A rusty coast of oil lines the shore of one of the Chandeleur Islands with the Gulf of Mexico on Saturday, as officials discussed strategies for attacking the millions of gallons of oil.
From NOLA.com:
Crews planned Sunday to park the giant oil containment box on the bottom of the Gulf of Mexico, and offload equipment that could be used in a new attempt to stem the flow of crude gushing into the sea.BP doesn't know what to do. Who would ever have expected...? There was no plan for this kind of disaster.
The equipment being offloaded from another vessel would use a tube to shoot mud and concrete directly into the well's blowout preventer, a process that could take two to three weeks. But BP spokesman Mark Proegler told AP that no decisions have been made on what step the company will take next.
The company was considering three options, including the technique known as a "top kill," Proegler said.
It could be at least a day before BP can make another attempt at putting a lid on a well spewing more than 200,000 gallons of crude into the Gulf each day.
The company's first attempt to divert the oil was foiled, its mission now in serious doubt. Meanwhile, thick blobs of tar washed up on Alabama's white sand beaches, yet another sign the spill was spreading.
Early Sunday, there was little visible new activity at the site of the oil spill. The skies were clear, but the waves on the sea were kicking up and the wind was more breezy than in previous days.
Again from NOLA.com:
Light and moderate areas of oil sheen from the Deepwater Horizon oil spill have been spotted as far west as the Timbalier Islands and are expected to continue flowing west, forcing the state Department of Wildlife & Fisheries to extend its ban on recreational and commercial fishing in offshore waters of the state to Point au Fer island adjacent to Atchafalaya Bay.The oil has reached the water south of us and is spreading to the west. No fishing, no harvesting of oysters, no charter boats going out will have a huge effect on the economy in south Louisiana.
The ban extends to the beaches bordering those waters, said Wildlife & Fisheries Secretary Robert Barham, in a news release announcing the change.
NOAA's latest forecast trajectory map indicates light oil stretching just off Louisiana's coastline to Atchafalaya Bay by Tuesday, with heavier concentrations just west the river's mouth. The forecast shows the potential for oil along Southwest Pass on the lower Mississippi River and on the beaches of Port Fourchon and the Timbalier Islands, though it still shows no oil on Grand Isle.
The state Department of Health and Hospitals also extended the closure of oyster harvesting beds west of the Mississippi River as a precaution against contamination from the BP oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico.
The closure affects harvesting areas 14 and 15, which are west of the river in Lafourche and Terrebonne parishes.
My son was thinking of making reservations to take his children to the beach in Alabama or Florida, but he's having second thoughts. That's another small example of the ripple effect the spill will have on the economies of the states on the Gulf Coast.
As so many have been saying, this is a slow Katrina. It makes my heart sick.
ReplyDeleteAmelia, heartsick is the word. And the oil keeps gushing. The state is already broke, and tax revenue will drop further. Our parish, Lafourche, has been declared a disaster area.
ReplyDeleteMimi, globs of oil are said to be washing up on Alabama beaches, too. Our Gulf Coast area is responsible for 35% of our tourism revenues and fishing is a major industry for our state. This is simply devastating for all of us who live along the Gulf Coast.
ReplyDeleteWe are still planning a long weekend at the shore late next month. We may not be able to enjoy the beach as we had planned, but our dollars are staying in Alabama.
From Radio Netherlands Worldwide today - "Underwater oil disaster underestimated":
ReplyDeleteWhile the world’s attention is focused on the growing oil slick from the Deepwater Horizon oil well in the Gulf of Mexico, there is an unseen environmental disaster taking place underwater. Invisible substances underneath are wreaking havoc on an enormous scale, just as much as the very visible black sludge above.
Read it all:
http://www.rnw.nl/english/article/underwater-oil-disaster-underestimated
And this yesterday's Houston Chronicle, the blame game:
http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/business/deepwaterhorizon/6997670.html
Jay, the Radio Netherlands piece is devastating. I've never seen this information reported before. I'll certainly post and quote from it.
ReplyDeleteBP has tried to spread the blame from the very beginning, claiming that Transocean, the rig owner, was at fault, but that BP would nobly take responsibility, but only for the clean-up. The article is quite detailed, and I will probably link to it also.
Many, many thanks for the links.
Grandmère Mimi, I can't seem to find the link, but NPR ran a story last week about BP's public relations team working the locals living along the Gulf Coast. I listened carefully for bias, because NPR generally favors the corporations (they give big bucks to NPR; the search tool on NPR's site was "sponsored by Pfizer"). Anyway, a few locals didn't buy BP's PR push,of wanting to help, but that wasn't the point. The attempted hook was that BP cares, when we know they don't.
ReplyDeleteJay, BP cares first and foremost about its reputation and its bottom line. As one local said, "Stop talking, and show by your actions that you care."
ReplyDeleteI posted on the article from Radio Netherlands.