Oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico brought the U.S. government to order a new environmental analysis to deep-water drilling.

Last Monday, the Obama administration ordered a new policy in creating new and continuing old operations of deep-water drilling across the Gulf of Mexico. Ken Salazar, Inferior Secretary, announced that an environmental impact statement for new deep-water drilling and a new environmental analysis for old operating deep-water drilling are now required for the Gulf of Mexico under the U.S. jurisdiction.

Salazar also added that this is to help provide information to guide future leasing and development decisions. Furthermore, he stressed making this new approach at the National Environmental Protection Act process, as an option to further manage and supervise these offshore activities in light of the increasing levels of complexity and risk, and the consequent potential environmental impacts.

The Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, Regulation and Enforcement that manages the nation’s natural gas, oil and other mineral resources and regulates offshore operations will use the information and reports from these additional requirements and hold any accountable to any recurring incidence.

The explosion from the Deep Horizon, a drilling platform in the Gulf of Mexico, happened last April 20. The incidence killed 11 workers and poured about 205 million gallons of crude oil into the gulf. The spill was extensive that it reached far across the east of the gulf exposing marine life to toxicity of the oil. Subsequently, US made restrictions on fishing for safety concerns. Eventually, the National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration and the Gulf states lifted the restrictions in accordance with a temporary solution to the oil spill.

The oil company BP provided measures in managing the oils spills. At the time of the eruption of the oil spill, BP covered the area around the Deep Horizon with more than 1.8 million gallons of chemical dispersants. The chemical will combine with the oil, eventually breaking the oil into droplets small enough that marine microbes can absorb and digest. Moreover, BP managed covering the well in mid-July preventing further oil spills and compensating the victims of the incidence.