Detection of something really stinks in California

pepperj · Dec 30, 2015

So this might be the worse environmental disaster since the BP mess. It's been going on since October and might flow out gas for another 2-3 months. Poor folks that on top or near this pipeline are having a rough go of it.
News - Huge natural gas leak still spewing methane in California - The Weather Network

Msbeepbeep · Dec 31, 2015

One would think they would have better safe guards in place when they drill now days, or at lest have a plan "B".

ANTIQUARIAN · Jan 1, 2016

I agree with MsBB, there should be plans already in place 'just in case' something like this happens! :icon_scratch:

How did a story like this not make headlines as soon as it was discovered... sounds like a cover-up to me! :dontknow:

Dave

fistfulladirt · Jan 1, 2016

California is already screwed with Fukushima's radiation plume.

SoCalDesertFox · Jan 1, 2016

So this was in reality a huge misstep.

Here's what happened - there are a ton of old oil wells in the Los Angeles area. As you can well imagine, these things were designed to hold oil using porous well walls. Natural Gas/Methane is not designed to be stored in these things. Normally, specialized wells are dug for gas. Instead, these older oil wells got used for storage. Bound to be asking for failure.

Now, if they want to get this under control, they need to figure out the prevailing atmospheric rotational direction in that area. Then they need to set up counter-vortex generators to adjust that rotation, and ignite it, creating a huge column of fire and thermal inversion that will punch right through the atmosphere, and then we'll have a cool-looking constantly burning tower of flame for a few decades. Alternatively, they can drill new relief points to drop the pressure and try redirecting the flow through those relief points into vessels designed to hold natural gas.

Why isn't the media covering it as much? It would be highly damaging to gas/oil company revenues. A couple million spent to keep the story under wraps prevents possible billions in losses in faith of company competency.

Msbeepbeep · Jan 1, 2016

Two words...power & money.

I find it almost comical when pressure is put on consumers to try and force huge companies or other enormous conglomerates to do the right thing...if they cared, they would do it right in the first place.

coinman123 · Jan 1, 2016

Good thing we didn't have that in NH, still getting over the massive 2012 earthquake.

G.I.B. · Jan 1, 2016

Califorinia.... Califorinia..... hummm... lemme think~ Didn't we unload them as a state of the union?

RustyGold · Jan 2, 2016

Who's we?

Wow I had not heard one word of this until now!
Irresponsible!

SoCalDesertFox · Jan 2, 2016

RustyGold said:
Who's we?
Wow I had not heard one word of this until now!
Irresponsible!

Yea, it's been going on for quite a while, actually, since October. So much of it is coming out that it alone accounts for approximately 25% of our greenhouse gas emissions in the ENTIRETY of the state for 2015, and it had only been going on for THREE MONTHS. Essentially that leak alone just about matched every other combined greenhouse gas source in the state for a period of three months.

SoCalDesertFox · Jan 2, 2016

G.I.B. said:
Califorinia.... Califorinia..... hummm... lemme think~ Didn't we unload them as a state of the union?

While a bit late to reply, no, not even. In fact, the union needed California's gold and harbors very badly, and were it not for the Union having Northern California secured during the secession, the entire Civil War might have turned out differently. Had the Confederacy managed to claim the entirety of California, they would've had a massive unrestricted harbor, rendering the Union Blockade ineffective, plus all of that gold to buy help and equipment from other countries. That would have been utterly disastrous for the Union, as it would have become the second revolutionary war.

So remember, without California, you might be the barbarian owning slaves, or be the slave yourself, this very day.

pepperj · Jan 3, 2016

SoCalDesertFox said:
Yea, it's been going on for quite a while, actually, since October. So much of it is coming out that it alone accounts for approximately 25% of our greenhouse gas emissions in the ENTIRETY of the state for 2015, and it had only been going on for THREE MONTHS. Essentially that leak alone just about matched every other combined greenhouse gas source in the state for a period of three months.

Wonder if there will be any penalties to the company, or is going to be the case of SHHHHHHH!?