This Week in Green – Oct. 30, 2010
By Geoff Grant – Zoe Environmental Editor
The environmental news this week is full of records: record temperatures, record winds, record fish and one record we’ve heard over and over again: Halliburton = trouble. And while the upcoming elections could set a new low for those who believe in environmental science, Arnold Schwarzenegger is one Republican trying to leave a green legacy behind as he leaves office.
Broken record
Halliburton is back in the news, which, if history has taught us anything, is rarely a good thing (see bribes, Iraq, Dick Cheney, no-bid contracts, KBR, oil spills and toxic waste for starters).
On Thursday, the presidential commission investigating the BP oil spill, said that Halliburton was aware weeks before the explosion in the Gulf of Mexico that the cement sealant on the BP well was unstable.
The commission reported that Halliburton had done three tests that determined the cement mixture did not meet industry standards prior to the well blowout on April 20. That blast killed 11 workers and resulted in the largest offshore oil spill in American history.
Halliburton also provided the cement mixture for the Montara offshore well in Australia, which blew out last year, the third-worst offshore oil disaster in Australia’s history.