A code sunk in the sea--memories of the Deepwater Horizon oil spill in the spring of 2010.

A code sunk in the sea--memories of the Deepwater Horizon oil spill in the spring of 2010.

The explosion that occurred in the Gulf of Mexico on April 20, 2010 was not just an accident. The disaster, recorded as the worst oil spill in U.S. history, began with the collapse of the drilling rig Deepwater Horizon. The rig was operated by the British oil company BP, while the drilling itself was handled by Transocean. Eleven workers lost their lives in the explosion, and the rig sank into the sea after bursting into flames. But the real tragedy began after that: for 87 days, an estimated 4.9 million barrels, or about 780 million liters, of crude oil continued to spill from the seabed without stopping.

The causes were complex, but the most deadly was the inadequate cement sealing of the well. The cementing process by Halliburton, the contractor, was inadequate, allowing high-pressure natural gas to enter the well. Eventually, it erupted through the drilling pipe to the sea, causing an explosion. The blowout preventer (BOP), which was supposed to be the last resort to stop the blowout, did not work, and no one was able to stop the oil spill from the seafloor.

The spill left incalculable scars on the marine ecosystem. Thousands of sea turtles, dolphins, and seabirds lost their lives, and deep-sea coral reefs were damaged. Endangered species such as the Kemp's ridley sea turtle and the Pacific white-sided dolphin were especially hard hit. In addition, the toxic chemicals in the crude oil, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, adversely affected the hearts, growth, and reproduction of fish, silently undermining deep-sea and coastal food webs.

The economic impact was also enormous. The fishing, tourism, and shipping industries along the Gulf of Mexico coast were hit one by one, displacing tens of thousands of people from their livelihoods. Fishing grounds were closed along the coast, tourism declined, and the local economy cooled. In addition, some of those who worked to clean up the spilled oil complained of health problems caused by the dispersant Corexit, including dermatitis and respiratory problems. Crude oil entered not only the sea, but also into people's bodies and lives.

BP was held responsible for the accident and fined $4.5 billion under a criminal agreement with the US Department of Justice. In addition, it had to pay $20.8 billion in environmental damages, the largest environmental settlement in U.S. history. In the end, BP's costs related to the accident exceeded $65 billion. It is not just the size of the sum. It was the result of limited corporate ethics and oversight, and overconfidence in technology.

The accident exposed the fragile balance on which the development of deepwater oil fields rests. The United States tightened its regulations on offshore drilling after the accident, but the risks of deepwater drilling still persist. Technical safety measures alone are not sufficient to prevent a true recurrence. Corporate ethics, government oversight, and social responsibility must work in unison.

The Deepwater Horizon accident is not just a technological failure, but poses a fundamental question facing modern energy civilization. What do we sacrifice to obtain energy? It was not only oil that gushed out of the deep waters of the Gulf of Mexico in the spring of 2010, but the cost of our indifference.