Natural Planet A monthly compendium of tips, thoughts, and updates about our shared home.
by Deb Percival
Oil Spill Having Catastrophic Impact on Ocean Ecosystems T
his article is excerpted from the full article which first appeared on The Dirt website –
http://dirt.asla.org. We thank the contributors to The Dirt for their permission to use this material, and for their excellent reporting. The TEDx conference on the Oil Spill in Washington,
D.C. (held on June 28) featured a full-day of world renowned speakers on oil science, conservation, and the future of en- ergy. During the day’s discussions, one powerful statement seemed to come through: the decision to use oil dispersants, which are themselves highly toxic derivatives of oil, may have been misguided. The dis- persants are creating a toxic ocean soup that can’t be separated into disparate parts. The oil, dispersants and sea are now like permanently mixed salad dressing. As a result, the dispersants and oil mix will be ab- sorbed into all nodes of the ocean ecosystems, creating catastrophic im- pacts for ocean wildlife.
Sylvia Earle Mission Blue
Susan Shaw Marine Environmental Research Institute
Dr. Susan Shaw, a marine toxicologist and head of the Ma- rine Environmental Research Institute said the dispersants will have a major impact on marine life. More than 1/3 of all ocean mammals are in danger of going extinct. Each ocean animal is already loaded with chemical compounds. Even among the U.S. human population, chemical com- pounds are found at a much higher rate, some 10-40 times higher, than in Eu- rope. “We have looser regulations than the E.U. In the U.S., most chemi- cals aren’t regulated properly. Each year, an additional 20,000 new chemicals are created and go through minimal re- view process before they are released and used in products.” Shaw actually jumped
A dead sea turtle washed ashore at Pass Christian, Mississippi. More than 425 turtles are known to have died in the spill zone. Photograph: Dave Martin/AP.
Sylvia Earle, who has been called “Her Deepness” by The
New Yorker and a “Living Legend” by the Library of Congress, has logged more than 6,000 hours underwater and led more than 50 ocean expeditions. Earle said the Gulf of Mexico, which is the 9th largest body of water on earth, has received less attention than the coastal marshes. She showed a video of coral birth, illustrating the diversity and complexity of the ocean ecosystems within the Gulf. The Gulf is a key habitat for many species, including the critically endangered Blue Fin Tuna.
On the oil spill, Earle said it won’t be long before the loop
current will pick up the oil and dispersants and move them up the East coast and towards the Gulf Stream, and then eventu- ally towards the critical Sargasso Sea, a “floating golden sea.”
http://www.mission-blue.org/ http://www.ted.com/talks/brian_skerry_reveals_ocean_s_glo- ry_and_horror.html
into oil slicked-Gulf of Mexico water wearing only a wetsuit in an effort to understand the effects firsthand. From her view,
she saw a “web of death as you go down the water column.” Shaw said someone decided that it was a case of wetlands vs. oceans and decided to save the wetlands by using ocean-based dispersants — up to 2 million gallons of Corexit. “Corexit is the most toxic line of dispersants.” One type of Corexit being used “causes internal bleeding;” and the other type being used causes “birth defects and mutations.”
Shaw said the U.S. needs to change its lifestyle and move to- wards an alternative energy system. Learn more about her re- search at
http://www.meriresearch.org/
Carl Safina
Blue Ocean Institute Dr. Carl Safina, a prominent ecologist and president of the
Blue Ocean Institute, said the use of dispersants means that “we can’t clean, touch, or deal with this huge mess. We can’t
www.naturalnutmeg.com August 2010 53
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56