Scientists are challenging the optimistic scenario presented by a government oil leak report. National Incident Command had concluded in a report that most of the BP oil spill evaporated or had been collected or burned, but three reports say nearly the opposite . Shrimping areas were expanded. President Obama ate shellfish and swam within the gulf last week with his family. But a University of Georgia (UGA) study estimates that 3 quarters of the oil hasn’t been recovered and remains a long-term threat to the ecosystem. A massive oil plume was discovered on the sea floor by University of South Florida (USF)researchers. The oil spill is a long-term threat to human health and gulf seafood safety in a study released by the American Medical Association (AMA).
Official statements released by the administration declare that the majority of the BP oil spill has been dispersed to safe levels. National Event Command, according to the Wall Street Journal, said a few weeks ago that burning and skimming had removed half of the 4.9 million gallons dumped to the gulf. Evaporation and dissolution handled another 25 percent. Up to 79 percent of the oil and its toxic byproducts remain under the sea, said UGA researchers at the forefront of investigating underwater oil plumes created by the oil spill. They concluded it can be years before the petrochemicals disappear. The scientists pointed out the clear fact that 25 percent of the oil could not have evaporated unless it was on the surface. Large plumes of oil are trapped in deep water.
Undersea canyon harbors toxic oil plume
The USF team concluded that further east than previously thought a large portion of the BP oil spill has settled to the bottom of the gulf. As reported by CNN, USF scientists conclude that dispersants mixed with oil to create a massive cloud of droplets floating near the bottom in an undersea canyon about 40 miles from the Florida panhandle. Organisms for instance plankton at the bottom of the food chain are reacting strongly to the toxic chemicals in the oil. It’s possible the oil could return to the surface. A UGA scientist told CNN that methane and other gases-about a third of the total hydrocarbons in the spill, remain in the water and weren’t documented in the government report.
Gulf seafood safety called into question
The safety of gulf seafood will be affected for years by the BP oil leak, according to the AMA. The Sacramento Bee reports that in the short term dangerous petrochemicals resembling cigarette smoke and soot will remain within the systems of gulf shellfish. Large game fish such as tuna, swordfish and mackerel will amass high concentrations of mercury within the long term from consuming fish lower within the food chain. Over time, the report said that doctors may feel compelled to advise pregnant women and kids to severely scale back their consumption of gulf seafood.
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
