Scientists challenge BP containment claims

Cast doubt on statement that device could capture 'vast majority' of oil
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/37573643/ns/disaster_in_the_gulf/

Some scientists are taking issue with BP's statement that a containment cap placed over a gushing well could be capturing "the vast majority" of oil spewing into the Gulf of Mexico.

They suggest it's misleading, if not irresponsible, to make such a statement when the company has acknowledged it doesn't know how much oil is flowing from the busted well, or how much the spill rate has increased since engineers cut a riser pipe so it could properly fit the containment cap.

"I don’t see that as being a credible claim," said Steve Wereley, associate professor of mechanical engineering at Purdue University and a member of the Flow Rate Technical Group, a national panel of scientists and engineers tasked with determining the spill size.

"What I would say to BP is, show the American public the before and after shots of the evidence on which they’re basing that claim," Werely told msnbc.com on Tuesday.

concerns about credibility.

It is interesting that in one breath, BP can say it has no idea how much oil is spewing out of their well, and in the very next breath claim that they're capturing a vast majority of that very same spew.

The crucial point is that BP has a very real interest in minimizing the amount of the underwater gusher, because they could be on the hook for a penalty of as much as $4,300 per barrel. One estimate has the spew gushing forth at 100,000 barrels per day, which results in a maximum fine of about $21.5 billion* so far with no end in sight. BP has no interest in getting an accurate measure, because the estimate will almost surely be low (if an official estimate is made that is over and above the actual flow, you damn betcha BP will suddenly "discover" a method for getting an accurate measure, right down to the last barrel).

*And has been said, a billion here, a billion there, and pretty soon you're talking about real money.