Engineers say Interior changed oil report after they signed it Read more: http://www.mcclatchydc.co

Source: McClatchy

WASHINGTON — A group of engineers and oil experts said Friday that the Interior Department changed the language of a high-profile oil spill report after they'd signed it, falsely signaling their support for a drilling moratorium that they thought went too far.

The new language called for a stronger and wider moratorium on some oil drilling in the Gulf of Mexico than the experts thought necessary. In fact, one said Friday, the stronger moratorium might instead increase the risks slightly.

"The reason we don't agree is that we think it makes the system less safe. It increases risk, it doesn't reduce risk," Texas oil consultant Ken Allen said in an interview.

Allen was among a group of experts who read and signed a May 27 statement by Interior Secretary Ken Salazar announcing new safety measures for offshore drilling, as well as a six-month moratorium on some drilling.



Read more: http://www.mcclatchydc.com/2010/06/11/95776/engineers-say-interior-changed.html#ixzz0qgbctlBa

bad for the environment? I can't figure it out from the story.

So, I'd say that's good.

Amazingly, Salazar, who should be out on his ass looking for a new job, went for tighter regs than a TX oil engineer. Go figure.

I saw some righties peddling this story yesterday. whats the scoop here? are they talking crap? is there something here? i havent been able to find out if this is a non story or not

I say SCREW THEM. Err on the side of safety and the environment.

Whether thats 2 months, or 2 years, every well (deep or shallow) needs fail safe redundancy safeguards to insure theres little chance of another gusher.

These engineers would be better off working on the engineering required to meet that kind of goal instead of playing politics.

Look, you sign on to a report so then it's proper to say that you supported that report. You didn't even sign on to that report, but to another, slightly different one.

If the report's changed after you signed on, however, it's a lie to say that you support it or that you even signed it.

You're right. The engineers would be better off working on the engineering instead of playing politics--like asking that the Interior Department not misrepresent their positions and essentially lie about it. We just don't need that kind of transparency and integrity in politics. That we can leave to the engineers.

:bluebox:

No drilling...no spills.


Read more: http://www.mcclatchydc.com/2010/06/11/95776/engineers-say-interior-changed.html#ixzz0qgnxmSbB


Sounds like crapola to me.

and I was absolutely horrified when Atlantis was given a pass from the moratorium.

you know what's up, despite the confusing verbiage of the author

doesn't anybody act professionally anymore. What the hell is going on? Our Government is like a damn cartoon.

TX engineers signed on to.

after signing it is most often both unethical and illegal.

The moratorium is a political and non-technical safety measure that does not need the engineers' technical safety review or signature.

They verified a process that would prove safe.

The political types changed that to what they think is safer. How many years in an Engineering school and how many years experience in the field did they have before inserting their recommendations? Show me what was signed off on, show me what the changes were, and let me talk with some chemical and manufacturing engineers I know to see what they say.

I'm a technical writer by trade, and I ALWAYS have the engineer sign off on the procedures and don't change even a comma (tho typos are fair game!). I have seen people make "improvements" to a process that has rendered that process dangerous or even deadly if not caught and changed back. They do not understand the reasons behind what is said.

For fair play, run what was signed versus the released procedures past some university engineering professors. See what is said.

I always expect mistakes from politicians as they look for the political benefit, not necessarily the best process.

Hopefully that's the end of them.