A slew of upbeat public relations and advertising campaigns, together with a healthy dose of political spin, have helped rehabilitate the public’s perception of the Gulf Coast, left battered by the BP oil spill. But while tourists return to the Gulf in record numbers, the results of a new study by a group of scientists from Louisiana State University offer strong evidence that, despite appearances, all is not right in the Gulf.
When Bonny Schumaker flew her small plane over the Gulf of Mexico to conduct a survey of whale sharks, her search instead turned up a massive oil slick that stretched for miles on the surface. The oil appeared to be emanating from the exact site of BP’s blown-out Macondo well, which gushed oil for months and created the worst environmental disaster in U.S. history.
CBS correspondent Dr. Debbye Turner Bell traveled to the Gulf Coast recently to talk with scientists and fishermen about post-spill recovery – what’s happening in the Gulf now and how the future is shaping up for the people and businesses that draw their living from Gulf waters. What she reported back were stories of grave concern about the fish being caught in and around the areas hit by the oil spill.
BP crews are returning to the Mississippi coast to begin a new oil-cleanup effort as clumps and mats of dark oily sludge wash ashore. The barrier islands that form a broken chain about 10-12 miles off the Mississippi coast are bearing the brunt of the oil that continues to contaminate beaches, surf, and deeper water.
The Gulf Coast and its many of its residents are still languishing in the aftermath of the largest oil spill in U.S. history, with contaminated fish and shrimp habitats and lost tourism revenues, but BP is once again pulling in multi-billion earnings, fueled in part by the near-record gas prices that leave motorists fuming at the pumps.
Researchers led by the University of Texas Medical Branch in Galveston, Texas, announced they will receive nearly $8 million to study the effects of the BP oil spill disaster on seafood from the Gulf of Mexico. The five-year grant is funded by the National Institute of Environmental Health and Science. In addition to UT, the project will involve researchers from the University of Pennsylvania, Texas A&M University at Galveston, Louisiana State University and the University of Arizona. Community agencies also will be enlisted to help with the study.
Communities and business harmed by BP’s oil spill have recovered and business is booming, according to a myopic BP memo sent to the Gulf Coast Claims Facility (GCCF). The document advises the fund’s manager to stop paying on claims made for future losses because, BP argues, the Gulf of Mexico is healed and anyone harmed by last year’s devastating spill won’t need future assistance from the $20-billion relief fund.
Seeking cover under the U.S. Oil Pollution Act, BP says that it is not liable for damages to boats that took part in its oil spill cleanup or for cleanup workers who were physically harmed by their contact with oil, fumes, and chemical dispersants.
People have questioned the safety of Gulf seafood ever since BP flooded the water with crude oil and methane gas a year ago, then sprayed and pumped the spill with unprecedented levels of chemical dispersants. The oil disaster hit just as shrimping season was about to begin, closing once-fertile fishing grounds and drawing attention to the scope of the spill. Were shrimpers and fishermen out of work just for the season, or would the environmental and economic impacts linger for years?
One year ago today BP’s Deepwater Horizon rig was consumed by flames, its weakening frame on the verge of collapsing into the sea it fed upon. Today, that image provides a fitting metaphor for thousands of small businesses in Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, and the Florida panhandle that continue to struggle with severe declines in revenues ever since BP’s massive oil slick overtook this part of the Gulf. According to a report by the Wall Street Journal, many small business owners in the tourism and seafood industry fear the year-old oil spill will put them out of business soon if visitors don’t return.
