Gulf of Mexico – EcoSalon

The Friday 5: Winds of Change Edition

Amy DuFault — Fri, 14 Oct 2011 22:17:31 +0000

The winds of change are always blowing.

With Occupy Wall Street serving as a gauge for U.S. contentment, it’s not hard to see we just aren’t a very happy nation. As with any cause, however, there are always bands of people who do more than walk the talk – they shout from the rooftops and actively work to move us away from the negative and into the positive.

In Seeing The Gulf From Above, Anna Brones writes, “A picture is worth a thousand words. The expression may sound cliche, but in the conservation movement, it couldn’t be more true.” In her story, Brones highlights Tom Hutchings, who takes Gulf of Mexico visitors up in his Cessna 182, knowing very well the visual power of seeing the Gulf oil spill’s environmental catastrophe from above. Giving people the ability to see outside of their immediate life circle to see we’re all very connected? Now that’s what we’re talking about.

Occupy Wall Street is giving people a voice to express their frustration with the status quo. But who are the leaders and participants and who are they to think they can rally and invigorate when they themselves lack social skills? In Sex by Numbers: What We Can Learn From #occupywallstreet, columnist Abigail Wick writes: “It is my conviction that the quality of our relationships – how we engage with and support one another – can have profound societal implications.”

Vacant spots as eyesores? Seed bomb ’em. That’s what groups of guerrilla gardeners are doing to forcefully create change in their neighborhoods. In Flowers of War: Seed Bombing Gets Political, London writer Sarah Lewis-Hammond quotes seed bomber Vera Zakharov, “Seed bombing is activism. It allows us to continue a relationship with the spaces around us, even if the law says we can’t.”

Writer Scott Adelson did a series for EcoSalon on Angel Investors “examining equity investment’s relationship with businesses that have traditionally been out of its mainstream, including women-owned, green and long-term-growth-oriented.” What Adelson uncovered in his series VC’s, Angels and Investing in Women: What Are They Not Thinking? was pretty startling and worth the read on how successful women are running businesses with little investment from Angels (and how that should change).

Remember the food pyramid when you were little? Well the triangle has changed quite a few times over the years and it’s because food and diets have actually gotten very complex. Writer Anna Brones interviews Dr. Marion Nestle who weighs in on how food guidelines have changed in Foodie Underground: Dr Marion Nestle On The Complexity of Food Issues.

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Seeing the Gulf From Above

Anna Brones — Wed, 11 Aug 2010 20:18:25 +0000

A picture is worth a thousand words. The expression may sound cliche, but in the conservation movement, it couldn’t be more true. In the day and age of quick soundbites and short attention spans, when it comes to promoting a cause, grabbing people’s attention is key. We need more than just hearing about things in order to care; we need to see them, and we need to be moved.

That’s one of the main reasons that pilot Tom Hutchings takes visitors to the Gulf of Mexico up in the air in his Cessna 182, knowing very well the visual power of seeing this environmental catastrophe from above. In the weeks following the Deepwater explosion, oil covered the diverse marsh landscape of the Mississippi Delta, turning a pristine habitat into an alien environment.

Hutchings flies for South Wings, a non-profit with a tagline of “conservation through aviation.” Founded in 1996, the organization is committed to connect conservation groups with pilots, providing flights at no cost.

“Do you get motion sick?” Hutchings ask as he works to take off a back hatch on the Cessna so our videographer can film through it as we fly.

“Not really,” I respond, not completely sure what I’m getting myself into. As I stare into the small cockpit wondering how I am going to cram my legs in, I realize I actually have no idea what I’m about to take on. This is my first aerial photography tour, something that I’ve always wanted to do, but never had the opportunity.

We load into the small plane and make our way down the runway, slowly lifting into the air and leaving the urban landscape of New Orleans behind. “All the waterways that you see that are straight are manmade,” Hutchings points out. And there are a lot of straight waterways. From above it’s pretty clear why levy failure during Hurricane Katrina had such an impact; this city is surrounded by water.

Soon we’re in the heart of the Mississippi Delta, flying over small islands and marshes. These days, there is in fact less oil visible to the human eye. Gone are the days when entire bays were covered in a reflective slick, but the oil’s presence and destruction is still ever present. Marshes are lined with a reddish color, evidence of oil soaked sand. In a couple of places, thin long lines of oil streak the blue water, almost as if painted on. In protected bays, oil collects and doesn’t move. As Hutchings points out, stormy weather blows it in, and there’s no way to get it out.

But it’s not just the destruction that gets to me; it’s the natural beauty. Blue water dotted with bright green marshes. Natural designs created from the various waterways. From the moment that we start flying over this diverse and rich natural landscape, it’s apparent how unique and sensitive it is; to storms, to oil and to people.

“Disaster tourism” is what some people deem projects that take travelers to areas that have seen some kind of catastrophe or devastation. Yet when you travel to a place and see it first hand, you quickly realize how connected you are to that place.

In the Gulf of Mexico, it’s apparent that even being from the Northwest, this is my backyard. It’s hard not to get emotional as I fly over this amazing place, thinking about how I would feel if a similar disaster were to happen to the natural spaces that I call home. Tears well up as I continue snapping photos, trying to capture the scope and colors of what passes below me.

“Did you even think about the Gulf of Mexico before this oil spill?” Hutchings asks me.

I think for a second. I’m embarrassed by my answer: “No, not really.” And it’s true. Besides having looked at it on the map, I realize that I’ve never really given a second thought to this region’s culture, environment and economy. But it’s a region that works its way into all of our lives, from goods that get transported up the Mississippi, to seafood that’s shipped all over the country to jazz music.

I realize that it’s all this that we’re trying to capture in photos and with video. That’s a big order. But it must be done, or we will never contemplate what our everyday actions have on people and regions outside of our immediate circles. And that’s why Hutchings continues to fly, and we have to continue to pay attention.

Aerial Tour from Uncage the Soul Productions on Vimeo.

To check out a full gallery of photos, click here.

This post originally appeared on the project PDX 2 Gulf Coast’s website and has been cross-posted.

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Gulf Oil Spill by the Numbers: 16 Different Ways to Understand the Disaster

Susan Chaityn Lebovits — Mon, 14 Jun 2010 08:56:24 +0000

The Deepwater Horizon disaster has leaked more than one million barrels of oil into the Gulf of Mexico. The magnitude is so large that many people are struggling to put the numbers into tangible context. Cutler J. Cleveland, a Boston University professor of Geography and Environment, and the editor of the Encyclopedia of Earth, has calculated the energy equivalents for EcoSalon readers to better grasp the enormity of this disaster. Dr. Cleveland is also a Senior Fellow at the National Council for Science and the Environment.

The energy content of one million barrels is about 5.8 trillion Btu (British Thermal Units), which is equivalent to…

1. Years of energy used in a single average America home: 61,117

2. Number of miles that could be driven by a Prius: 2,320,000,000

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3. Number of airplane round trips between London and Louisiana that could be taken by BP CEO Tony Hayward: 198,352

4. Hours of motor gasoline consumption for the entire United States: 3

5. Minutes of world energy use: 6

6. Minutes of energy that could power the entire country of Ghana: 22,252 (about 15 days)

7. Members of the Chinese population whose energy consumption could be met for year: 98,472

8. Number of Americans whose energy consumption could be met for year: 17,211

9. Dollars of GDP produced in China: $210,893,753

10. Dollars of GDP produced in the United States: $743,971,267

11. Amount of energy harnessed from 3,385,540,566 peanut butter and jelly sandwiches

12. Number of acres of corn needed to produce the equivalent amount of ethanol: 159,928

13. Number of Tour de France races that Lance Armstrong could complete burning an equivalent amount of food energy: 81,408,631

14. Years of energy use in Boston’s John Hancock Tower: 30.3

15. Equivalent amount of energy in tons of firewood: 494,459

16. Tons of steel that could be produced: 354,393

Images: Steve Punter, (A3R) angelrravelor (A3R), goldberg, Kossy@FINEDAYS, futureatlas.com, RaSeLaSeD – Il Pinguino, nova3web, cathyse97, lauren keith, docsdl, scalleja, spcbrass, Lars Plougmann, malias, Adam Pieniazek, smith, on1stsite.

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Spend to Save (The Gulf): 7 Easy Ways to Help Oil Spill Recovery

Stephanie Rogers — Fri, 11 Jun 2010 19:01:24 +0000

The worst environmental disaster in America’s history is still happening right now – so where are all the benefit concerts, the televised fundraisers, the celebrities posing for photo ops in canoes? The truth is, despite the severity of the situation, very few people are willing to pony up the cash to help with relief efforts for a simple reason: BP is a billion dollar corporation, and it should be coming out of their wallet. But as BP hedges and fights, environmental organizations on the scene need emergency funds.

That, in a word, sucks. How long can we wait for a corporation that’s clearly in denial of its responsibilities to act, while we watch animals suffer, hard working people lose their livelihoods and an ecosystem change forever? Hopefully, more people will step up to the plate and come together to help a region that’s desperately in need. But in the meantime – even if you can’t (and perhaps shouldn’t) head down to the Gulf yourself to help out, you can contribute in these seven small, fun ways – like sipping on specialty cocktails, downloading songs and shopping for delicious-smelling soap.

Dine Out For the Gulf

From June 10th-12th, all you have to do to aid in oil spill recovery efforts is head to a local restaurant and enjoy some good food and specialty cocktails. Restaurants around the country participating in Dine Out for the Gulf will offer up Gulf seafood offerings and donate either a portion of total sales or the sales from specific menu items to organizations supporting the Gulf Coast fishing industry.

Get Anything You Want at Amazon.com

Got some shopping to do? If you spend some cash at Amazon.com via the Hope Vote website, a portion of your order will go to Gulf oil spill relief at no extra cost to you. HopeVote.com donates a portion of the profits it earns through the Amazon Affiliate program to charitable causes, with the recipients chosen through site users’ votes. Proceeds are currently benefiting the National Wildlife Federation and the Gulf Coast Oil Spill Fund.

Help Canada Get Clean with LUSH

All eyes might be on the Gulf of Mexico right now, but LUSH wants to remind us that Canada is in the midst of an oil crisis, too. The cosmetics company is not only parading its employees around in oil barrels, but offering shoppers a chance to clean themselves in order to clean up oil pollution. One hundred percent of the proceeds from LUSH’s Wild Rose Country Bath Bomb will go to the Rainforest Action Network in support of their tar sands campaign effort, or you can get smooth and deliciously scented with the ‘Charity Pot’ hand and body moisturizer, which benefits the Dogwood Initiative’s No Tankers campaign protecting Canada’s Great Bear Rainforest from oil spills.

Wear Your Support On Your Chest

Want to spread awareness of the spill? Say it loud and contribute to cleanup campaigns at the same time with the COAST Save the Gulf! t-shirt. COAST Apparel is donating 100 percent of the proceeds from the sales of this tee to two non-profit organizations: the Coalition to Restore Coastal Louisiana and the Gulf Restoration Network.

Download a Charitable Tune

Send some of your hard-earned pennies to the Waterkeeper Alliance just by downloading a new tune from Grammy Award-winning singer Sophie B. Hawkins, who’s donating all proceeds from “The Land, the Sea and the Sky”. Hawkins told US Magazine, “I don’t think there’s anybody else standing out in the forefront. I just performed a sold out show as a benefit for the organization Waterkeeper Alliance. It was a really good show and I met all these people, so [my outreach has] really been blossoming from there because what I realized is that everyone is looking for some way to do something. In addition to the concert, I am donating the proceeds from my song’s iTunes sales – I’m not taking a penny of this.”

Build a Bear, Help a Marine Mammal

Marine mammals may not be fuzzy and huggable as teddy bears, but Build-A-Bear Workshop is looking to spread the love. The interactive retailer, which allows customers to make their own custom teddy bears, donated $5,000 to the Louisiana Marine Mammal and Sea Turtle Rescue Program within the Audubon Nature Institute and will invite guests to donate $1 at the cash register in any Build-A-Bear location in the U.S.

Help New Orleans, Wherever Your Travels May Take You

Booking a hotel sometime soon? No matter where you’re going, a portion of the cash you spend on your hotel could go straight to New Orleans to help with both Hurricane Katrina and Gulf Coast oil spill recovery. Expedia Inc. launched a new website and charity program, TravelRelief.org, that allows you to send eight percent of your total hotel booking price to the charity of your choice – including The Greater New Orleans Foundation.

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Oil Spills, Ecology, and the Food Chain

Vanessa Barrington — Thu, 10 Jun 2010 21:32:50 +0000

While we become sick to our stomachs watching the spreading plumes of oil in the gulf, viewing photos of oil slicked birds, and footage of oil covered beaches in Florida and Alabama, let’s take a step back and think about the cycle of life. The reason disasters like this happen is due to a lack of understanding that, though we may be at the top of the food chain, we are not separate from it. Even though this is a lesson we were supposed to have learned in the first grade, we have separated ourselves from nature in an attempt to manage it and use its resources without a thought for how this impacts the entire system. The oil spill is a 12,000 mile wide, 50-million gallon proof point that we have been wrong.

The oceans are engines of life for the entire planet. Scientists believe that all life on earth began in the sea about four billion years ago. Our ancestors were the first tiny creatures that crawled onto the land. Today life depends on the ocean. Oceans are where life originated and hold the keys to our survival.

Half of the world’s oxygen is produced in the ocean. The BP oil spill is the largest in history. How far will it go? How much of the world’s oceans will it affect? All of this remains to be seen, but we do know that each tier of the marine food chain is affected by the oil spill. The only thing we don’t know yet is how widespread it will be.

Oiled birds and the closure of the fishery are dramatic and immediate effects of the spill, while vulnerable marshlands and the tiny creatures we cannot see are the engines of the entire ecosystem. According to this article in Nola.com – the online version of The Times Picayune – the thin layer of marsh mud is home to an entire valuable community of nutrients that feed the whole system. If the marsh is covered in oil, it will suffocate, and every creature that depends on it will suffer. According to the article, “half of the all the life created takes place in this slimy zone just seven-hundredths of an inch thick. It’s a world too small for the human eye to detect and involves creatures few people have ever heard of, but one that looms huge for the larger critters in the system.”

Here’s how it works: At the bottom of the chain are the phytoplankton. They live in the vulnerable marshes and near the surface of the water, obtaining their nutrients from organic matter in the marshes, sunlight, and water. In return they convert carbon dioxide to oxygen – oxygen that all of the rest of the food chain needs. In addition, phytoplankton provide direct nourishment to many sea creatures higher on the food chain. And some of those animals actually begin life in the marshlands, too. Shrimp mature in the marshlands, and then migrate to the ocean where they become food for fish. These fish provide nourishment to birds and animals, like us. It’s not hard to see what happens if the base of our food chain collapses. Where will the food for the other fish come from and how will we replace that oxygen?

According to this article in The Palm Beach Post, instead of the oil rising to the top where it can be easily tracked, the use of dispersants caused the oil to mix with the water and there are now giant plumes of oil traveling through the ocean. Nobody knows where they will end up or how much damage they will do to wildlife, but many scientists think that the oil is now more dangerous to filter feeders and larvae than if dispersants weren’t used. As one official with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife service was quoted as saying in the article, “This is just a giant experiment going on and we’re trying to understand scientifically what this means.”

Scientists are currently studying three different types of mollusks from the Gulf Coast to try to determine how long it takes for the toxic compounds in the water to work their way through the food chain. Because mollusks are constantly building their shells, they incorporate heavy metals and other toxins from the environment into their shells. An article from Science Daily details how scientists study growth rings in the shells of oysters, tellinid clams, and periwinkles. Each one of these mollusks feeds on different organisms at different levels in the sea, so scientists will be able to determine if the mollusks are acquiring contaminants from their food sources or the water directly by measuring the rate at which toxins accumulate in the shells.

As we all learned as children, the food chain begins with plants that get their energy through photosynthesis, which are then eaten by herbivores, and later consumed by carnivores. We eat and we are animals. Therefore, we are part of the food chain too. Just because we can drill wells, drive, and cook our food on a stove does not mean we are outside of this circle of life. We are as vulnerable as those oily birds. We just don’t feel it yet.

This is the latest installment in Vanessa Barrington’s weekly column, The Green Plate, on the environmental, social, and political issues related to what and how we eat.

Image: Kissyface

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Oil Spill Updates: What You Need to Know

Stephanie Rogers — Fri, 28 May 2010 18:54:10 +0000

It’s been five weeks since the catastrophic explosion on the Deepwater Horizon oil drilling platform and since then, millions of gallons of sticky black oil have killed countless animals and fouled sensitive wetlands along the Gulf of Mexico.

Yet, the spill still hasn’t been contained, those responsible are still pointing fingers at each other and we’re all waiting for a decisive response from the government. Meanwhile, oil regulators have been sitting around watching porn and using crystal meth. Everything’s under control, people! Please ignore the nauseating sight of suffocating seabirds!

Here’s a quick rundown on the latest oil spill news:

Officially the Worst The U.S. Geological Survey has officially confirmed what we already knew: the Deepwater Horizon spill is far worse than the Exxon Valdez disaster. 12,000 – 19,000 barrels of oil have been pouring into the ocean for 36 consecutive days. USGS Director Dr. Marcia McNutt says 130,000 to 270,000 barrels remain on the surface of the water, while about an equal amount has been burned, skimmed, dispersed or evaporated.

Top Kill Stops Spill? After numerous failed efforts to contain the spill, including attempts to cap the gushing pipe with a “top hat”, BP decided they’d try to cut off the pipe altogether using a method called a “top kill”, injecting cement over the well to seal it. As of early Thursday, the oil giant refuses to say whether this latest cleanup effort is working, but the Coast Guard reports that the pipe seems to have been plugged.

Don’t Drill, Baby Just weeks after President Obama’s controversial statement that offshore drilling may be a necessary part of U.S. energy independence, his administration has not only fired the head of the Minerals Management Service for lax oversight of offshore drilling, but will also extend the offshore drilling ban.

Volunteer Illness This much oil is bound to have an effect on human health, and some oil spill respondents are already falling ill. Crew members on three of the commercial fishing vessels that were helping to clean up spilled oil have been hospitalized with severe nausea, headaches and dizziness. The Coast Guard has sent all 125 commercial vessels filled with volunteers back to the shore as a precaution.

BP Seeks Oily Judge BP is still trying to deflect legal blame, but they’re hoping that in the 100-odd lawsuits already filed against them for oil spill damage and worker deaths, they’ll have at least one person on their side. BP is requesting that a single judge with oil ties, U.S. District Judge Lynn Hughes, will handle all pre-trial issues.

Impact on Wildlife Most of the oil might be under the surface of the sea where we can’t see it, but that doesn’t mean it’s not already affecting wildlife. One scientist called the impact “a slow moving train wreck” with effects that will “go on for years, if not decades.” Louisiana’s marshes in particular are a critical habitat for wildlife, and the Gulf of Mexico is home to the endangered sperm whale. Countless other species including sea turtles, pelicans, manatees and bottlenose dolphins are also at risk.

Image: IBRRC

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I Want My Green TV: The Biggest Loser Bans Bottled Water

Amy and Nancy Harrington — Tue, 25 May 2010 18:55:36 +0000

A movie star has a solution to the BP Oil Spill crisis and “The Biggest Loser” helps reduce more than pounds. This is what’s making us say “I Want My Green TV!”

Kevin Costner Makes Penance for “Waterworld”

Anyone who was watching the news in New Orleans last week might have been shocked to see an unlikely celeb throw his hat in the ring to help clean up the BP oil spill mess.

Especially since said movie star, Kevin Costner, was responsible for one of the last greatest atrocities committed against the oceans – “Waterworld.” Perhaps as penance for the mega-flop, Costner stepped forward on WGNO news with a possible solution to the environment’s greatest problem.

Costner is a partner in a company called Ocean Therapy Solutions. They have a technology that separates water and oil through centrifugal force – sounds like the stuff of sci-fi movies, no?

This seems like a better plan than using golf balls. But if the brain trust at BP does decide to go that way, let’s not forget that Costner has some experience in that field, too. His character in Tin Cup was known for shanking balls into water traps.

Stay tuned to your local news and you might just see another impromptu Costner press conference in the next few days. BP is going to be running tests with the OTS system sometime this week.

“The Biggest Loser” Reduces More than Weight

On this week’s “Biggest Loser” Bob Harper and Jillian Michaels took a moment to tell the viewers about another way they help reduce on the ranch. In an interstitial sponsored by Brita, the two uber-trainers explain that for the past four seasons “The Biggest Loser” has partnered with the water company to save more than just lives.

They are helping to save the environment, too. Their FilterForGood program encourages the cast, crew, and viewers to stop using bottled water, a major source of pollution in our landfills – and even worse, our lakes and oceans.

They stated that the campaign has saved over 128,000 bottles on the ranch alone. And the website estimates saving over 194 million bottles through the viewers at home who have taken the FilterForGood Pledge.

Okay, here’s the commercial part. Just buy a Brita water pitcher and a FilterForGood water bottle. Then you can filter your own water and drink out of your own washable bottle. Voila. No more plastic in the landfills.

And if you log on to the website now, you can also enter to win a week on “The Biggest Loser” Resort at Fitness Ridge courtesy of Brita.

Oh, and just in case you were wondering, “Biggest Loser” trainers Bob and Jillian also always remind viewers that drinking water does help you lose weight because it fills you up when you feel hungry and keeps you hydrated which helps you burn fat. Double win.

Tune in next time to see what’s cropping up on green TV.

Image: Courtesy of NBC.com

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Corn Industry Brazenly Turns Gulf Disaster Into Marketing Opportunity

grist — Tue, 11 May 2010 16:54:57 +0000

Turns out Big Corn cares more about profit and marketability than environmental sustainability. Say what?

As if being bombarded with oil from below and chemical dispersants from above weren’t enough, the Gulf of Mexico also has to endure marketing rhetoric from a long-time tormentor: the corn industry.

Industrial corn production is indisputably linked to the massive hypoxic “dead zone” that emerges in the Gulf every year. According to a 2008 peer-reviewed paper in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, “Nitrogen leaching from fertilized corn fields to the Mississippi-Atchafalaya River system is a primary cause of the bottom-water hypoxia that develops on the continental shelf of the northern Gulf of Mexico each summer.” And as corn production ramps up to satisfy government ethanol mandates, the amount of nitrogen flowing into the Gulf will likely increase by between 10 and 34 percent by 2022, the report states. That surging nitrogen load will make it “nearly impossible” to slow the growth of the already New Jersey-sized dead zone, the report concludes.

Meanwhile, how the Gulf’s two ecological calamities – the spill and the dead zone – will interact is anyone’s guess. Early indications are not encouraging, reports the Minnesota Post.

So you might expect the corn shills to maintain a respectful silence as BP’s oil disaster unfolds. Instead, the corn industry is ludicrously presenting itself as the Gulf’s salvation.

Continue reading the full story over on Grist.

Editor’s note: Article by Tom Philpott. Originally published by our friends at Grist.org. Grist is a media organization that has been dishing out environmental news and commentary with a humorous twist since 1999. Be sure to visit them and say hi, and follow Grist on Twitter, too!

Image: eutrophication&hypoxia

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How’s That Oil Cleanup Coming Along?

Mallory Ortberg — Fri, 07 May 2010 18:15:08 +0000

Not that great, according to everyone. While one of the three holes in the Deepwater Horizon has been plugged, the rate of oil lost was unaffected. Depending on whom you ask, that’s anywhere from 5,000 to upwards of 40,000 barrels a day.

Also, hurricane season is less than a month away. The first storm of the season would not only arrest cleanup crews, but could potentially disperse the oil slick over a greater field. That is, if it doesn’t suck up all the oil and turn into some sort of self-aware, Captain-Planet-style, oil-powered storm beast.

More realistic fears include the possible failure of domed well caps currently being maneuvered into place over the leaks. BP has ordered a 125-ton steel dome to contain and remove the oil gushing from the rig, but even a successful placement won’t contain more than 85 percent of the leak. Oh, and there’s no guarantee of a successful placement.

At this point, more than two weeks out from the explosion/fire/complete destruction of the Deepwater Horizon, eleven workers are dead, fishing bans have been put into effect, and oil has begun to wash up on certain coastal marshes. A relief well, the best method of containing the underwater geyser, will not be ready for months. The Coast Guard has started several controlled burns on different parts of the slick. They’ve even deployed a team of deep-sea robots to attend to the leak. So far the only potential bright spot in this unmitigated disaster is the possibility of a knock-down, drag-out fight between the underwater robots and an oil-fueled hurricane.

While the most media-friendly parts of an oil spill (beached seals and turtles flapping their sludge-covered fins helplessly) haven’t yet occurred, serious damage to the environment is already being done. Plankton and other microscopic forms of marine life at the bottom of the sea are easily damaged by contact with oil particles, which could send a ripple effect throughout the Gulf’s food chain. The fishing industry will almost certainly continue to be negatively affected. The spill could spread to the East Coast via powerful ocean currents and even damage certain ports and shipping lines. The worst is almost certainly yet to come.

Image: NASA Goddard Photo and Video

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What Are We Dumping Into the Gulf to ‘Fix’ the Oil Spill?

grist — Thu, 06 May 2010 17:37:06 +0000

Remember all those old Sci-Fi movies where any and all problems can be fixed with nuclear weapons? Whether it’s a rogue asteroid to head off, a molten core to restart, a dying sun to reignite, or a race of super-smart apes who have overrun the earth, there’s no problem nukes can’t solve. Sometimes it feels like we’re living in a terrible sci-fi movie – like when BP’s proposed solution to containing its recent massive oil spill is to push the oil to the bottom of the ocean by spraying it with chemical dispersants. That’s the kind of plan that can only come from a madman living inside of a hollowed-out volcano.

In addition to the indignity of oil oozing into its depths at a rate of at least 5,000 barrels per day, the Gulf of Mexico is now enduring a heavy rain of mystery chemicals.

BP and the U.S. Coast Guard are dumping large amounts of “dispersants” both on the surface and underwater, in a desperate attempt to control the ongoing spill. Dispersants are surfactants, not unlike what you use on your dishes, that break oil down into small droplets that sink into the water.

How much are they dumping? Lots. According to ProPublica, “BP has already bought up more than a third of the world’s supply” of dispersants. On Thursday alone, ProPublica reports, emergency workers dropped 100,000 gallons of the stuff into the Gulf.

And what precisely are they dumping? That’s where the mystery comes in. “The exact makeup of the dispersants is kept secret under competitive trade laws,” Propublica reports.

Continue reading the full story over on Grist.

Image: saagar yadav

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