A rosy outlook painted by a government oil leak report is being challenged. National Event Command had concluded in a report that many of the BP oil leak evaporated or had been collected or burned, but 3 reports say nearly the opposite . Shrimping areas were expanded. The President and his family swam within the gulf and ate seafood last week. But a University of Georgia (UGA) study estimates that three quarters of the oil hasn’t been recovered and remains a long-term threat to the ecosystem. On the sea floor, a huge toxic oil plume was detected by University of South Florida (USF) scientists. The oil leak is a long-term threat to human health and gulf seafood safety in a study released by the American Medical Association (AMA).
Government oil spill report said most oil is safely dispersed
Government statements said much of the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico 2010 had been safely dispersed. The Wall Street Journal reports that National Event Command, which managed the oil spill response, said about half of the 4.9 million gallon BP oil spill had been skimmed or burned. Another 25 percent had evaporated or dissolved. UGA scientists who have led the way in oil plume research since the spill began said up to 79 percent of the oil, as well as its toxic byproducts, are still in the water. They concluded it may be years before the petrochemicals disappear. The clear fact that oil beneath the surface can’t evaporate was pointed out by the scientists. Large oil plumes remain deep below the surface throughout the spill area.
Undersea canyon harbors toxic oil plume
Further east than previously thought, the USF team concluded that a major portion of the BP oil spill has sunk to the sea floor. CNN reports the USF study found that dispersants evidently have sent droplets of oil to the depths, where it’s suspended in an undersea canyon about 40 miles offshore from the Florida panhandle. Plankton and other organisms at the base of the food chain showed a “strong toxic response” to the crude. The oil could return to the surface eventually. The CNN article quoted a UGA researcher who said the government did not document a third of the hydrocarbons because it did not measure methane and other gas emissions nevertheless in water.
Gulf seafood safety faces long term threat
The AMA insists that gulf seafood safety could be affected for years by the BP oil leak. Within the short term, the Sacramento Bee reports that gulf shellfish will retain dangerous petrochemicals likened to cigarette smoke and soot. Large game fish for instance tuna, swordfish and mackerel will amass high concentrations of mercury in the long term from consuming fish lower within the food chain. As time goes on, the report said doctors may be warning pregnant women and kids to strictly limit the amount of gulf seafood they eat.
Further reading
Wall Street Journal
online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748704868604575434074237252604.html?mod=WSJ_hpp_MIDDLETopStories
CNN
cnn.com/2010/US/08/17/gulf.oil.disaster/index.html?npt=NP1
Sacramento Bee
sacbee.com/2010/08/17/2963788/gulf-oil-spill-still-a-threat.html
