A rosy outlook painted by a government oil leak report is being challenged. A conclusion by National Incident Command that the majority of the oil spill within the Gulf of Mexico had been burned, collected or vaporized has been cast into doubt by 3 scientific studies . Shrimping areas were expanded. The President and his family swam in the gulf and ate seafood last week. But a University of Georgia (UGA) study found nearly an equal amount of oil in fact remains yet to be recovered and will threaten gulf sea life for years. University of South Florida (USF) researchers said a huge toxic oil plume has settled to the bottom. 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).
Official statements released by the administration declare that many of the BP oil leak has been dispersed to safe levels. The Wall Street Journal reports that National Incident Command, which managed the oil spill response, said about half of the 4.9 million gallon BP oil leak had been skimmed or burned. An additional 25 percent had either dissolved or evaporated. UGA researchers at the forefront of investigating underwater oil plumes created by the oil leak said as much as 79 percent of the oil and its toxic byproducts still remain below the surface. It could be years, they concluded, before the petrochemicals break down. The obvious fact that oil beneath the surface can’t evaporate was pointed out by the scientists. Large plumes of oil are trapped in deep water.
Undersea canyon site of toxic oil plume
A large portion of the BP oil leak has settled to the bottom of the gulf further east than previously suspected, as outlined by the USF team. CNN reports that original findings from USF conclude that dispersants may have sent droplets of crude to the ocean floor, where it hovers near the bottom of an undersea canyon within 40 miles of the Florida Panhandle. The toxic chemicals in the crude are having a profound effect on plankton and other organisms at the base of the food chain. It is possible the oil could return to the surface. A UGA researcher told CNN that a third of the hydrocarbons within the form of methane and other gas emissions that remain in the water weren’t measured by the government.
Gulf seafood safety affected for years
The BP oil leak will affect gulf seafood safety for years as outlined by 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. Longer term, mercury consumed by fish lower within the food chain will concentrate in big game fish such as tuna, swordfish and mackerel. As time goes on, the report said doctors may be warning pregnant women and children to strictly limit the amount of gulf seafood they eat.
Additional 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
