Should BP uncap the oil well?
The government is suggesting that BP's cap may be creating bigger problems. The company says everything is fine. Who should we trust?

A free daily digest of the biggest news stories of the day - and the best features from our website
Thank you for signing up to TheWeek. You will receive a verification email shortly.
There was a problem. Please refresh the page and try again.
BP's new containment cap is still keeping oil from flowing from the company's blown-out Macondo well, but the oil giant and U.S. government are offering mixed messages on whether this fix is sustainable. BP officials said Sunday that they plan on leaving the cap in place until they can seal the well at its base, probably in August. But U.S. officials, warning of a possible methane "seep" from the sea floor and "undetermined anomalies at the well head," suggest that the valves might have to be reopened to avoid making the leak worse. Why aren't they on the same page? (Watch an AP report about the disagreement)
BP doesn't want to lose the magic: The government's "worrying" warning of a possible seep is a good reminder that BP doesn't always have our best interests in mind, says Bryan Walsh in Time. After all, its stock jumped 4 percent Friday on the news that it had stopped the oil gusher, and "it's not hard to see why they might want to push the limit on containment and keep that well shut."
"Oil spill: Is the well damaged?"
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
The U.S. might be overreacting: It's true that methane could be seeping out from a damaged well, says Louisiana State University petroleum engineer Darryl Bourgoyne, to Bloomberg. Or "it could be biogenic gas, gas created by bacteria," which bubbles up naturally from the seabed. Opening the cap would mean they're being "very, very cautious."
"U.S. demands more test data... after seep found in seabed"
There are financial interests on both sides: BP has another financial motivation, too, says Rep. Ed Markey (D-MA), via CNN. If it siphons all the oil to the surface, like this new cap allows and the U.S. wants, we'll know how much oil has been gushing out. But "if the well remains fully shut in until the relief well is completed, we may never have a fully accurate determination," and BP "might evade billions of dollars of fines."
"Government says leak detected 'a distance from' oil well"
We need a neutral ref: So this disagreement "seems to cry out, yet again, for an independent set of eyes on the scene," says Andrew Revkin in The New York Times. Coast Guard Adm. Thad Allen is nominally in charge of whether to open the valves, but he relies on BP's undersea robots for most of his information. With so much as stake, we have "urgent reason to have more capacity to scour the seabed."
"BP pressed to assess 'seep' near its well"
Continue reading for free
We hope you're enjoying The Week's refreshingly open-minded journalism.
Subscribed to The Week? Register your account with the same email as your subscription.
Sign up to our 10 Things You Need to Know Today newsletter
A free daily digest of the biggest news stories of the day - and the best features from our website
-
Biden creates White House Office of Gun Violence Prevention
Speed Read The office will be led by Vice President Kamala Harris
By Justin Klawans Published
-
Chairman Jordan
Cartoons
By The Week Staff Published
-
10 things you need to know today: September 23, 2023
Daily Briefing Sen. Bob Menendez rejects calls to resign following indictment, Ukraine launches missile attack on occupied Crimean city, and more
By Justin Klawans Published
-
Trump surrenders in Georgia election subversion case
Speed Read
By Catherine Garcia Published
-
Rep. Hakeem Jeffries chosen to succeed Pelosi as leader of House Democrats
Speed Read
By Brigid Kennedy Published
-
GOP leader Kevin McCarthy's bid for House speaker may really be in peril
Speed Read
By Peter Weber Published
-
Are China's protests a real threat for Beijing?
opinion The sharpest opinions on the debate from around the web
By Harold Maass Published
-
Who is Nick Fuentes, the white nationalist who dined with Trump and Kanye?
Speed Read From Charlottesville to Mar-a-Lago in just five years
By Rafi Schwartz Published
-
Jury convicts Oath Keepers Stewart Rhodes, Kelly Meggs of seditious conspiracy in landmark Jan. 6 verdict
Speed Read
By Peter Weber Published
-
A look at the White House's festive and homey holiday decor
Speed Read
By Brigid Kennedy Published
-
Bob Iger addresses 'Don't Say Gay' bill, says inclusion is part of Disney's values
Speed Read
By Justin Klawans Published