Louisiana marshes hit by Gulf oil slick; wildlife threatened

[marmar]

Agence France-Presse, via Grist:



Louisiana marshes hit by Gulf oil slick; wildlife threatened
by Agence France-Presse

20 May 2010 4:30 PM


USAVENICE, La. -- Crude oozed Thursday into Gulf Coast wetlands, prompting furious Louisiana officials to accuse BP of destroying fragile marshes beyond repair and leaving coastal fishing communities in ruin.

With some of the worst fears of environmental disaster being realized in the marshlands of the Mississippi Delta, BP was also forced to concede it had underestimated the amount of oil leaking into the Gulf of Mexico.

The British energy giant had always maintained that only 5,000 barrels -- or 210,000 gallons -- of crude was gushing each day from a pipe ruptured when its Deepwater Horizon rig exploded one month ago and sank.

But BP spokesman Mark Proegler said Thursday that this amount was already being siphoned away from the leak by its mile-long insertion tube device and live television pictures showed a significant quantity still streaming out. ..........(more)

The complete piece is at: http://www.grist.org/article/2010-05-20-louisiana-marshes-hit-by-gulf-oil-slick-wildlife-threatened/

[kdmorris]

1. I'm so pissed... beyond belief

What a fucking waste of life...

[chelsea0011]

2. Sobering article in the Boston Globe today

http://www.boston.com/news/local/massachusetts/articles/2010/05/21/gulf_oil_spill_revives_capes_1969_nightmare/

Smell this,’’ he said, taking a whiff. There, faint but unmistakable, was the stench of oil.

It’s been more than 40 years since the oil barge Florida ran aground on a foggy night in Buzzards Bay, spilling close to 200,000 gallons of fuel. Some of it is still there.

Still, the Gulf spill is largely uncharted territory, and scientists say that its full effects on the shoreline, from beaches to wetlands, will not be known for weeks, months, or even years.


These are different types of spills, but one thing the article points out is how they thought back then was that it would all clean itself up. Years later, they learn it is not so.