Ethical Issues of Offhore Drilling

Zagros Madjd-Sadjadi Tony Lyall

ECO-6321 Ethical Question 2

With the recent oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico we are more likely to focus on the reasons we should not drill offshore for oil. Certainly the ethics of the oil companies and the regulatory agency that oversees them have seen significant press lately questioning whether regulators have been lax on enforcement and brought off with sex and drugs. Oil companies mean big money to our government in the form of billions of dollars in royalties. The political influences of these payments are not to be under estimated. The government uses this money for many government financed programs and there is the problem associated with becoming use to receiving these vast sums and the natural tendency to spend the money before you actually get it. So a disruption of cash flow due to the shutting down of an oil well could have a huge financial impact on the government’s pocket book. No only that, but repercussions from local Congressmen and Senators place regulatory personnel under a magnifying glass should production be stopped prematurely. In the recent incident personnel with the Mineral Management Services were fired. There are reports the Obama administration is going to close MMS and replace it with two other agencies; however, there has been no mention of the lobbyist and oil company personnel who were involved. Aren’t they ethical responsibility too? Shouldn’t they be fired? It all boils down to money. If you want to find the truth follow the money! Oil companies have significant power over politicians and governments. Large political contributions affect decisions and undermine ethics. We need to find a way to eliminate company contributions to political campaigns. In recent years there has been a weakening of oil drilling regulations including those requiring the use of remote shut-off switches routinely found on all North Sea oil field operations. No doubt some...