Paper Prospectus on the Economic and Financial Impact of the Gulf Oil Spil - Research Proposal Example

The world’s most sophisticated drill rigs, known as The Deepwater Horizon, was degraded to a mass of burnt metal in a split of seconds (Peppas, 2011). The rising demand for oil over the years meant that companies were drilling even deeper into the sea in an attempt to drill more oil. The oil spill occurred at a time when the industry was least expecting it; industry experts has speculated that the chance of an explosion was less than one percent (McCoy & Salerno, 2011). However, the incident painted an entirely different picture; thousands of individuals were cleaning up the oil spill, with thousands of devices screening the blowout.

Discoverer Enterprise, the drill ship, howled loudly as it vent out methane gas that shot from the runway well (Peppas, 2011). Another rig, Q4, 000 which burnt oil and gas, simultaneously exploded (Peppas, 2011). What made matters worse was that the waters of the gulf were very difficult to reach; the terrain is very rough marked by canyons, ridges and volcanoes (Farrell, 2011). The deposits lay buried under the salt ridges under the sea that were vulnerable to earthquakes. Furthermore, the temperatures underwater were freezing whereas the temperature of oil reservoirs was around 400 degrees (Upton, 2011).

Economic concepts/approaches to be used in the research The economic concepts/ approaches to be involved are as follows: The concept of negative externalities: This concept explains the impact of individuals and/or corporations on a third-party (Hackett & Moore, 2011). They can be negative or positive; however, in this situation the externalities are likely to be negative rather than positive. Negative externalities shall revolve around the following : Damage to marine life Damage to local fishermen Damage to the coastal area’s economy Damage to U.

S’s exports Damage to locals who inhale the toxic fumes Damage to individuals who consume the contaminated seafood Cost Benefit analysis of the clean up: This concept shall arise when the company involved decides to arrange for a cleanup of the oil spill as well as compensate the families of the deceased or affected people. BP shall have to weigh the private versus social costs and benefits associated with the remedies it take which shall be explored in the main research. As economic theory suggests the decision that BP takes may not be socially desirable because of corporations’ self-interest and focus on maximizing private net benefits rather than maximizing social net benefits (Ramseur & Ramseur, 2010).

Expected findings/outcomes The findings expected are: Increasing unemployment- What shall be the impact on businesses whose earnings were tied to the Gulf of Mexico? Increasing government deficits in the region- What shall be the impact on fishermen who no longer have a source of income? Increase in national deficit- The deficit is expected to exceeding $2 million (Landau, 2011) Inflation in prices of agricultural products Higher taxes- Politicians can use this opportunity to charge higher taxes on an already troubled population Ecological damage to Louisiana coast Damage to marine life- Oil has swept deep into the sand which is the breeding ground for most fruits and vegetables.

If the oil isn’t cleaned up it can lead to intoxicated vegetables and fruits that can contaminate human life. Also toxic fumes have penetrated deep into the sea bed that can harm marine life, including fishes, disturbing their entire ecological system