CBS4Online: Scientists Find New Oil Plume In Gulf
MEDLEY (CBS4) ― Click to enlarge1 of 1
John Moore/Getty Images
Close
numSlides of totalImages Slideshows Think You Know About Halloween - Think Again Halloween, Hollywood-Style Stumped For A Costume? Scientists speaking at the Fort Lauderdale International Boat Show say they continue to see effects of the BP oil spill surfacing in the Gulf of Mexico.
At a conference Thursday, scientists with a group called the International SeaKeepers Society, unveiled a map showing a new plume of oil -- about 6 miles long -- that's been discovered in the Gulf by fishermen.
"They described it as having millions of specks of reddish-brown oil in it," Dr. Mark Luther from the University of South Florida told CBS 4's Carey Codd.
Scientists cannot say for certain that the plume is from the BP spill, but they said it's a possibility.
Luther said the oil appears not to be toxic. "It's not in any concentration that is going to foul the beaches or make seafood inedible."
However Luther said that since so much oil spilled -- millions of barrels-- a lot of it sank to deep waters. He said the oil down below will not decay as quickly as oil on the surface and it will eventually rise to the top.
"There's likely to be effects for years or even decades because there's so much oil that's still out there," Luther said. "We just don't know where it is."
Luther is especially worried about how the oil will affect generations of fish.
Ocean explorer Fabian Cousteau is also warning that even though the BP well was capped and the surface oil cleaned there is still a threat out down below that people are no longer talking about.
"It's poisoning our future, it's poising our oceans and the fact that we're seeing plumes is of no surprise to me whatsoever," Cousteau said.
Scientists with the SeaKeepers Society are advocating equipping large boats with sensors that will scan for oil in the gulf and will reveal specific details about the oil in the water.
Monday, November 1, 2010
£1.6 billion tidal farm project off coast of Scotland is the world's first
Daily Mail Online: £1.6 billion tidal farm project off coast of Scotland is the world's first
The world’s first major tidal energy project – a £1.6 billion underwater farm of 400 turbines off northern Scotland – has been given the go-ahead by the Crown Estate.
When complete in 2020, the Pentland Firth project will generate enough electricity for
400,000 homes. It will also provide employment for hundreds of former nuclear workers at nearby Dounreay who will make the 100ft high double-bladed turbines.
There are further plans to exploit the Pentland Firth over the next two decades, installing 1,000 turbines that will generate 1.6 gigawatts of energy, enough for more than a million homes.
Enlarge
The decision by the Crown Estate to offer the lease to the MeyGen consortium is
regarded as the most significant investment in tidal energy so far. MeyGen is a joint venture between International Power (45 per cent), US investment bank Morgan Stanley (45 per cent) and Singapore tidal company Atlantis Resources (ten per cent).
Experts have dubbed the Pentland Firth the Crown Jewel of marine energy sites because the tidal waters there are among the fiercest in the world. Water flows at
just over four knots, allowing each of the huge structures to generate one megawatt of energy without significant interruption.
The turbines will be lined up 175 yards apart, weighted down by scrap metal. As the water depth in the Pentland Firth is about 130ft, small craft will be able to sail over
the area of about four square miles.
Vessels with a draught of morethan 32ft are automatically routed round the north of the Orkneys.
Because the waters are so rough, little fishing takes place and there is no danger to fish life as the blades revolve so slowly, say experts.
The turbine farm, which will be clearly marked on charts, is well away from sensitive military areas where Royal Navy submarines operate.
The turbines will be built at new factories near Dounreay. A prototype designed in Britain by Atlantis and built in Newcastle upon Tyne has been operating off the Orkneys for the past two years.
MeyGen chief Dan Pearson said: ‘We believe this will be a flagship marine power project.’
As the Crown Estate owns the seabed around Britain, it will be paid hundreds of thousands of pounds a year in rent for the turbine scheme.
The Royal family, which will soon benefit by taking 15 per cent of the Crown Estate profit, may also be able to enjoy renewable energy from the Pentland Firth project.
The royal Castle of Mey, which Prince Charles visits every year, is a few miles from the tidal farm site, which lies between the Caithness coast and the island of Stroma.
Icelandic firm restarts whale meat exports
The Japan Times: Icelandic firm restarts whale meat exports
LONDON (Kyodo) An Icelandic whaling firm has shipped 500 to 600 tons of finback whale meat to Japan this year, after resuming full-fledged whale meat exportation, sources said Saturday.
Japan annually catches around 4,000 tons of mainly minke whale meat under its so-called research whaling program, and markets the meat domestically. However, stocks currently exceed the sluggish demand for whale meat. The shipment of finback meat, which has a high market value, is certain to affect overall prices.
Kristjan Loftsson, managing director of Hvalur, the largest whaling firm in Iceland, said in Reykjavik the finback whale meat exports to Japan are not intended to crowd minke whales out of the Japanese market. "We are confident this should be, could be good for both parties," he said.
With an eye on the Japanese market, the firm has caught 148 finback whales this year, whereas Japan has hunted only two during the past two years.
Hvalur exported 66.6 tons of finback whale meat to Japan on a trial basis in 2008.
LONDON (Kyodo) An Icelandic whaling firm has shipped 500 to 600 tons of finback whale meat to Japan this year, after resuming full-fledged whale meat exportation, sources said Saturday.
Japan annually catches around 4,000 tons of mainly minke whale meat under its so-called research whaling program, and markets the meat domestically. However, stocks currently exceed the sluggish demand for whale meat. The shipment of finback meat, which has a high market value, is certain to affect overall prices.
Kristjan Loftsson, managing director of Hvalur, the largest whaling firm in Iceland, said in Reykjavik the finback whale meat exports to Japan are not intended to crowd minke whales out of the Japanese market. "We are confident this should be, could be good for both parties," he said.
With an eye on the Japanese market, the firm has caught 148 finback whales this year, whereas Japan has hunted only two during the past two years.
Hvalur exported 66.6 tons of finback whale meat to Japan on a trial basis in 2008.
Thursday, October 28, 2010
Sea Shepherd’s New Interceptor Vessel Revealed
Ecorazzi: Sea Shepherd’s New Interceptor Vessel Revealed
The Sea Shepherd officially announced their new replacement for the sunk Ady Gil at a fundraising benefit in the Hollywood Hills this evening — and Ecorazzi’s Megan Blanchard was on the scene interviewing celebrities and supporters. More on the evening later, but for now, here are some first (cell phone) shots of the new ship that will be joining the Bob Barker and the Steve Irwin during Operation No Compromise this coming December.
Anyone else think this thing looks like a Klingon ship from “Star Trek”?
[UPDATE: All signs currently point to this ship being the former "Ocean Adventurer 7" -- a 115ft stabilized monohull twin diesel powered vessel launched in 1998 for the purpose of circumnavigating the world in less than 80 days. She did it in 74 days, 20 hours, 58 minutes; setting a Guinness World Record in the process. Ironically, that record would be shattered 10 years later by none other than the Earthrace; aka, the Ady Gil.]
[UPDATE 2: At the presentation, Sea Shepherd said that while they've secured the vessel, they've yet to fully pay for it. In addition, it does not have a name, but that any interested donors with deep pockets ($1m+) should certainly contact them. For now the ship is simply being called the "Interceptor".]
[UPDATE 3: Video of the Ocean Adventurer (for charter trips) added below.]
[UPDATE 4: Paul Watson left a comment below saying, "Just a few details on the new vessel. We have not named the vessel yet because we are looking to sell naming rights. Although not paid for, the vessel has been secured. We just need to pay back the loan. The vessel will depart with the Bob Barker and the Steve Irwin with a completely refitted new engine and two propellers. It is larger than the Ady Gil, not as fast, but fast enough for our purposes, it is stronger, carries more crew, fuel and supplies and will suit our needs perfectly. We now have three ships, an upgraded helicopter, eighty crew, new equipment and I believe we will be more effective this year than last year, and last year was a very effective year. I was very tempted to name the vessel “Godzilla.” but we need a sponsor."]
[UPDATE 5: Some higher-res photoshopped images (as suspected, the ship hasn't been given the full SS color scheme yet) courtesy of Kadi Thingvall added below.]
(Images referred to are YouTube videos, which my kindle readers will need to visit YouTube to see.)
BP dispersants 'causing sickness'
Aljazeera: BP dispersants 'causing sickness'
Investigation by Al Jazeera online correspondent finds toxic illnesses linked to BP oil dispersants along Gulf coast.
Dahr Jamail Last Modified: 28 Oct 2010 14:48 GMT
Email ArticlePrint ArticleShare ArticleSend Feedback
Denise Rednour of Long Beach, Mississippi, has been sick with chemical poisoning since July [Erika Blumenfeld]
Two-year-old Gavin Tillman of Pass Christian, Mississippi, has been diagnosed with severe upper respiratory, sinus, and viral infections. His temperature has reached more than 39 degrees since September 15, yet his sicknesses continue to worsen.
His parents, some doctors, and environmental consultants believe the child's ailments are linked to exposure to chemicals spilt by BP during its Gulf of Mexico oil disaster.
Gavin's father, mother, and cousin, Shayleigh, are also facing serious health problems. Their symptoms are being experienced by many others living along the coast of the Gulf of Mexico.
Widely banned toxic dispersants
Injected with at least 4.9 million barrels of oil during the BP oil disaster of last summer, the Gulf has suffered the largest accidental marine oil spill in history. Compounding the problem, BP has admitted to using at least 1.9 million gallons of widely banned toxic dispersants, which according to chemist Bob Naman, create an even more toxic substance when mixed with crude oil. And dispersed, weathered oil continues to flow ashore daily.
Naman, who works at the Analytical Chemical Testing Lab in Mobile, Alabama, has been carrying out studies to search for the chemical markers of the dispersants BP used to both sink and break up its oil.
According to Naman, poly-aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) from this toxic mix are making people sick. PAHs contain compounds that have been identified as carcinogenic, mutagenic, and teratogenic.
Fisherman across the four states most heavily affected by the oil disaster - Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, and Florida - have reported seeing BP spray dispersants from aircraft and boats offshore.
"The dispersants are being added to the water and are causing chemical compounds to become water soluble, which is then given off into the air, so it is coming down as rain, in addition to being in the water and beaches of these areas of the Gulf," Naman added.
"I’m scared of what I'm finding. These cyclic compounds intermingle with the Corexit [dispersants] and generate other cyclic compounds that aren’t good. Many have double bonds, and many are on the EPA's danger list. This is an unprecedented environmental catastrophe."
Commercial fisherman Donny Matsler also lives in Alabama.
"I was with my friend Albert, and we were both slammed with exposure," Matsler explained of his experience on August 5, referring to toxic chemicals he inhaled that he believes are associated with BP's dispersants. "We both saw the clumps of white bubbles on the surface that we know come from the dispersed oil."
Gruesome symptoms
"I started to vomit brown, and my pee was brown also," Matsler, a Vietnam veteran who lives in Dauphin Island, said. "I kept that up all day. Then I had a night of sweating and non-stop diarrhea unlike anything I’ve ever experienced."
He was also suffering from skin rashes, nausea, and a sore throat.
At roughly the same time Matsler was exposed, local television station WKRG News 5 took a water sample from his area to test for dispersants. The sample literally exploded when it was mixed with an organic solvent separating the oil from the water.
Naman, the chemist who analyzed the sample, said: "We think that it most likely happened due to the presence of either methanol or methane gas or the presence of the dispersant Corexit."
"I'm still feeling terrible," Matsler told Al Jazeera recently. "I'm about to go to the doctor again right now. I'm short of breathe, the diarrhea has been real bad, I still have discoloration in my urine, and the day before yesterday, I was coughing up white foam with brown spots in it."
As for Matsler's physical reaction to his exposure, Hugh Kaufman, an EPA whistleblower and analyst, has reported this of the effects of the toxic dispersants:
"We have dolphins that are hemorrhaging. People who work near it are hemorrhaging internally. And that’s what dispersants are supposed to do..."
By the middle of last summer, the Alabama Department of Public Health said that 56 people in Mobile and Baldwin counties had sought treatment for what they believed were oil disaster-related illnesses.
A dispersed oil tar ball in Orange Beach, Alabama [Erika Blumenfeld]
"The dispersants used in BP's draconian experiment contain solvents such as petroleum distillates and 2-butoxyethanol," Dr. Riki Ott, a toxicologist, marine biologist, and Exxon Valdez survivor, told Al Jazeera.
"Solvents dissolve oil, grease, and rubber," she continued, "Spill responders have told me that the hard rubber impellors in their engines and the soft rubber bushings on their outboard motor pumps are falling apart and need frequent replacement."
"Given this evidence, it should be no surprise that solvents are also notoriously toxic to people, something the medical community has long known," Dr. Ott added.
"In 'Generations at Risk', medical doctor Ted Schettler and others warn that solvents can rapidly enter the human body. They evaporate in air and are easily inhaled, they penetrate skin easily, and they cross the placenta into fetuses. For example, 2- butoxyethanol (in Corexit) is a human health hazard substance; it is a fetal toxin and it breaks down blood cells, causing blood and kidney disorders."
Pathways of exposure to the dispersants are inhalation, ingestion, skin, and eye contact. Health impacts include headaches, vomiting, diarrhea, abdominal pains, chest pains, respiratory system damage, skin sensitization, hypertension, central nervous system depression, neurotoxic effects, genetic mutations, cardiac arrhythmia, and cardiovascular damage.
Even the federal government has taken precautions for its employees. US military officials decided to reroute training flights in the Gulf region in order to avoid oil and dispersant tainted-areas.
Growing number of cases
And Al Jazeera is finding a growing number of illnesses across the Gulf Coast.
Denise Rednour of Long Beach, Mississippi, has been taking walks on Long Beach nearly every day since the disaster began on April 20, and she is dealing with constant health issues.
"I've had health problems since the middle of July," she said. "At the end of August, I came home from walking on the beach and for four days had bloody, mucus-filled diarrhea, dry heaves, and blood running out of my ear."
Karen Hopkins, in Grand Isle, Louisiana, has been sick since the middle of May. "I started feeling exhausted, disoriented, dizzy, nauseous, and my chest was burning and I can’t breath well at times," she said.
Dean Blanchard, who runs a seafood distribution business in Grand Isle, is Hopkins' boss. He too is experiencing similar symptoms.
"They [BP] are using us like lab rats," he explained, "I'm thinking of moving to Costa Rica. When I leave here I feel better. When I come back I feel bad again. Feeling tired, coughing, sore throat, burning eyes, headaches, just like everyone around here feels."
Lorrie Williams of Ocean Springs says her son's asthma has "gotten exponentially worse since BP released all their oil and dispersants into the Gulf."
"A plane flew over our house recently and sprayed what I believe are dispersants. A fine mist covered everything, and it smelled like pool chemicals. Noah is waking up unable to breath, and my husband has head and chest congestion and burning eyes," Williams said.
Like others, when Lorrie's family left the area for a vacation, they immediately felt better. But upon coming home, their symptoms returned.
Wilma Subra, a chemist in New Iberia, Louisiana, recently tested the blood of eight BP cleanup workers and residents in Alabama and Florida. "Ethylbenzene, m,p-Xylene and Hexane are volatile organic chemicals that are present in the BP Crude Oil," Subra said,
"The blood of all three females and five males had chemicals that are found in the BP Crude Oil. The acute impacts of these chemicals include nose and throat irritation, coughing, wheezing, lung irritation, dizziness, light-headedness, nausea and vomiting."
Indications of exposure
Subra explained that there has been long enough exposure so as to create chronic impacts, that include "liver damage, kidney damage, and damage to the nervous system. So the presence of these chemicals in the blood indicates exposure."
Testing by Subra has also revealed PAHs present "in coastal soil sediment, wetlands, and in crab, oyster and mussel tissues."
Trisha Springstead, is a registered nurse of 36 years who lives and works in Brooksville, Florida.
"What I'm seeing are toxified people who have been chemically poisoned," she said, "They have sore throats, respiratory problems, neurological problems, lesions, sores, and ulcers. These people have been poisoned and they are dying. Drugs aren’t going to help these people. They need to be detoxed."
Chemist Bob Naman described the brownish, rubbery tar balls that are a product of BP's dispersed oil that continue to wash up on beaches across the Gulf:
"Those are the ones kids are picking up and playing with and breathing the fumes that come off them when you crush them in your hand. These will affect anyone who comes into contact with it. You could have an open wound and this goes straight in. Women have a lot more open mucus membranes and they are getting sicker than men. They are bleeding from their vagina and anus. Small kids are bleeding from their ears. This stuff is busting red blood cells."
Dr Ott said: "People are already dying from this… I’m dealing with three autopsies' right now. I don’t think we’ll have to wait years to see the effects like we did in Alaska, people are dropping dead now. I know two people who are down to 4.75 per cent of their lung capacity, their heart has enlarged to make up for that, and their esophagus is disintegrating, and one of them is a 16-year-old boy who went swimming in the Gulf."
Investigation by Al Jazeera online correspondent finds toxic illnesses linked to BP oil dispersants along Gulf coast.
Dahr Jamail Last Modified: 28 Oct 2010 14:48 GMT
Email ArticlePrint ArticleShare ArticleSend Feedback
Denise Rednour of Long Beach, Mississippi, has been sick with chemical poisoning since July [Erika Blumenfeld]
Two-year-old Gavin Tillman of Pass Christian, Mississippi, has been diagnosed with severe upper respiratory, sinus, and viral infections. His temperature has reached more than 39 degrees since September 15, yet his sicknesses continue to worsen.
His parents, some doctors, and environmental consultants believe the child's ailments are linked to exposure to chemicals spilt by BP during its Gulf of Mexico oil disaster.
Gavin's father, mother, and cousin, Shayleigh, are also facing serious health problems. Their symptoms are being experienced by many others living along the coast of the Gulf of Mexico.
Widely banned toxic dispersants
Injected with at least 4.9 million barrels of oil during the BP oil disaster of last summer, the Gulf has suffered the largest accidental marine oil spill in history. Compounding the problem, BP has admitted to using at least 1.9 million gallons of widely banned toxic dispersants, which according to chemist Bob Naman, create an even more toxic substance when mixed with crude oil. And dispersed, weathered oil continues to flow ashore daily.
Naman, who works at the Analytical Chemical Testing Lab in Mobile, Alabama, has been carrying out studies to search for the chemical markers of the dispersants BP used to both sink and break up its oil.
According to Naman, poly-aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) from this toxic mix are making people sick. PAHs contain compounds that have been identified as carcinogenic, mutagenic, and teratogenic.
Fisherman across the four states most heavily affected by the oil disaster - Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, and Florida - have reported seeing BP spray dispersants from aircraft and boats offshore.
"The dispersants are being added to the water and are causing chemical compounds to become water soluble, which is then given off into the air, so it is coming down as rain, in addition to being in the water and beaches of these areas of the Gulf," Naman added.
"I’m scared of what I'm finding. These cyclic compounds intermingle with the Corexit [dispersants] and generate other cyclic compounds that aren’t good. Many have double bonds, and many are on the EPA's danger list. This is an unprecedented environmental catastrophe."
Commercial fisherman Donny Matsler also lives in Alabama.
"I was with my friend Albert, and we were both slammed with exposure," Matsler explained of his experience on August 5, referring to toxic chemicals he inhaled that he believes are associated with BP's dispersants. "We both saw the clumps of white bubbles on the surface that we know come from the dispersed oil."
Gruesome symptoms
"I started to vomit brown, and my pee was brown also," Matsler, a Vietnam veteran who lives in Dauphin Island, said. "I kept that up all day. Then I had a night of sweating and non-stop diarrhea unlike anything I’ve ever experienced."
He was also suffering from skin rashes, nausea, and a sore throat.
At roughly the same time Matsler was exposed, local television station WKRG News 5 took a water sample from his area to test for dispersants. The sample literally exploded when it was mixed with an organic solvent separating the oil from the water.
Naman, the chemist who analyzed the sample, said: "We think that it most likely happened due to the presence of either methanol or methane gas or the presence of the dispersant Corexit."
"I'm still feeling terrible," Matsler told Al Jazeera recently. "I'm about to go to the doctor again right now. I'm short of breathe, the diarrhea has been real bad, I still have discoloration in my urine, and the day before yesterday, I was coughing up white foam with brown spots in it."
As for Matsler's physical reaction to his exposure, Hugh Kaufman, an EPA whistleblower and analyst, has reported this of the effects of the toxic dispersants:
"We have dolphins that are hemorrhaging. People who work near it are hemorrhaging internally. And that’s what dispersants are supposed to do..."
By the middle of last summer, the Alabama Department of Public Health said that 56 people in Mobile and Baldwin counties had sought treatment for what they believed were oil disaster-related illnesses.
A dispersed oil tar ball in Orange Beach, Alabama [Erika Blumenfeld]
"The dispersants used in BP's draconian experiment contain solvents such as petroleum distillates and 2-butoxyethanol," Dr. Riki Ott, a toxicologist, marine biologist, and Exxon Valdez survivor, told Al Jazeera.
"Solvents dissolve oil, grease, and rubber," she continued, "Spill responders have told me that the hard rubber impellors in their engines and the soft rubber bushings on their outboard motor pumps are falling apart and need frequent replacement."
"Given this evidence, it should be no surprise that solvents are also notoriously toxic to people, something the medical community has long known," Dr. Ott added.
"In 'Generations at Risk', medical doctor Ted Schettler and others warn that solvents can rapidly enter the human body. They evaporate in air and are easily inhaled, they penetrate skin easily, and they cross the placenta into fetuses. For example, 2- butoxyethanol (in Corexit) is a human health hazard substance; it is a fetal toxin and it breaks down blood cells, causing blood and kidney disorders."
Pathways of exposure to the dispersants are inhalation, ingestion, skin, and eye contact. Health impacts include headaches, vomiting, diarrhea, abdominal pains, chest pains, respiratory system damage, skin sensitization, hypertension, central nervous system depression, neurotoxic effects, genetic mutations, cardiac arrhythmia, and cardiovascular damage.
Even the federal government has taken precautions for its employees. US military officials decided to reroute training flights in the Gulf region in order to avoid oil and dispersant tainted-areas.
Growing number of cases
And Al Jazeera is finding a growing number of illnesses across the Gulf Coast.
Denise Rednour of Long Beach, Mississippi, has been taking walks on Long Beach nearly every day since the disaster began on April 20, and she is dealing with constant health issues.
"I've had health problems since the middle of July," she said. "At the end of August, I came home from walking on the beach and for four days had bloody, mucus-filled diarrhea, dry heaves, and blood running out of my ear."
Karen Hopkins, in Grand Isle, Louisiana, has been sick since the middle of May. "I started feeling exhausted, disoriented, dizzy, nauseous, and my chest was burning and I can’t breath well at times," she said.
Dean Blanchard, who runs a seafood distribution business in Grand Isle, is Hopkins' boss. He too is experiencing similar symptoms.
"They [BP] are using us like lab rats," he explained, "I'm thinking of moving to Costa Rica. When I leave here I feel better. When I come back I feel bad again. Feeling tired, coughing, sore throat, burning eyes, headaches, just like everyone around here feels."
Lorrie Williams of Ocean Springs says her son's asthma has "gotten exponentially worse since BP released all their oil and dispersants into the Gulf."
"A plane flew over our house recently and sprayed what I believe are dispersants. A fine mist covered everything, and it smelled like pool chemicals. Noah is waking up unable to breath, and my husband has head and chest congestion and burning eyes," Williams said.
Like others, when Lorrie's family left the area for a vacation, they immediately felt better. But upon coming home, their symptoms returned.
Wilma Subra, a chemist in New Iberia, Louisiana, recently tested the blood of eight BP cleanup workers and residents in Alabama and Florida. "Ethylbenzene, m,p-Xylene and Hexane are volatile organic chemicals that are present in the BP Crude Oil," Subra said,
"The blood of all three females and five males had chemicals that are found in the BP Crude Oil. The acute impacts of these chemicals include nose and throat irritation, coughing, wheezing, lung irritation, dizziness, light-headedness, nausea and vomiting."
Indications of exposure
Subra explained that there has been long enough exposure so as to create chronic impacts, that include "liver damage, kidney damage, and damage to the nervous system. So the presence of these chemicals in the blood indicates exposure."
Testing by Subra has also revealed PAHs present "in coastal soil sediment, wetlands, and in crab, oyster and mussel tissues."
Trisha Springstead, is a registered nurse of 36 years who lives and works in Brooksville, Florida.
"What I'm seeing are toxified people who have been chemically poisoned," she said, "They have sore throats, respiratory problems, neurological problems, lesions, sores, and ulcers. These people have been poisoned and they are dying. Drugs aren’t going to help these people. They need to be detoxed."
Chemist Bob Naman described the brownish, rubbery tar balls that are a product of BP's dispersed oil that continue to wash up on beaches across the Gulf:
"Those are the ones kids are picking up and playing with and breathing the fumes that come off them when you crush them in your hand. These will affect anyone who comes into contact with it. You could have an open wound and this goes straight in. Women have a lot more open mucus membranes and they are getting sicker than men. They are bleeding from their vagina and anus. Small kids are bleeding from their ears. This stuff is busting red blood cells."
Dr Ott said: "People are already dying from this… I’m dealing with three autopsies' right now. I don’t think we’ll have to wait years to see the effects like we did in Alaska, people are dropping dead now. I know two people who are down to 4.75 per cent of their lung capacity, their heart has enlarged to make up for that, and their esophagus is disintegrating, and one of them is a 16-year-old boy who went swimming in the Gulf."
Despite Heavy Oil, Louisiana Keeps Fisheries Open
Despite Heavy Oil, Louisiana Keeps Fisheries Open
By Dahr Jamail
Weathered BP oil in bays near Southwest Pass, Louisiana.
Credit:Erika Blumenfeld/IPS
NEW ORLEANS, Oct 26, 2010 (IPS) - Massive slicks of weathered oil were clearly visible near Louisiana's fragile marshlands in both the East and West Bays of the Mississippi River Delta during an overflight that included an IPS reporter on Oct. 23. The problem is that, despite this, the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries has left much of the area open for fishing.
Four days prior, on Oct. 19, federal on-scene cleanup coordinator for the BP oil disaster, Coast Guard Rear Adm. Paul Zukunft, declared there was little recoverable surface oil in the Gulf of Mexico.
Both bays cover an area of roughly 112 square kilometres of open water that surround the Southwest Pass, the main shipping channel of the Mississippi River. While East Bay remains closed for fishing, West Bay was open for fishing when IPS spotted the oil on Oct. 23, despite the fact that the day before a BP oil cleanup crew had reported oil in West Bay to a local newspaper.
"They are literally shrimping in oil," Jonathan Henderson, the Coastal Resiliency Organiser for the environmental group Gulf Restoration Network, who was also on the flight, exclaimed as our plane flew over shrimpers trawling in the oil-covered area.
Others remain concerned about the use of toxic dispersants that BP has used to sink the oil.
"Potential ecosystem collapse caused by toxic dispersant use during this disaster will have immediate and long-term effects on the Gulf's traditional fishing communities' ability to sustain our culture and heritage," Clint Guidry of the Louisiana Shrimp Association told IPS.
"This has been an exercise in lessening BP's liability from day one. I think we're moving into a situation where the PR is saying the area is safe to fish and it's safe to eat, but that's not the reality," he said.
The waters in the East and West Bays are under the jurisdiction of Louisiana's Department of Wildlife and Fisheries (LDWF), while waters further from the coast are under federal jurisdiction. LDWF does receive input, however, from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
Earlier on the same day IPS spotted the oil, a spotter pilot for LDWF had flown over the same area and told Southern Seaplanes there was no oil.
"He is the spotter for LWDF and saw that bay, and it is still open," Henderson told IPS. "He should have closed the bay for fishing. So now you can see how sophisticated they are in tracking this. Either this guy is completely incompetent, or has an agenda to keep as much of Louisiana's waters open for fishing as he can, whether there is oil or not. I don't see how he could have flown down there today and not seen it. It's criminal."
When IPS called the LWDF requesting to talk with the LDWF oil spotter, department officials said "that person is not available to comment".
The LWDF website has a number to call in order to report oil sightings. When IPS called that number, the call was answered by a BP response call centre.
On Oct. 23, the Coast Guard claimed that the substance floating in the miles-wide areas of West Bay appeared to be "an algal bloom".
Lt. Cmdr. Chris O'Neil said a pollution investigator for the Coast Guard collected samples from the area, and while they had yet to be tested, "based on his observation and what he sees in the sample jars, he believes that to be an algal bloom."
Fishermen who have traveled through and fished in the area over the weekend, however, refuted these Coast Guard claims.
"I scooped some up, and it feels like oil, looks like oil, is brownish red like all the dispersed oil we've been seeing since this whole thing started," fisherman David Arenesen, from Venice, Louisiana, told IPS.
"It doesn't look like algae to me. Algae doesn't stick on your fingers, and algae isn't oily," he said. "The area of this stuff spans an area of 30 miles, from Southwest Pass almost all the way over to Grand Isle, and runs very far off-shore too. We rode through it for over 20 miles while we were going out to fish, I dipped some up, and it's oil."
Arenesen saw the substance on Friday, the same day it was reported by the Times Picayune newspaper in New Orleans.
"It was at least an inch thick, and it went on for miles," Arenesen said, adding, "It would be easy to clean since it's all floating on the surface."
IPS spoke with Gary Robinson, a hook and line mackerel commercial fisherman working out of Venice who was also in the substance in question recently.
"I was out in West Bay on Oct. 22, and I was in this thick brown foam, about five inches thick, with red swirls of oil throughout it, and there was a lot of it, at least a 10-mile patch of it," Robinson said while speaking to IPS on his boat. "I've never seen anything like that foam before, the red stuff in it was weathered oil, and there was sheen coming off my boat when I came back into harbor. I'm concerned about the safety of the fish I'm catching."
Dean Blanchard, of Dean Blanchard Seafood Inc. in Grand Isle, Louisiana, spoke with IPS about the Coast Guard claim that the substance was likely algae.
"Hell, we got oil coming in here every day, it's all around us, we know what oil is," Blanchard said. "The Coast Guard should change the colour of their uniform, since they are working for BP. We've known they are working for BP from the beginning of this thing. None of us believe anything they say about this oil disaster anymore."
"Everyone, including the feds, are talking about the fact that less of the oil actually reached the surface than was below," Captain Dicky Tupes of Southern Seaplanes told IPS, "And now we're seeing some of that submerged oil surface here. How long will this go on?"
The East Bay area appeared to be completely covered in kilometres-long strands of weathered oil of various colors. While flying approximately 16 linear kilometres across the bay, IPS saw nothing but streaks of the substance across the surface.
"That oil is covering just about the entire length of Southwest Pass," Tupes said.
A recent month-long cruise by Georgia researchers reported oil on the sea floor that they suspect is BP's. While government officials question whether there is oil on the sea floor, the Georgia scientists say the samples "smelled like an auto repair shop".
The research team took 78 cores of sediment and only five had live worms in them. Usually they would all have life, said University of Georgia scientist Samantha Joye, who went on to call the affected area a "graveyard for the macrofauna".
"The horrible thing is they've been inundated with this oily material... There's dead animals on the bottom and it stinks to high heaven of oil," Joye added.
University of South Florida's Ernst Peebles said the oil on the floor if the Gulf "is undermining the ecosystem from the bottom up".
By Dahr Jamail
Weathered BP oil in bays near Southwest Pass, Louisiana.
Credit:Erika Blumenfeld/IPS
NEW ORLEANS, Oct 26, 2010 (IPS) - Massive slicks of weathered oil were clearly visible near Louisiana's fragile marshlands in both the East and West Bays of the Mississippi River Delta during an overflight that included an IPS reporter on Oct. 23. The problem is that, despite this, the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries has left much of the area open for fishing.
Four days prior, on Oct. 19, federal on-scene cleanup coordinator for the BP oil disaster, Coast Guard Rear Adm. Paul Zukunft, declared there was little recoverable surface oil in the Gulf of Mexico.
Both bays cover an area of roughly 112 square kilometres of open water that surround the Southwest Pass, the main shipping channel of the Mississippi River. While East Bay remains closed for fishing, West Bay was open for fishing when IPS spotted the oil on Oct. 23, despite the fact that the day before a BP oil cleanup crew had reported oil in West Bay to a local newspaper.
"They are literally shrimping in oil," Jonathan Henderson, the Coastal Resiliency Organiser for the environmental group Gulf Restoration Network, who was also on the flight, exclaimed as our plane flew over shrimpers trawling in the oil-covered area.
Others remain concerned about the use of toxic dispersants that BP has used to sink the oil.
"Potential ecosystem collapse caused by toxic dispersant use during this disaster will have immediate and long-term effects on the Gulf's traditional fishing communities' ability to sustain our culture and heritage," Clint Guidry of the Louisiana Shrimp Association told IPS.
"This has been an exercise in lessening BP's liability from day one. I think we're moving into a situation where the PR is saying the area is safe to fish and it's safe to eat, but that's not the reality," he said.
The waters in the East and West Bays are under the jurisdiction of Louisiana's Department of Wildlife and Fisheries (LDWF), while waters further from the coast are under federal jurisdiction. LDWF does receive input, however, from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
Earlier on the same day IPS spotted the oil, a spotter pilot for LDWF had flown over the same area and told Southern Seaplanes there was no oil.
"He is the spotter for LWDF and saw that bay, and it is still open," Henderson told IPS. "He should have closed the bay for fishing. So now you can see how sophisticated they are in tracking this. Either this guy is completely incompetent, or has an agenda to keep as much of Louisiana's waters open for fishing as he can, whether there is oil or not. I don't see how he could have flown down there today and not seen it. It's criminal."
When IPS called the LWDF requesting to talk with the LDWF oil spotter, department officials said "that person is not available to comment".
The LWDF website has a number to call in order to report oil sightings. When IPS called that number, the call was answered by a BP response call centre.
On Oct. 23, the Coast Guard claimed that the substance floating in the miles-wide areas of West Bay appeared to be "an algal bloom".
Lt. Cmdr. Chris O'Neil said a pollution investigator for the Coast Guard collected samples from the area, and while they had yet to be tested, "based on his observation and what he sees in the sample jars, he believes that to be an algal bloom."
Fishermen who have traveled through and fished in the area over the weekend, however, refuted these Coast Guard claims.
"I scooped some up, and it feels like oil, looks like oil, is brownish red like all the dispersed oil we've been seeing since this whole thing started," fisherman David Arenesen, from Venice, Louisiana, told IPS.
"It doesn't look like algae to me. Algae doesn't stick on your fingers, and algae isn't oily," he said. "The area of this stuff spans an area of 30 miles, from Southwest Pass almost all the way over to Grand Isle, and runs very far off-shore too. We rode through it for over 20 miles while we were going out to fish, I dipped some up, and it's oil."
Arenesen saw the substance on Friday, the same day it was reported by the Times Picayune newspaper in New Orleans.
"It was at least an inch thick, and it went on for miles," Arenesen said, adding, "It would be easy to clean since it's all floating on the surface."
IPS spoke with Gary Robinson, a hook and line mackerel commercial fisherman working out of Venice who was also in the substance in question recently.
"I was out in West Bay on Oct. 22, and I was in this thick brown foam, about five inches thick, with red swirls of oil throughout it, and there was a lot of it, at least a 10-mile patch of it," Robinson said while speaking to IPS on his boat. "I've never seen anything like that foam before, the red stuff in it was weathered oil, and there was sheen coming off my boat when I came back into harbor. I'm concerned about the safety of the fish I'm catching."
Dean Blanchard, of Dean Blanchard Seafood Inc. in Grand Isle, Louisiana, spoke with IPS about the Coast Guard claim that the substance was likely algae.
"Hell, we got oil coming in here every day, it's all around us, we know what oil is," Blanchard said. "The Coast Guard should change the colour of their uniform, since they are working for BP. We've known they are working for BP from the beginning of this thing. None of us believe anything they say about this oil disaster anymore."
"Everyone, including the feds, are talking about the fact that less of the oil actually reached the surface than was below," Captain Dicky Tupes of Southern Seaplanes told IPS, "And now we're seeing some of that submerged oil surface here. How long will this go on?"
The East Bay area appeared to be completely covered in kilometres-long strands of weathered oil of various colors. While flying approximately 16 linear kilometres across the bay, IPS saw nothing but streaks of the substance across the surface.
"That oil is covering just about the entire length of Southwest Pass," Tupes said.
A recent month-long cruise by Georgia researchers reported oil on the sea floor that they suspect is BP's. While government officials question whether there is oil on the sea floor, the Georgia scientists say the samples "smelled like an auto repair shop".
The research team took 78 cores of sediment and only five had live worms in them. Usually they would all have life, said University of Georgia scientist Samantha Joye, who went on to call the affected area a "graveyard for the macrofauna".
"The horrible thing is they've been inundated with this oily material... There's dead animals on the bottom and it stinks to high heaven of oil," Joye added.
University of South Florida's Ernst Peebles said the oil on the floor if the Gulf "is undermining the ecosystem from the bottom up".
Wednesday, October 27, 2010
Underwater patrols to nab coral thieves from January
The Star.com: Underwater patrols to nab coral thieves from January
Dive sites closure extended
ALOR SETAR: Underwater patrols will be conducted at the 42 marine parks nationwide from January to nab those who damage or collect corals.
Marine Parks department director Dr Sukarno Wagiman said 100 enforcement personnel would be conducting the patrols to nab these culprits.
He said the stricter enforcement was aimed at to prevent damage to corals.
He said those caught could be fined under the Fisheries Act but did not specify the amount.
Dr Sukarno also said the temporary closure of several dive sites at three marine parks since June due to coral bleaching has been extended.
He said this was because the corals at these sites have yet to fully recover.
He said some of the corals had only recovered by between one and two percent.
“When we first gave the time frame for the temporary closure until the end of this month, we thought that it would give ample time for the corals to recover.
“It seems the corals need a much longer period of time to recover,” Dr Sukarno said Sunday when met at a seminar on coral protection organised by Tourism Malaysia here.
He said the department had yet to decide when the dive sites would be reopened to the public.
It was reported in June that several dive sites at the Pulau Tioman marine park in Pahang, Pulau Redang marine park in Terengganu and Pulau Payar marine park in Kedah were temporarily off-limits to divers and snorkellers until the end of October.
The sites were affected by coral bleaching, a phenomenon caused by global warming that has increased sea water temperature by 2C to between 28C and 29C.
The affected dive sites are Pulau Chebeh and Batu Malang in Pahang; Teluk Dalam, Tanjung Tukas Darat, Tanjung Tukas Laut, Teluk Air Tawar, Pulau Tenggol and Teluk Bakau in Terengganu; and Teluk Wangi, Pantai Damai and Coral Garden in Kedah.
Pulau Regis, Pulau Soyak and Pulau Tumok in the Tioman marine park have also been temporarily closed.
Dive sites closure extended
ALOR SETAR: Underwater patrols will be conducted at the 42 marine parks nationwide from January to nab those who damage or collect corals.
Marine Parks department director Dr Sukarno Wagiman said 100 enforcement personnel would be conducting the patrols to nab these culprits.
He said the stricter enforcement was aimed at to prevent damage to corals.
He said those caught could be fined under the Fisheries Act but did not specify the amount.
Dr Sukarno also said the temporary closure of several dive sites at three marine parks since June due to coral bleaching has been extended.
He said this was because the corals at these sites have yet to fully recover.
He said some of the corals had only recovered by between one and two percent.
“When we first gave the time frame for the temporary closure until the end of this month, we thought that it would give ample time for the corals to recover.
“It seems the corals need a much longer period of time to recover,” Dr Sukarno said Sunday when met at a seminar on coral protection organised by Tourism Malaysia here.
He said the department had yet to decide when the dive sites would be reopened to the public.
It was reported in June that several dive sites at the Pulau Tioman marine park in Pahang, Pulau Redang marine park in Terengganu and Pulau Payar marine park in Kedah were temporarily off-limits to divers and snorkellers until the end of October.
The sites were affected by coral bleaching, a phenomenon caused by global warming that has increased sea water temperature by 2C to between 28C and 29C.
The affected dive sites are Pulau Chebeh and Batu Malang in Pahang; Teluk Dalam, Tanjung Tukas Darat, Tanjung Tukas Laut, Teluk Air Tawar, Pulau Tenggol and Teluk Bakau in Terengganu; and Teluk Wangi, Pantai Damai and Coral Garden in Kedah.
Pulau Regis, Pulau Soyak and Pulau Tumok in the Tioman marine park have also been temporarily closed.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)