Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill Disaster (Case Study Sample)

Final Case Analysis: British Petroleum
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Final Case Analysis: British Petroleum
BP’s immoral practices caused the Deepwater Horizon oil spill disaster. In 2010, BP, Halliburton, and Transocean were involved in the Deepwater Horizon oil drilling when it exploded, killing 11 workers and millions of marine wildlife (Smith et al., 2011). According to investigations, negligence resulted in the spill, as BP and Transocean had detected problems during testing but ignored the warnings (Smith et al., 2011). Another moral issue is that BP made poor decisions to save time and money and failed to adopt appropriate controls to address the increased risks.
The US has a mixed economy with capitalist and socialist elements. In a capitalist economy, private businesses have the freedom to generate goods and services (Ugwu & Moko, 2017). Nonetheless, the government is supposed to enact laws to ensure private businesses operate ethically in a socialist economy. The US government lacked regulatory oversight over the oil industry, making the oil spill disaster possible. The laws that affect BP include the Migratory Bird Treaty Act (MBTA), Oil Pollution Act, Resource Conservation and Recovery Act, Clean Water Act (CWA), and Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (United States Environmental Protection Agency, 2021).
Ethical Theory
Oil drilling companies have a moral responsibility of committing to safety first. As such, BP and other oil