The Spill

Gr 9 Up—This film investigates the corporate mentality of the energy company BP, an organization viewed by many as having grown too fast and taken too many risks in the name of profit while sacrificing safety. Three incidents are scrutinized: the March 2005 explosion at BP's Texas City refinery, the March 2006 oil pipeline leak on the North Slope at Prudhoe Bay, Alaska, and the 2010 Deepwater Horizon oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico. Utilizing excellent film footage and interviews with past and present employees and executives, government regulators, and safety experts, the narration recounts details of the Texas City refinery's need for modernization and its workers' concerns about safety. In Alaska, BP deferred maintenance and did not replace old equipment. The pipeline, which had not been cleaned in ten years, leaked and caused the worst ever spill on the North Slope. In the Gulf, BP led all other oil companies with its deep-drilled wells. Again the company was accused of taking short cuts and ignoring safety. One worker called the Deepwater Horizon "the well from hell." Eleven people died in that explosion. Today, BP faces the largest liabilities in history. An excellent choice for social science, environmental studies, ethics, and journalism classes.—Patricia Ann Owens, Illinois Eastern Community Colleges, Mt. Carmel, IL