The coastguard have approved ship-to-ship transfers of oil in the Forth.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/scotland/edinburgh_and_east/5179578.stm

Disgusting decision considering the potential impact of an oil spill and the fact that the benefits to Fife are tiny.

Too many people make decisions based on the consequences of an event rather than the combination of consquences plus the probability of something happening.

It's exactly the same as saying we should never cross a road because we may be knocked down.
If you're talking about a busy motorway then clearly there's a strong chance you'll be hit; if it's an ordinary A road then the chances are much lower and so we feel OK about crossing it.

So I don't think it's logical to reject ship to ship transfers unless you've got evidence that the way these are managed would show that an accident was unacceptably probable.

And before anyone says that no level of probabilty is acceptable please remember that if you applied that reasoning to your own life you wouldn't get out of bed Or of course maybe you would as many people do end up dying in their bed!

TBH dont really give a stuff

We need oil for petrol etc, it gets transported by various means, if it means ship to ship, so be it

Eugene, I'd say it's more Risk Vs Reward.
There is a risk but is the risk worth it?

Considering there is very little benefit to the areas that are potentially affected by any oil spill then I'd say the risks aren't worth it at all.

Of course!
After thinking about it for a couple of minutes I, can understand Eugene's logic.
If the whole thing blows up, we all get incinerated and Eugene, who now lives in Dundee, gets a free firework display!!

We could use the wind turbines being built at Methil to blow the oil over to Edinburgh. Thats if the could be launched in the oil slicks. I am sure the proposed passenger liner terminal and ferries across the Forth will be rejoicing. As I am led to believe these will be mostly Russian tankers, most of the Russian stock is in terminal decay.

On a more positive note we could build a new lighthouse and put Deek on it. He would be the best lighthouse in the levenmouth area in the last fifty years.

Dammit Corstorphine - I thought I'd had you fooled!

Could never understand why anyone would want to move to Dundee. Let me think about this - a fireball which would consume Methil and oil pollution along the Fife coast or a house in Dundee. I am just away to think about this again.

Kisten, Dundee is famous for hunners o things.

In fact the folk travelling to Durham next week are in for a treat!

I've prepared a short (3 hours) illustrated prsentation on the subject and will e delivering it in their hotel bar the evening before they go to bed. it'll keep them out of trouble and they'll learn lots of interesting things.

I know you'll think I'm spoiling them but as a trailer I'm doing a lecturette entitled " Brief History of 14th Century Bulgarian Poetry" amply interspersed with readings by my good self in a Czech translation.

Please form an orderly queue.

Who's Kisten?

Must be his sister Kisten Clarke.

Never mind a lighthouse. Just build a platform for Deek to stand on when its foggy and let him blow his own trumpet. Hey presto - a foghorn!

So let's try the alphabet again....

J...K...L A simple typo on a quirty keyboard being used by one who is one-finger-challenged.

And anyway by commenting on my typing inadequacy you've strayed away from the original point of the post!

I have a qwerty keyboard, that is maybe the reason for your typo!

Eugene,
Almost back to your original point. I agree with your analogy about crossing the road. It is probably similar to someone saying " I do not want to be Chairman of EFFC in case it makes me unpopular"
I also have trouble with my quirky keyboard.

I also dispute the statement that there will be no benefits to Methil. What else will hundreds of Russian sailors do on a Saturday except go to watch EF and drink in the lounge at night

I do not know what all the fuss is about the supertankers in Largo Bay. NOTHING CAN GO WRONG WRONG WRONG WRONG WR........................!