Oil spill in the Gulf

[Ladywriter 7,783]

La wont stop being screwed until the peeps there have had enough and get vocal and active about it. Its very hard to elect even a quasi honest politician cuz those guys don't have the blood money to spend on their campaigns. I'm personally lookin forward to November so we can vote out our current state senator (the NY senate is a fucking bad joke) who is trying to buy his 10th term.

I can understand your concerns about the mold. It would have been preferable for the damaged property to be razed then buried as opposed to burned and releasing all that nasty particulate matter into the air. Aerobic crud dies when you deprive it oxygen.

Your ground water is a concern. Salt water leeching into the water table is one thing, toxic chemicals is another. Between the crude and the dispersants I'm defiantly worried and that also effects food grown in the zone. It will be an ongoing thing as not all of the oil has surfaced in a slick, the marshes have been fucked, the escaping methane creates dead zones etc etc etc

Basically the situation down there totally blows. Knowing that the next question is how to fix it. The only answer to that is to get involved in the political process and like Khell says most people don't want to put any effort into something like that. They don't see how they can make a difference. One flower petal aint much to look at, but put 30 more with it around a seed ring and ya got yerself a pretty flower. I don't live anywhere near there and I'm fighting to make sure the gulf gets cleaned up and BP and co fucking pays for what they've done. Why? Because I fucking care about the world my generation is leaving behind for my kids. I don't want to leave them with a ravaged toxic shit hole to call home.

You need to get mad. You need to do some looking into your politicians from the local ass clown right up to the governor. Know what they're doing, what laws are in place to deal with these various crisis and follow the money trail. Then share that information with everyone you know and piss them off so they go piss more people off and on and on.

In general change starts small with small victories, but it has to start somewhere. The reflection in the mirror is the best place to start.

[Sojourn 100]

...from the local ass clown right up to the governor.

A little off topic, but my local ass clown got fired, fined, and jailed after Katrina for insurance fraud.

After Katrina, I did get pissed. Houses were being torn apart and trash was being burnt in a huge quarry pit not but a quarter mile behind my neighborhood. We yelled, screamed, and kicked ass until we got that shut down. We found out only shortly after they had everything pretty much burned that they moved it JUST outside city limits (...so..about 3/4 a mile away now) and burned at night. It's a real wtf moment. My parents are down there atm, and I'll be there soon. They told me when this all started, they went to Sam's Club and stocked up on bottled water like preparing for a bloody hurricane. I really don't know what's going to happen right now. Where I live, Gulfport, it's a huge Dole and Chiquita port. Produce that i've bought up here in Michigan has come from Mississippi, so it's just whatever. The only tourism we really get is for the beaches and waterparks and whatnot, but now that's all shot to hell. I wouldn't be terribly surprised if the Gulf Coast region started plummeting in population. Most people can't stand it, but they don't want to deal with it either, so they just leave. I know as soon as I get bac, I'll be going on the offensive. I've lived on the gulf coast all my life (with the exception of the past month). I won't lie, there's nothing to do (even before the spill), but it's still home.

In retrospect, wonder how the BP just a block down the street from my house is faring..

Edited July 29, 2010 by Sojourn
quote citation

[Ladywriter 7,783]

its a crappy vid someone threw on there tonight

eN4MJFeEYuE

[Ladywriter 7,783]

Even though President Obama promised BP will cover 100% of the cost of

repairing and cleaning up the Gulf Oil Disaster, the Wall Street Journal

reports that BP will force taxpayers to pick up at least $9.9 billion of

the bill.

How will this happen? BP is planning to use tax-code provisions that allow

companies to get refunds on losses. Since the disaster will cost BP at

least $32 billion, they want almost $10 billion dollars from taxpayers --

effectively cutting BP clean-up costs by a third.

This is unacceptable.

The good news is getting BP to drop their claim is a fight we can win.

Just this year, public pressure got J.P. Morgan Chase to drop its plan to

claim $1.4 billion in tax credits after receiving $25 billion of bailout

money. And Goldman Sachs Group agreed not to claim $187 million in tax

breaks on the $550 million SEC fine over the Abacus mortgage lawsuit.

[1]We can win with your support. Contribute $20 right now to fuel our

aggressive campaign to hold BP accountable.

DFA members haven't been sitting around waiting for BP to get its act

together. You've been leading some of the most aggressive campaigns in the

country to hold BP accountable. Take a look at some of the work we've done

together so far:

* 82,372 people joined our BP Makes Me Sick campaign to make sure

clean-up workers were being provided with the protective gear needed

to keep from getting ill. Over 50 members of Congress and candidates

for office have signed on to add pressure and make it happen. [2]Fuel

the campaign to win.

* 48,617 DFA members from across the country joined our Boycott BP

campaign, refusing to buy gas from BP stations until the company

cleans-up the spill. Our Boycott campaign has received press in the

New York Times, Wall Street Journal, and in over 300 Associated Press

stories nationwide. Meanwhile BP has seen a 40% drop in sales in

locations across the country. [3]Contribute now to hold BP

accountable.

* 47,581 people joined our Stop Big Oil Bailouts campaign to end

subsidies and tax breaks to Big Oil companies like BP. With Social

Security under attack again as Congress starts looking at ways to

lower the deficit, our campaign highlights the high cost to taxpayers

of giveaways to corporations who sell dirty fuels. This campaign is

just getting started and already Senators Robert Menendez and Bernie

Sanders are working to make it happen. [4]Deliver the resources --

Contribute $20 right now.

These campaigns show the White House, Congress and every candidate for

office where we stand. BP created the biggest environmental disaster in

American history and they want to use taxpayer money to clean it up.

Enough is enough -- Stop Big Oil Bailouts. We can make sure BP cleans up

the mess they created, provide the protective gear clean-up crews need,

and start ending our addiction to Big Oil. But we can't do all of it

without your support.

[5]Fuel the fight to hold BP accountable.

You're making a difference. Thank you for everything you do.

-Charles

Charles Chamberlain, Political Director

Democracy for America

[Ladywriter 7,783]

Scientists Find Evidence That Oil-Dispersant Mix Is Making Its Way Into The Foodchain

Scientists have found signs of an oil-and-dispersant mix under the shells of tiny blue crab larvae in the Gulf of Mexico, the first clear indication that the unprecedented use of dispersants in the BP oil spill has broken up the oil into toxic droplets so tiny that they can easily enter the foodchain.

Marine biologists started finding orange blobs under the translucent shells of crab larvae in May, and have continued to find them "in almost all" of the larvae they collect, all the way from Grand Isle, Louisiana, to Pensacola, Fla. -- more than 300 miles of coastline -- said Harriet Perry, a biologist with the University of Southern Mississippi's Gulf Coast Research Laboratory.

And now, a team of researchers from Tulane University using infrared spectrometry to determine the chemical makeup of the blobs has detected the signature for Corexit, the dispersant BP used so widely in the Deepwater Horizon

"It does appear that there is a Corexit sort of fingerprint in the blob samples that we ran," Erin Gray, a Tulane biologist, told the Huffington Post Thursday. Two independent tests are being run to confirm those findings, "so don't say that we're 100 percent sure yet," Gray said.

"The chemistry test is still not completely conclusive," said Tulane biology professor Caz Taylor, the team's leader. "But that seems the most likely thing."

[Ladywriter 7,783]

Oil Leases Cancelled in Gulf, Atlantic

The Center for Biological Diversity applauded this Wednesday when the Obama administration cancelled two offshore oil and gas lease sales: one in the Atlantic, off Virginia, and one in the western Gulf of Mexico. The Atlantic lease sale was in a controversial area approved by Interior Secretary Ken Salazar for expanded offshore oil development after the Bush administration lifted the Atlantic drilling moratorium. The lease sale in the Gulf was scheduled to take place next month. In cancelling the sales, the government admitted it needs more time to improve the safety of offshore oil and gas development and provide greater environmental protection to substantially reduce the risk of catastrophic events like another massive oil spill.

"President Obama's decision to cancel these lease sales recognizes that risky offshore drilling needs reform," said Miyoko Sakashita, oceans director at the Center. "In light of the BP oil spill, the president should pull back from the entire plan to expand offshore drilling and instead pursue clean energy."

Check out our press release and learn the latest on the Gulf disaster. Then take action to tell the administration to end all dangerous offshore drilling:

http://www.biologicaldiversity.org/news/press_releases/2010/offshore-oil-07-27-2010.html

http://www.biologicaldiversity.org/programs/public_lands/energy/dirty_energy_development/oil_and_gas/gulf_oil_spill/index.html

http://action.biologicaldiversity.org/t/5243/p/dia/action/public/?action_KEY=3646

[Ladywriter 7,783]

‎100 Days Since BP Oil Disaster Began, NOLA Natives Explain Disaster is Not Over « Moving Train Medi

blogs.alternet.orgOne hundred days after the Deepwater Horizon oil rig exploded creating the worst environmental disaster in the world’s history, those who live down along the Gulf coast in the areas that have been most impacted are standing strong and reminding the world that, while the well gushing oil may have bee...

[Ladywriter 7,783]

This week at HealthyGulf.org

Blogging For A Healthy Gulf: BP's Oil Drilling Disaster [ http://www.healthygulf.org/blog ] It has been over 80 days since the beginning of the largest environmental catastrophe in the Gulf's history. The GRN is continuing to provide independent analysis and monitoring of the disaster as it unfolds and impacts the Gulf, our coast, and communities. Check out our blog for the latest updates and postings at www.healthygulf.org/blog [ http://www.healthygulf.org/blog ].

Tell the Feds to Protect Gulf Wildlife, Not BP [ http://www.BPdrillingdisaster.org ] BP's public relations department has been working around the clock to hide the true impacts of the drilling disaster from the public, and it's well past time we had some real transparency! The federal government should be taking all possible steps to protect Gulf wildlife and open the cleanup and recovery effort to light of public scrutiny - not to protect BP's image. To take action, visit GRN's new website at www.BPdrillingdisaster.org [ http://www.BPdrillingdisaster.org ].

2. A Future For The Gulf

GRN, in partnership with the Gulf Coast Fund (www.gulfcoastfund.org), has launched the Gulf Future campaign to restore the coast, defend our communities, and create a clean future. The campaign kicked off with a series of benefit concerts nationwide on July 1st. Supporters are wearing petroleum-free wristbands to show solidarity with the people of the Gulf Coast. To find out more about this campaign and how to order your wristband, visit www.gulffuture.org

[ http://www.gulffuture.org ]

3. Offering Hope To Families And Pets

Reports are now coming in that pet owners are relinquishing their pets in record numbers to animal shelters in areas directly affected by the oil disaster. Knowing the physical and mental health benefits of having pets as well as the negative impact of relinquishing a family pet because of natural or man-made disasters; the LA/SPCA has teamed up with local and national partners to create a program aimed at providing short term support for families in jeopardy of relinquishing their pet. The Gulf Coast Companion Animal Relief Program will provide basic veterinary services and dog food (while supplies last) to impacted residents. To learn more about this program, if you qualify, or how you can help please click here [ https://la-spca.org/Page.aspx?pid=509&srctid=1&erid=101665 ].

4.Sorry Ain't Enough No More

Check out this great song and video [ http://www.youtube.com/user/healthygulf1#p/c/D57EC6E2695E0B7B/15/ZCTn9tqU-mE ] by New Orleans musicians Shamarr Allen, Dee-1, Paul Sanchez, and Bennie Pete of the Hot 8 Brass Band. All across the Gulf, musicians have been singing out to express their feelings about the Gulf Oil Disaster. "Sorry Ain't Enough No More" is available for free download on shamarrallen.com [ http://shamarrallen.com ] and dee1music.com [ http://dee1music.com ].

5. USM biologist monitors effects of oil spill on whale sharks

Whale sharks are the biggest fish in the Gulf of Mexico, and now a group of scientists is using satellite technology to track whether any of the giants come into contact with oil from BP's drilling disaster. This video [ http://gtopp.org/ ]shows the scientists, including Eric Hoffmayer of the University of Southern Mississippi and legendary oceanographer Sylvia Earle of Mission Blue, affixing tracking devices on whale sharks in the Gulf last month.You can see for yourself on the project's website [ http://gtopp.org/ ] where the whale sharks tagged by the group are traveling in the Gulf. Earl explains that because of the way the sharks feed - by skimming water at the surface - they could be particularly vulnerable to the effects of BP's oil.Though over 600 sea turtles, 60 dolphins and one sperm whale have been affected by the spill, so far the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration has not documented any whale sharks in the oil.

6. What Would Crist Do? Crist Would Ban Offshore Drilling In Florida

Gov. Charlie Crist on Thursday abruptly called for a special session of the Legislature to ask lawmakers to let voters consider putting an offshore oil drilling ban in the state Constitution. Crist said the July 20-23 session will be devoted to one issue - "a rifle shot," he called it, intended to tap into widespread disgust over the Deepwater Horizon blowout off the Louisiana coast, which is already decimating the Panhandle's tourist-dependent economy. To read more on Crist's decision, check out this St. Petersburg Times article [ http://www.tampabay.com/news/environment/crist-wants-to-ban-offshore-drilling/1107695 ].

7. Sand Berms And Rock Jetties: Politics Or Protection?

GRN has been paying close attention to the sand berms and rock jetties projects. These structures is a high stakes gamble that can have dangerous long-term consequences for the Gulf Coast. For a closer look into the sand berm issue, read GRN Water Resources Director Matt Rotta's blog [ http://healthygulf.org/201007141410/blog/bp-s-oil-drilling-disaster-in-the-gulf-of-mexico/building-house-on-the-sand-a-bird-s-eye-view ] and see why GRN has raised some questions about these projects. The blog includes a photographic timeline that demonstrates the vulnerability these sand berms have to wave action and tidal surge. For more information about the rock jetties, check out this recent New York Times article. [ http://www.nytimes.com/2010/07/07/science/earth/07rocks.html?_r=1&emc=eta1 ]

8. Should BP Belong In The Corporate Hall Of Shame? You Decide.

If there were a Corporate Hall of Shame, would BP belong in it? Of course they would.Thankfully, there IS a Hall of Shame for abusive corporations, and now we can help make sure BP is inducted. Corporate Accountability International, a membership organization that protects people through campaigns that challenge abusive corporations, is opening up voting to the public for their popular Corporate Hall of Shame. The Gulf needs your vote, and you can vote here [ http://salsa.democracyinaction.org/o/2215/t/11014/p/salsa/web/common/public/content?content_item_KEY=7490&tag=CHOS10-OCA ].

9.Events

*Protest to Mark 3 Months of BP's Disaster and Decades of Oil Industry Influence*

Tuesday, July 20th, Noon to 1pm

Outside the Federal Building, 500 Poydras Street, NOLA 70112

For details, visit here [ http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=132758000095143#!/event.php?eid=132758000095143&ref=mf ].

*Food Drive *Through July 23rd. The Sierra Club has teamed up with Second Harvest to collect donations to help victims of the BP oil disaster. BP's oil disaster has not only devastated the Gulf's seafood, but many in Louisiana's coastal communities are unable to afford to put food on their table. Sign up and get a comprehensive list of the most needed food items. The food drive will run through Friday, July23. For more information, visit here. [ http://action.sierraclub.org/foodforthecoast ]

*Design Within Reach* Thursday, July 22, 6 to 8 p.m.

Learn about GRN's response work, Thursday, July 22, 6 to 9 p.m.

Reception and National Online Auction

New Orleans Studio

New Orleans, LouisianaFor more information, visit here [ http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=110667122319230 ].

*Reclaim the Coast: Gulf Coast Oil Spill Benefit,* July 23-25

3 nights of concerts to benefit GRN

City Winery

New York, New York

For details, visit here. [ http://www.citywinery.com/events/93762 ]

*Our Gulf Coast* On going through July 24

Art show at LeMieux Galleries

www.lemieuxgalleries.com [ http://www.lemieuxgalleries.com ]

Featured on WWNO Arts Features

New Orleans, Lousiana

*Communications Workshop *Steps Coalition, Equity and Inclusion Campaign and The Opportunity Agenda

July 27, 2010 9:00 a.m. - 4:00 p.m. DeMiller Hall 610 Water St., Biloxi, MS. For more information and to RSVP visit here [ http://www.stepscoalition.org/events/details/communications_workshop_with_the_opportunity_agenda/ ].

*Benefit Concert* Wednesday, July 28, 6 to 11 p.m.

Wild Wing Cafe

Spartanburg, South Carolina

*Rock The Gulf *Live-music fundraiser. Saturday, July 31, 4 to 11 p.m.

www.shuckshack.com [ http://www.shuckshack.com ]

Shuck Shack

Austin, Texas

*

**10. Jobs*

*Summer Jobs to Defend the Coast*. Gulf Restoration Network, New Orleans, LA. For more information visit here [ http://www.healthygulf.org/201003121196/blog/general/summer-jobs-to-defend-the-gulf-coast ].

*Environmental Organizing and Activism Year*. Green Corps, U.S. For more information, visit here.

[ http://www.greencorps.org/field-school-for-environmental-organizing/job-description ]

*The Monterey Bay Aquarium* is seeking a Contract Research Analyst to track seafood issues in relationship to the impact of the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico. For more information, visit here [ http://www.montereybayaquarium.org/ ].

*Biodiversity Project:* Mississippi River Policy Manager. For more information, visit here [ http://www.biodiverse.org/ ].

*MDEQ's Environmental Stewardship Initiative*

enHance is a voluntary initiative to recognize environmental leaders in Mississippi. Participating organizations make a commitment to address and achieve on-going environmental improvements. For more information, visit here [ http://www.deq.state.ms.us/enhance ].

ontent here _________________________________________

Love getting these Gulf updates? Please consider supporting our work to protect and restore the natural resources of the Gulf by making a donation to the GRN. Your tax-deductible contribution [ http://give.healthygulf.org ] helps us protect wetlands, fight for clean water, and create a healthy Gulf.

Gulfwaves is bi-weekly publication of the Gulf Restoration Network [ http://www.healthygulf.org ]. To submit stories you'd like to see in this summary of Gulf enviro issues, email gulfwaves@healthygulf.org [ mailto:gulfwaves@healthygulf.org ].

[Ladywriter 7,783]

Documents indicate heavy use of dispersants in gulf spill

www.washingtonpost.com

While the BP well was still gushing, the Obama administration issued an order that limited the spreading of controversial dispersant chemicals on the Gulf of Mexico's surface. Their use, they said, should be restricted to "rare cases."

Despite the order -- and concerns about the environmental effects of the dispersants -- the Coast Guard granted requests to use them 74 times over 54 days, and to use them on the surface and deep underwater at the well site. The Coast Guard approved every request submitted by BP or local Coast Guard commanders in Houma, La., although in some cases it reduced the amount of the chemicals they could use, according to an analysis of the documents prepared by the office of Rep. Edward J. Markey (D-Mass.).

The documents indicate that "these exemptions are in no way a 'rare' occurrence, and have allowed surface application of the dispersant to occur virtually every day since the directive was issued," Markey wrote in a letter dated Aug. 1 to retired Coast Guard Adm. Thad W. Allen, the government's point man on the spill. Markey chairs the House Select Committee on Energy Independence and Global Warming.

Some of them dealt with separate dispersant applications on the same day. Markey said it appeared that the order "has become more of a meaningless paperwork exercise" than a real attempt to curb use of the dispersants.

In an interview Saturday, Allen defended the decisions to grant the waivers, saying that overall use of dispersants declined sharply after that May 26 order to limit their use. The total use of dispersants underwater and on the surface declined about 72 percent from its peak, according to the Environmental Protection Agency.

Allen said that on some days the amount of oil on the surface justified a "tactical" decision, by on-scene Coast Guard commanders, to spray some dispersants.

Now, scientists say, it's difficult to tell what the added use of dispersants permitted by the Coast Guard meant for the gulf. The chemicals may have helped break up some oil before it reached sensitive marshes along the Louisiana coast. But it also may have poisoned ecosystems offshore, helped deplete underwater oxygen and sent oil swirling through the open-water habitats of fish and coral.

"It's still a trade-off. I mean, you're using dispersants to protect the shoreline, and you're going to be killing things in the water column," said Carys Mitchelmore, a professor at the University of Maryland. By using more dispersants, Mitchelmore said, "you're just going to be killing more things in the water column."

In May, under pressure from environmental groups, the EPA and the Coast Guard issued a directive to BP, ordering the company to "eliminate" the use of dispersants on the surface. The directive said BP could seek an exemption in rare cases when other cleanup methods were not feasible.

The government allowed BP to continue injecting dispersants below the surface, as oil leaked from the well on the gulf floor. Their logic was that the chemicals could be used more efficiently underwater, where the gushing of BP's well provided a turbulence that helped them work.

"Because so much is still unknown about the potential impact of dispersants, BP should use no more dispersant than is necessary," Jackson wrote in a letter to BP that day.

But, over the next nine days, BP made daily waiver requests for the use of surface dispersants. Every day the Coast Guard gave its approval.

[Sojourn 100]

Lady, you may have already said something concerning this, but I'm almost in a ranting mood, so forgive me.

I just learned from a friend in the Mississippi Gulf Coast area that they are being told it's okay to eat seafood from the Gulf, but to stay away from crabs and oysters. I'm sorry, but if it's not okay to eat half of it.. It's not okay to eat ANY of it. Granted, the people I know aren't ignorant enough to just blindly listen to such bullshit, but it's just that: bullshit.

Studies are being conducted to see how FAR into the food chain this oil-and-dispersant cocktail has leeched, and we're being told it's okay to eat the food coming from this, let's face it, infected water? Fuck that. When the new BP CEO (since the old one quit... pussy) comes down to the Gulf Coast and eats seafood right off the boat without sweating bullets and having an ambulance 3 feet away, then I'll eat the food. Until then, I don't think they should be telling ANYONE it's okay to eat the seafood.

I'm sorry this is in an almost-rant form, but... I'll be the first to admit it, lots of people in Mississippi... are stupid. For Christ's sake, a town in the Mississippi Gulf Coast is called Methlehem (like Bethlehem, but with meth, incase you didn't catch that). We of the Gulf Coast get treated like 2nd rate citizens as it is, don't tell us to eat the food we know is, in the nicest term, contaminated. It's just not right.

Sorry for ranting, just wanted to put my two bits in for the day.

I know for a fact that as soon as I get back down there, I'll be taking a much more agressive stance against all of this.

[Ladywriter 7,783]

yer correct,

FDA declares Gulf seafood safe to eat

Updated 16 hours, 14 minutes ago

Seafood from parts of the oil-fouled Gulf of Mexico has been declared safe to eat by the government, based in part on human smell tests. But some Gulf fishermen question the results. Full story

Gulf Dead Zone The Size Of Massachusetts

www.huffingtonpost.com

NEW ORLEANS — Scientists say this year that the "dead zone" area that forms every summer in the Gulf of Mexico is one of the largest ever measured. The large area of low oxygen that chokes marine life comes in addition to the massive BP oil spill.

and

Feds Dramatically Increase Oil Spill Estimate, Making BP's The Worst Oil Accident In History

www.huffingtonpost.com

BP's disastrous oil well explosion sent over 4 million barrels of oil spewing into the Gulf of Mexico, the Coast Guard announced Monday, dramatically increasing the most recent federal estimate.

but go ahead and nomnomnom?

yo man I don't think so.

[Ladywriter 7,783]

BP's Rosy Predictions Are B.S. -- Scientists Say Gulf Spill Will Have Catastrophic Impact for Generations

[Sojourn 100]

By this time tomorrow, I'll be back in Gulfport, MS. I still fully intend to provide pictures of the beaches, and anything else I come across that has been affected by all of this.

[Ladywriter 7,783]

Feds Giving Spill Data to BP—But Public Stays in Dark

The Exxon case offers a good example of how arming only BP with crucial information might ultimately backfire. In 1991, Exxon struck a deal with the government to pay just $900 million in damages over 10 years. The deal also allowed the government to reopen the case, if it could prove that there were remaining problems that had not been adequately addressed. But the burden of proof was on the state and federal government to show that the loss or decline of habitat or species was directly related to the spill and could not have been forseen in the initial assessment. In 2006, when government and independent studies showed that Prince William Sound was still polluted, the Department of Justice and the State of Alaska filed a claim against Exxon, asking for an additional $92 million payment. But Exxon presented hundreds of its own studies that claimed that there was no ongoing environmental impact. Exxon prevailed, and never had to pay one cent more for the damage to the Prince William Sound, despite the fact that independent studies have found it has never fully recovered.

[Ladywriter 7,783]

U.S. Judge in New Orleans Will Hear Gulf Spill Cases

NEW ORLEANS — Hundreds of federal lawsuits filed over the Gulf of Mexico oil spill will be handled by a single judge here, a judicial panel announced Tuesday.

The choice of New Orleans is a significant defeat for BP and other companies being sued over the spill, which had asked the same panel to consolidate cases in Houston, where their headquarters are located — and where, plaintiffs had argued, they might find a friendlier legal environment. Plaintiffs had requested that the cases be brought together in federal districts from Florida to Texas, with many focused on New Orleans.

The five-page opinion said, “Without discounting the spill’s effects on other states, if there is a geographic and psychological ‘center of gravity’ in this docket, then the Eastern District of Louisiana is closest to it.”

a litmus test for corruption ne?

[Ladywriter 7,783]

9U88SgY3BQ

[Ladywriter 7,783]

Federal Government Covering Up Severity of Gulf Oil Spill?

It looks as if Team Obama has reverted to form. In a repeat of its perfromance post the financial crisis, it appears to believe that no problem cannot be solved by PR, which puts it in league with the perps. Hat tip Glenn Stehle:

[Ladywriter 7,783]

Boycott BP Despite the millions of gallons of oil that recently flowed around these waters in the past few months, President Obama went for a dip with his daughter while in Panama City Beach yesterday. The actual Gulf was closed to swimming because of riptide, but Obama and Sasha swam in Saint Andrew Bay off Alligator Point, before lunching nearby. THEY SWAM BEHIND BARRIER ISLANDS, NOT IN THE GULF. GOOGLE ALLIGATOR POINT AND SEE FOR YOURSELF.

Obama and Sasha Swim Near the Gulf Coast

nymag.comIt's safe to go back in the water, apparently.

[Ladywriter 7,783]

Plumes of Gulf oil spreading east on sea floor

www.cnn.com

A new report set to be released Tuesday renews concerns about the long-term environmental impact of the Gulf Coast oil disaster, and efforts to permanently plug the ruptured BP oil well have been delayed again.

[Ladywriter 7,783]

Valdez~11 to 32 or 25 to 32 million gallons depending on who ya ask~

Exxon Valdez left the

Valdez oil terminal in Alaska at 21:13 on March 23, 1989, bound for Long Beach, California. The ship was under the control of Shipmaster Joseph Jeffrey Hazelwood. The outbound shipping lane was obstructed with icebergs, so Hazelwood got permission from the Coast Guard to go out through the inbound lane. Following the maneuver and sometime after 11 p.m., Hazelwood left Third Mate Gregory Cousins in charge of the wheel house and Able Seaman Robert Kagan at the helm. Neither man had been given his mandatory six hours off duty before beginning his 12-hour watch. The ship was on autopilot, using the navigation system installed by the company that constructed the ship. The ship struck Bligh Reef at around 12:04 a.m. March 24, 1989.[5]

Beginning three days after the vessel grounded, a storm pushed large quantities of fresh oil on to the rocky shores of many of the beaches in the Knight Island chain. In this photograph, pooled oil is shown stranded in the rocks.

According to official reports, the ship was carrying approximately 55 million US gallons (210,000 m3) of oil, of which about 11 to 32 million US gallons (42,000 to 120,000 m3) were spilled into the Prince William Sound.[8][9] A figure of 11 million US gallons (42,000 m3) was a commonly accepted estimate of the spill's volume and has been used by the State of Alaska's Exxon Valdez Oil Spill Trustee Council,[5] the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and environmental groups such as Greenpeace and the Sierra Club.[4][10][11] Some groups, such as Defenders of Wildlife, dispute the official estimates, maintaining that the volume of the spill has been underreported.[12] Alternative calculations, based on an assumption that the sea water rather than oil was drained from the damaged tanks, estimate the total to have been 25 to 32 million US gallons (95,000 to 120,000 m3).[1]

Gulf Coast Fund Reports 53 Million Gallons of Oil Remain in Gulf, Disaster Not Over

NEW ORLEANS, Aug. 18 /PRNewswire/ -- Nearly 4 months after the explosion that caused the BP oil disaster, the Gulf Coast Fund (http://www.gulfcoastfund.org), a community-led philanthropy in the Gulf South, reports that a dangerous amount of oil and dispersant remains in the Gulf of Mexico. Contrary to what BP and government officials have been stating, over 53 million gallons of oil are currently spread over the coastal areas and are washing ashore in Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, and the Florida panhandle.

According to Wilma Subra, a chemist/microbiologist and advisor to the Gulf Coast Fund, the public has not been accurately informed about the catastrophic effects of the spill. "Just because the oil is no longer on the surface, it does not indicate that the area is healthy," she explains. "We've received reports from local residents all along the coast who continue to see oil on and off shore, as well as reports of hundreds of dead fish, crabs, birds, dolphins, and other sea life," says Subra. Samples of crab larvae taken from the Gulf have been shown to contain both oil and dispersant.

The spill released 172 million gallons of oil into the Gulf, and BP used 1.84 million gallons of Corexit, a dispersant that contains known human carcinogens and is banned in Europe. Despite denial by BP, local fisherman and residents report that dispersant continues to be sprayed.

"Commercial fishermen in the Gulf know the seafood is unsafe for eating and will not feed it to their own families," remarks Gulf Coast Fund advisor and community organizer Derrick Evans of Turkey Creek, MS. Gulf fishermen gathered in Panama City Beach, FL on August 15th to tell President Obama that the fishing grounds need to be closed until the seafood is thoroughly tested for safety. At present, no tests are conducted on seafood for the presence of dispersants.

To view video footage of the effects of the oil disaster, and hear from local fishermen and residents, visit http://www.gulfcoastfund.org.

Scientists Tussle Over Gulf Oil Tally

The University of Georgia researchers’ report reached its much higher figure by concluding that the evaporation and natural degradation rates relied on by government scientists were too high and by classifying much of the oil categorized by federal scientists as “evaporated or dissolved” as a persistent threat to the ecosystem.

“The idea that 75 percent of the oil is gone and is of no further concern to the environment is just incorrect,” said Samantha Joye, professor of marine sciences at the University of Georgia.

Other marine scientists involved in evaluating the impact of the spill defended the government’s findings. “I generally agreed with the results,” said Edward Overton, a biologist at Louisiana State University who was one of several scientists who reviewed the federal study prior to its release. “I think it’s close to being on the mark.”

[Sojourn 100]

In more localized news, gulf fishers in the great state of Mississippi are passing around petitions to demand the Mississippi Director of Marine Resources to resign.

http://www.mcclatchydc.com/2010/08/18/99350/mississippi-fishermen-call-for.html

at the bottom of that page is a link to the complete oil spill coverage of my local area, and at the top of that page, it opens a Google Earth map of my local area, and what's been reported. Just news from my little corner of the world.

[Ladywriter 7,783]

the Stewart guy is right about opening up the waters too soon

[Ladywriter 7,783]

BP oil spill: US scientist retracts assurances over success of cleanup

NOAA's Bill Lehr says three-quarters of the oil that gushed from the Deepwater Horizon rig is still in the Gulf environment while scientists identify 22-mile plume in ocean depths

Oil-Cleanup Estimates Draw New Fire

Scientists confirm giant underwater plumes are a result of BP spill

[Ladywriter 7,783]

“Partly to Blame” BP Dispersant Recently Found in Biloxi Water

The people of Biloxi Mississippi may want some answers from BP on their activities after the blow out. Large concentrations of dispersant have recently been found in the water.

….Boston Chemical Data Corp. President Marco Kaltofen said his group was collecting samples Aug. 9 at Horn Island when they came across a brown, foamy material near an iridescent sheen of oil. The team a detected chemical odor, he said.

“We certainly didn’t expect to find dispersant in that area,” Kaltofen said.

He said he was under the impression BP had stopped using dispersant in the waters in July, but his team found significant chemical concentrations of 780 parts per billion.

The sample, sent to a lab in Colorado, tested positive for three main ingredients in the dispersants used in the Deepwater Horizon oil spill, Kaltofen said…

.(source: sun herald.com)

[sarcasm] what a surprise [/sarcasm]

[Ladywriter 7,783]

Scientists Find Thick Layer Of Oil On Seafloor

Scientists on a research vessel in the Gulf of Mexico are finding a substantial layer of oily sediment stretching for dozens of miles in all directions. Their discovery suggests that a lot of oil from the Deepwater Horizon didn't simply evaporate or dissipate into the water — it has settled to the seafloor.

The Research Vessel Oceanus sailed on Aug. 21 on a mission to figure out what happened to the more than 4 million barrels of oil that gushed into the water. Onboard, Samantha Joye, a professor in the Department of Marine Sciences at the University of Georgia, says she suddenly has a pretty good idea about where a lot of it ended up. It's showing up in samples of the seafloor, between the well site and the coast.

"I've collected literally hundreds of sediment cores from the Gulf of Mexico, including around this area. And I've never seen anything like this," she said in an interview via satellite phone from the boat.

Joye describes seeing layers of oily material — in some places more than 2 inches thick — covering the bottom of the seafloor.

"It's very fluffy and porous. And there are little tar balls in there you can see that look like microscopic cauliflower heads," she says.

It's very clearly a fresh layer. Right below it she finds much more typical seafloor mud. And in that layer, she finds recently dead shrimp, worms and other invertebrates.