Articles Tagged with: BP oil spill

Billed as the world’s worst man-made ecological disaster, the Gulf of Mexico oil spill continues to cause enormous environmental and economical suffering. After an explosion occurred on BP’s Deepwater Horizon oil rig on the 20th April 2010, 4.9 million barrels of oil spewed into the sea over several months before BP finally managed to contain and then seal the leak. The oil rig explosion killed eleven workers, whose bodies were never found. Aside from a number of accident claims relating to the initial explosion, BP is faced with a massive clean-up bill (up to $20 billion) that includes compensation payouts to local communities whose businesses have been destroyed by the spill. Whilst the cost of the Deepwater Horizon disaster is ongoing, BP has been hit by a fresh wave of personal injury claims over the way in which it attempted to clear the oil spill.

Two Gulf Coast residents, Glynis Wright and Janille Turner, have claimed that Corexit 9500 – the chemical dispersant used by BP to clear oil from the sea – is “four times more toxic than sweet crude oil.” According to reports, BP sprayed up to 1.8 million gallons of Corexit into the sea but failed to disclose the exact chemical composition of the substance, which is produced by Nalco. A class action suit has now been filed in Alabama against BP and Nalco by Ms Wright and Ms Turner. Depending on the success of the lawsuit, many more injury claims may be filed against BP by workers and residents who have been affected by the contaminated sea water. The class action seeks compensation for “negligence and wanton misconduct, as well as nuisance, trespass, battery and medical monitoring.”

Although BP has managed to contain the Gulf of Mexico oil leak, it may be helpless to prevent further litigation, following reports that Corexit 9500 has probably entered the food chain Scientists from the University of Southern Mississippi’s Gulf Coast Research Laboratory recently conducted tests on crab larvae and concluded that the substance was more likely than not in the food chain. Nalco has further revealed that Corexit “may cause nausea and vomiting [and] can cause chemical pneumonia if aspirated into lungs.” Dr Susan Shaw of the Marine Environmental Research Institute commented: “We believe that Corexit dispersants, in combination with crude oil, pose grave health risks to marine life and human health and threaten to deplete critical niches in the Gulf food web that may never recover.”

Virginia Key Beach, Miami. Still a safe place to visit. Credit: See Miami Live

The Greater Miami Convention & Visitors Bureau (GMCVB) has been awarded $1.25 million in emergency marketing funds from Florida Governor Crist and the State Division of Emergency Management to assist the destination in correcting misperceptions among potential visitors about the effects of the Gulf oil spill.

Tourism is Miami-Dade’s number one industry, employing more than 100,000 people, and representing one in five jobs in the County.

“We are grateful to Governor Crist for his leadership, and for recognizing that the oil spill is a statewide issue, affecting not only the areas already seeing oil sheen and/or tar balls, but the rest of the State, which suffers from the perception that they are affected, too,” GMCVB Chair Steven Haas said in a press release.

GMCVB President and CEO William D. Talbert, III, said, “Unlike many other parts of the State, nearly 50% of all Miami visitors come from international markets, and so the campaign supported by these funds will be carrying the Florida message internationally, benefiting the entire State.”

Talbert went on to say, “Prior to receiving this funding, we had already proactively taken several steps, including launching the See Miami Live portal, featuring webcams trained on our beaches to show their pristine cleanliness, and added a dedicated FAQ page to our website to answer questions about the oil spill’s impact on the area.”

The funds will be used to expand the reach and frequency of GMCVB’s summer campaign, which emphasizes the range of appeals that make Greater Miami and the Beaches unique. Highlighted value options include Miami Spa Month throughout July, with tempting value-priced spa treatments and pampering; Miami 443, offering four nights’ accommodation or four tickets to selected attractions for the price of three; Miami Spice Month, featuring enticing restaurant values throughout August and September; and other value-driven offerings that emphasize “Things Are Different in Miami.”

For a vacation guide visit Miami and Beaches.

Aerial view of the BP oil spill on the Gulf Coast. The spill has now hit Florida's beaches. Credit: jeferonix

Florida’s worst fears were realized early today when tar balls from the BP oil spill, which began on April 20, found their way onto the Florida Panhandle’s Pensacola beaches. Tar balls and sticky oil have begun washing up on the usually, pristine white shores.

CNN ireporters have been tracking the tar balls, noting that Florida’s 1,260 miles of western coastline is home to “scores of tourist destinations, natural habitats and an important fishing industry,” and the impact on the state’s industry has the potential to be devastating. The “Sunshine State’s” has a  $60 billion annual tourism industry.

Anticipating the potential crisis to the state, Florida Governor Charlie Crist wrote to BP yesterday requesting $100 million in aid. In a letter to BP America President Lamar McKay, Crist stated the spill “… is already having an impact on Gulf of Mexico coastal areas, and the threat to our state is real and imminent.”

Meanwhile, BP is still trying to contain what has now become the United States’ largest environmental disaster.

Dawn Dishwashing Liquid is being used to clean wildlife trapped in the oil spill. Proctor & Gamble donated thousands of bottles for the resuce efforts

As the Gulf coast is reeling from the massive oil spill following the explosion at a British Petroleum platform on April 20, some 40,000 gallons of oil a day continue to spill into the sea. In addition, Reuters reported today that another offshore drilling rig overturned, but this time, inland near Morgan City in Louisiana.

The financial, economic and environmental impacts continue to rise, 10 days after the incident, and the state of Florida is holding its collective breath as it waits to see the impact the disaster will have on its tourism industry.
Florida beaches are a huge draw for tourists, but they won’t be if the oil slick makes its way into Florida waters. With the slick spreading to Louisiana, and Louisiana Governor Bobby Jindal declaring a state of emergency, changes in wind or water currents could push the spill towards Florida’s beaches, including the Florida Keys.

While it’s still unclear whether Florida beaches will escape the fallout, Brevard County is on standby, since the slick drifted 90 miles south of Pensacola Bay on Thursday.  Florida Today interviewed Yonggang Liu, an oceanographer at the University of Florida who’s using numerical models and satellite imagery to forecast the slick’s trajectory. Said Liu, “”For Florida, it’s not good news. “Once it gets close to shore, it’s more driven by the winds.”

“We anticipate it going into the Loop Current in a few days, then it will be headed to the Florida Keys and the East Coast of Florida,” Mitchell Roffer of Roffer’s Ocean Fishing Forecasting Service in West Melbourne, told Florida Today.  ”Very scary. Very scary.”