BP Looks for New Plan to Stop Leak

Back to the drawing board: With oil leaking once again from its containment-cap system, BP is looking into a new plan that it says would permanently stem the Gulf oil leak. This time it’s the “static kill,” a method in which heavy mud would be pumped into BP’s new containment cap, forcing the gas and oil back underground. If BP goes ahead with the procedure—it says it will consider it over the next several days—then the relief wells, which will not be completed until August, will only be needed to confirm that the “static kill” had worked. The procedure could be carried out with the same “top kill” equipment that failed in May.