Gulf Oil

On April 20, 2010 the Deepwater Horizon drilling rig experienced catastrophic failure, leading to the largest oil spill in marine history. Twelve months on, how is the spill affecting the health of workers and local residents, what are the lessons that can be learned for the future, and what are the implications for the health impacts of oil spills elsewhere - including last year's Enbridge spill in Michigan? Risk Science center director Andrew Maynard engages Margaret Kitt (NIOSH), Richard Kwok (NIEHS), Al Franzblau (UM School of Public Health) and David Uhlmann (UM Environmental Law & Policy Program) in conversation on the oil spill, and its implications to human health. The conversation will address a range of issues, including the short and long term health impacts of the oil spill on workers; the extent to which this has this been a wakeup call to improve drilling safety; the legal implications of the spill and its impacts; the challenges of balancing the need for domestic sources of oil with ensuring the safety of workers and local communities; and the lessons to be learned as we move forward.

Additional Resources

• 
  The NIEHS GuLF Study
  
  The NIEHS GuLF STUDY: GuLF Long-term Follow-up Study
• AIHA podcast on the GuLF Study with Richard Kwok
• National Academy of Engineering Committee: Analysis of Causes of the Deepwater Horizon Explosion, Fire, and Oil Spill to Identify Measures to Prevent Similar Accidents in the Future.
• National Commission on the BP Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill and Offshore Drilling
• NIOSH topic page on the Deepwater Horizon oil spill response
• Lessons from Deepwater Horizon: an op-ed by Andrew Maynard in the University of Michigan School of Public Health magazine Findings

  Review of the health impacts of the Gulf Oil Spill (N Engl J Med 2011; 364:1334-1348, April 7 2011)