Labor Market Impacts of the 2010 Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill and Offshore Drilling Momentum 

On April 20, 2010, the Transocean Deepwater Horizon suffered a catastrophic blowout while drilling in a BP lease in the Gulf of Mexico’s Macondo Prospect. This accident resulted in the largest oil spill in U.S. history and an unprecedented spill response effort. Due to the ongoing spill and concerns about the safety of offshore oil drilling, the U.S. Department of the Interior suspended offshore deep water oil and gas drilling operations on May 27, 2010, in what became known as the offshore drilling moratorium. The media portrayed the impacts of these events on local employment, with images of closed fisheries, idle rigs, as well as boats skimming oil and workers cleaning oiled beaches.