator do even a single time in hundreds of wells over a 4 decade long career. Had BP followed standard practices and EVERYTHING else that had going wrong (those tactical mistakes) still had gone wrong no one on this site, including the Rockman, would be familiar with a rig named the Deepwater Horizon.
User avatar
ROCKMAN
Expert
Expert
 
Posts: 11397
Joined: Tue 27 May 2008, 03:00:00
Location: TEXAS

Previous

Return to Peak Oil Discussion

Who is online

Users browsing this forum: No registered users and 76 guests