Comment on "BP oil spills regulation lessons all over" (China Daily June 4)
As a retired environmental scientist for a major oil company, I am really unhappy with the situation. The op-ed is essentially correct. We do use the high-risk low-probability approach to addressing potential risks, and only learn from experience when the actual event happens. Within the industry, BP has had a reputation of talking a good talk, but not necessarily following through. If anything, this will make all of us go back and re-evaluate how we look at risk, and how we try to deal with those very low-probability situations.
It is also unfortunate that the Obama administration is being blamed. The lax enforcement is a legacy of the Bush-Cheney era, and the Republicans in Congress have blocked so many nominations and potential new laws on larger issues that regulations applying to drilling were not really on the radar. Plus, as much as this is an unmitigated disaster, there really is no expertise in government that truly even understands the complexities of drilling at those depths. The expertise, limited as it appears, resides in the industry.
Hopefully, this will cause us to rethink how we secure new energy sources, and push us to set up quicker and more efficient, but thorough, regulations for renewal energy.
Al Simon on China Daily website
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