It is heartwarming to hear about the almost household news that Ghana, in collaboration with other international development partners are all set to engage in off shore crude oil exploration and production in commercial quantities by the year 2010.

For many Ghanaians, and indeed other non Ghanaians who have the interest of the country at heart, the mere fact that Ghana and her development partners will have the capacity to produce crude oil in commercial quantities brings us high sense of expectation and accomplishment. However, I wish to caution that in our haste to celebrate the good fortunes that come with oil exploration and production, we should not in any way attempt to exaggerate the benefits of crude oil production, at the expense of the cumulative cost and adverse effects that it will bring to the environment, and eventually to our people now and in the future.

That is the more reason why there is the need for objective, in-depth, and nonpartisan cost-benefits analyses of the whole exercise by our governments, public and private stakeholders, and the entire civil society.

To read more about the overview of drilling, transportation, storage accidents, and environmental impact of offshore crude oil exploration, click http://atoessel-1blogspot.com