Lawless Planet – Deepwater Horizon, Part 1: “Operate to Failure”

Podcast: Lawless Planet by Wondery
Host: Zach Goldbaum
Episode Date: November 3, 2025

Episode Overview

In this gripping premiere of a two-part series, Zach Goldbaum dissects the catastrophic Deepwater Horizon oil spill through the lens of institutional negligence, profit-driven decision-making, and willful cover-ups. Drawing on whistleblower accounts, government investigations, and BP’s checkered safety record, the episode traces the years-long warning signs that led to the 2010 Gulf disaster. This is a true crime narrative—not just about an oil company’s crimes, but the systems and choices enabling environmental catastrophe.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

The Night of Disaster (00:00–03:43)

• Vivid re-creation of April 20, 2010: Goldbaum narrates the unfolding chaos as the Deepwater Horizon explodes—drilling mud raining down, multiple explosions, mayday calls, and desperate crew jumping into burning, oil-slicked waters.
  • Memorable moment: “Drilling mud starts pouring down from the sky like black rain ... It looks like an erupting volcano. That is not good.” (Zach Goldbaum, 00:43)
• Captain Landry of the supply ship Damon Bankston orchestrates an ad-hoc rescue as Deepwater’s tragedy begins.

The Scope of the Catastrophe (04:58–05:33)

• Immediate impact:
  • 11 workers killed
  • 168 million gallons of crude oil released—unprecedented environmental devastation (“…coating marine ecosystems, destroying coastal livelihoods, and forever altering the region’s landscape.” – Zach Goldbaum, 04:59)
• Pop culture aftermath mentioned (books, documentaries, the “Mark Wahlberg movie”).

The Unasked Question: How Was This Allowed? (05:33–06:17)

• Goldbaum introduces the core theme: the disaster was preventable and perhaps inevitable due to systemic failures and prioritization of profit over safety.
• Sets up the investigation into BP’s long history of such failures and the individuals who tried to hold them to account.

Scott West: Whistleblower, Investigator, Insider (06:17–07:17)

• Background: Scott West, ex-EPA criminal investigator; career moved from would-be priest to law enforcement to environmental crime.
  • “If a corporation is illegally disposing of hazardous waste... Scott is your guy.” (Zach Goldbaum, 06:54)

Uncovering a Pattern at BP (07:31–09:07)

• Chuck Hamill’s crusade: Former oil broker/altruistic agitator gathers BP employee accounts from Alaska’s Prudhoe Bay oil field, sharing them with Scott West.
• Retaliation from BP: Private investigators, sting attempts—efforts to neutralize whistleblowers.
  • “They set up a sting operation at a hotel... trying to get him on camera with some hookers, and he never fell for it.” (Scott West, 08:40)

Texas City Refinery Disaster (09:26–12:46)

• March 23, 2005: Explosion at BP’s Texas City refinery kills 15, injures 180+.
  • Dramatic call: “A plant just blew up. Oh, my God...and it blew up and I felt it in my body and like ears.” (Caller, 11:31)
• Institutional neglect: Aging equipment, broken safety culture; “BP blames low-level workers and fails to hold any executives accountable.” (12:46)
• BP CEO Lord John Browne promises reforms—but multiple additional accidents follow that same year.

Alaska Pipeline: “Operate to Failure” (14:26–15:52)

• Internal vs external corrosion: BP’s pipelines in Alaska, plagued by internal corrosion, go unmaintained—because running cleaning “pigs” is considered too costly to profits.
  • “BP, we learned through our investigation, had a philosophy on the North Slope of operate to failure. They would just keep running their stuff till it failed and then shut it down.” (Scott West, 15:41)
• New workers warned not to touch pipes with their tools—pipes are so frail they might rupture from minor impacts.

The Looming Disaster Unfolds (16:19–18:44)

• Scott West alerts EPA and is dismissed—they claim no jurisdiction.
• Hurricane Dennis & Thunder Horse: Newer BP projects, like the massive Thunder Horse drilling platform, also show grave design flaws—nearly capsizing due to a backwards valve, “probably caused by being in a hurry.” (Scott West/Frontline, 18:44)

Alaska Pipeline Spill: Inevitable Catastrophe (20:44–24:47)

• March 2006: Scott West receives news the warning was realized—a pipeline rupture has dumped over 200,000 gallons of oil, discovered only by chance.
  • Discovery: A worker’s boot sinks into oil beneath the snow; leak had persisted undetected for days.
  • “There was a lot of snow on the ground, the lake was frozen solid. So the oil got into the lake... Had it been summertime, all this oil would have flown right into the Beaufort Sea.” (Scott West, 22:23)
• Negligence routine: Pipeline pressure alarms ignored due to frequent faults; disaster “no accident.”
  • “It was clear to me that this was no accident, that this was the result of significant negligence. So I was treating it as a crime scene from day one.” (Scott West, 23:10)
• BP is a “serial environmental criminal”—West recounts decades of violations.

Push for Corporate Accountability (24:47–27:17)

• Scott West targets felony charges not just for BP, but for individual executives—a rare stance.
  • “Corporations don't make decisions. It's individuals within corporations that make decisions. And once some of these decision makers are facing jail time... that brings accountability much more into focus.” (Scott West, 30:49)
• Political/economic pushback: BP finally undertakes inspections only after massive leaks, infuriating state and federal officials as oil prices surge.

Congressional Hearings: Systemic Indictment (27:17–29:09)

• Smart Pig scandal: BP hadn’t checked leaking pipeline in 14 years, while competitors inspected every three.
  • “BP America's recent operating failures are unacceptable... fallen short of what you and the American people expect.” (BP America President, 28:29)
• Congressional theater vs real consequences—public shaming, but no hard reckoning.

Investigation Stymied—Justice Aborted (31:11–34:52)

• Deliberate document dump: BP returns 62 million pages after subpoena, tries to drown the investigation.
• DOJ settles for less: Despite evidence mounting of criminal negligence to the top, U.S. attorneys agree to a misdemeanor plea. Scott West pleads for more time but is brushed off.
  • “If you cut corners and don’t get caught, great. If you do cut corners and get caught, then you pull out your checkbook and that just becomes a cost of doing business.” (Scott West, 33:46 / also at 03:43)
• BP pays $373 million in fines across multiple cases—West views it as a slap on the wrist.

Aftermath: Whistleblower’s Price (34:52–35:28)

• Scott West retires, joins the “KMA Club”—now able to talk, but facing career and personal backlash.
  • “I certainly have felt some cost at having done the right thing, but it was still the right thing to do.” (Scott West, 35:28)

Return to Deepwater Horizon (35:38–39:38)

• 2009–2010: BP touts record-setting deepwater drilling, moving the Deepwater Horizon to the Macondo Prospect—ironically named after a cursed town.
• Well plagued by delays, budget overruns, hidden technical red flags; cost-saving trumps safety (“BP opts for six centralizers instead of recommended 21”—bad for gas flow prevention).
  • Technical report quote: “Based on this analysis ... this well is considered to have a severe gas flow problem.” (Jesse Gagliano report, 39:32)
• BP ignores warnings—cascading toward new disaster.

Final Foreshadowing & Closing (39:38–40:28)

• On the night of the explosion, Scott West sees the news, instantly guesses BP is at fault—long before news anchors connect the dots.
  • “I look at my wife and I said, I’ll bet you a hundred dollars that’s a BP rig.” (Scott West, 40:03)

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• “If you cut corners and don't get caught, great. If you do cut corners and get caught, then you pull out your checkbook and that just becomes a cost of doing business.”
  – Scott West, 03:43 / 33:46

• “BP, we learned through our investigation, had a philosophy on the North Slope of operate to failure. They would just keep running their stuff till it failed and then shut it down.”
  – Scott West, 15:41

• “Corporations don't make decisions. It's individuals within corporations that make decisions. And once some of these decision makers are facing jail time ... that brings accountability much more into focus.”
  – Scott West, 30:49

• “Based on this analysis of the above outlined well conditions, this well is considered to have a severe gas flow problem.”
  – Jesse Gagliano (Halliburton report read aloud), 39:32

• “I look at my wife and I said, I’ll bet you a hundred dollars that's a BP rig.”
  – Scott West, 40:03

Important Segment Timestamps

• The Initial Catastrophe: 00:00 – 03:43
• Scott West’s Introduction: 06:17 – 07:17
• Texas City Explosion: 09:26 – 12:46
• Alaska “Operate to Failure” Policy: 14:26 – 15:52
• Whistleblower’s Discovery of Spill: 20:44 – 21:31
• Alaska Pipeline Spill Analysis: 21:31 – 24:47
• Congressional Hearings (BP’s Systemic Failures): 27:17 – 29:09
• Document Dump and Legal Settlement: 31:11 – 33:46
• Technical Red Flags on Deepwater Horizon: 38:32 – 39:38

Tone & Style

The episode is investigative, vivid, and laced with dark humor (“I wouldn’t go naming dangerous oil drilling areas after anything remotely cursed.”). Goldbaum’s storytelling is urgent and cinematic, using first-person accounts and insider testimony to expose how routine negligence and bureaucratic inertia can end in environmental tragedy.

Final Thoughts

This episode is both exposé and warning: By following years of missed alarms, overlooked risks, and the normalization of profit-over-safety, Lawless Planet reveals how Deepwater Horizon was less an accident than a consequence. It’s a crime story where the victims are workers, witnesses, and the planet itself—and where true accountability, so far, has proven elusive.

Stay tuned for Part 2, covering the immediate causes, the aftermath, and the elusive search for justice.