Thursday, July 1, 2010

BP spill nears somber record
~Vents designed to collect oily water, bottom right, are seen on the port side near the bow of the "A Whale" skimmer, billed as the world's largest oil skimming vessel, which is anchored on the Mississippi River in Boothville on Wednesday.


Dispersant's effects on wildlife vary little among brands, EPA finds ---but says more study needed


*SkyTruth Missed us on CNBC last night (first 5 min of show)? 2 more chances - 4 July 11pm ET and 5 July 6am(!!) ET - http://www.cnbc.com/id/37823004/

Researchers find evidence of oil spill in Gulf's food chain~Hat Tweet~kareng

Delegation from oil-afflicted Amazon visits Louisiana tribes hit by BP disaster~Facing South

White House oil spill commission to hold first meeting in New Orleans on July 12-13

The steering committee of the Green Collaborative, a group of over 65 organizations and businesses has agreed on the attached Declaration of Energy Independence. This statement represents widely held views on the energy and conservation issues, but it calls for much greater urgency in pursuing renewable energy sources and technology. As urgent as the need to clean up the Gulf, get our fishers, oil industry and other members of our economy and community working again, we feel this is a moment of opportunity not to be missed in urging our nation forward towards the true energy independence that is essential to maintaining the fundamental rights upon which our founding fathers built this nation.
~Click to enlarge.
We have planned a public announcement of the Declaration on Friday, July 2nd at 12pm, at the City Park Casino on the second floor.
This space, used often for citizens' meetings, has plenty of easy parking around it, and will serve as a perfect, green background for our event. (It is the building where you have been going for ice cream and hot dogs for years.)

Please let us know as soon as possible if you and, or your organization will sign the Declaration, and if you can attend the announcement event. If you cannot attend, we ask you to write your signature, and note your organizational affiliation if there is one, on a white piece of paper, scan it, and send it to us electronically. Alternatively, you may drop off your signature for our artist at 2326 Esplanade Avenue, between Rocheblave and Tonti Streets. (Two story white house with a balcony, palms and sculptures in front.)

We look forward to working with you on seeking additional signatores as we approach, and after the announcement. Please feel free to circulate the Declaration to your members, or other citizens or organizations that may want to join us in this call for speeding our pursuit of renewable energy sources and technology.

If you have any questions regarding the Declaration, please feel free to contact our office at 504.525.2121, or email: energydeclaration@gmail.com.

Use YouTube to Question BP NOW ~Gulf Restoration Network

Are We Slabbed Yet?

Hired BP Muscle Still Blocking Access; ACLU Weighs In

BP quickly contains lawsuits
~The New Orleans Levee

~The growing slick of lawsuits seeping toward BP since “that whole Deepwater Horizon thing” is being effectively contained, a company spokesperson insists. A 560,000-foot boom of BP lawyers quickly surrounded the company’s headquarters after the disaster began in a desperate effort to protect the company’s fiscal environment, BP spokesperson Cassius McFarlow assured reporters.

59 Days to Year 5:
A Photographic Journey~NOLAFemmes

How's Your House by Ian Hunter (Song at NOMRF.org)


Hello, It’s Me~Bayou Creole

New Orleans to host major volunteer conference in 2011

Chef Susan Spicer says oil spill lawsuit anticipates eventual impact on restaurateurs~Brett Anderson

Brass & Bagpipes~Chris Rose, Gambit

Gulf Coast Benefit Concerts July 1st ---Coast to Coast!
~HealthyGulf #RockTheSpill with @GulfBenefit on July 1st at a venue near you! http://bit.ly/gulfbenefit #oilspill #gulf #bp

4 comments:

Ima Wizer said...

Wha dat? Who dis?

Horatio Algeranon said...

Some of the information in the article Dispersants' effects on wildlife vary little among brands, EPA finds is inacurate/misleading.

Namely, the statement

[EPA's assistant administrator for research and development Paul] "Anastas said that while the use of dispersants was a tough call, it was the right one, and that the dispersants are clearly less toxic than the oil. "It's important to remember that oil is enemy number one in this crisis," he said.

The blanket statement that "the dispersants are clearly less toxic than the oil" is simply not true.

Dr. John Nyman (LSU), who has done studies of the effects of dispersants on wetlands over time (see OVERVIEW OF FOUR EXPERIMENTS INVOLVING SOUTH LOUISIANA CRUDE OR COREXIT 9500)

A few of his findings


"In a six-month study using common Louisiana fresh marsh soils... we observed that the dispersant alone initially was more toxic than un-dispersed oil alone, and that dispersed South Louisiana Crude was more toxic than un-dispersed South Louisiana Crude throughout the 6 month study except when when survival was 0% in both dispersed and un-dispersed South Louisiana Crude (Bhattacharyya et al. 2003).


and

"In a six-month laboratory experiment using common salt marsh soils, disappearance (biodegradation and evaporation) was accelerated by fertilizer (to the point of being non-detectable), but slowed by COREXIT 9500 (56% of initial concentrations) relative to no additives (13% of initial concentrations) (Nyman and McGinnis 1999). "
///end Nyman quotes

Editilla, If I might make a suggestion:

Underneath that article "Dispersants' effects on wildlife vary little among brands, EPA finds" (and every time EPA releases new data -- certainly every time they claim "the dispersants are clearly less toxic than the oil" ) you might want to post a link to the great interviews that Dirty Cajuns did with John Nyman.

Effects of COREXIT, Real People & the President

...just to keep EPA honest. ~@:>

One has to keep the context at the forefront:

Their studies were VERY limited -- in both scope and duration
EPA Releases First Round of Toxicity Testing Data for Eight Oil Dispersants
"EPA tested these eight products for endocrine disrupting activity and potential impacts on small fish and mysid shrimp. The testing found:

· None of the eight dispersants tested displayed biologically significant endocrine disrupting activity.
· While all eight dispersants alone – not mixed with oil – showed roughly the same effects, JD-2000 and Corexit 9500 proved to be the least toxic to small fish, and JD-2000 and SAF-RON GOLD were the least toxic to the mysid shrimp."
///

EPA made their decision to let BP continue using Corexit when they almost certainly KNEW of the studies of Nyman et al (or at least should have known because he has been telling everyone and his brother about them from day one!)

And they made that decision BEFORE they had done any of their own recent studies -- which have NOT yet gone through the NORMAL scientific publication process (EPA claims the studies were "peer reviewed", but publication allows all scientists to assess the results) .


Finally, last but certainly not least, where is the evidence that EPA is considering the possible effects of corexit 9500 use on HUMANS (eg, on cleanup workers and others who work and live along the coast) in this decision-making process?

Horatio Algeranon said...

Editilla,

By the way,

Very nice new "theme" for your site.

Great work!

~@:>

Editilla said...

Why Thanks Youz, Ho! You should know I'd rather slam my tongue in a car door than mess with this Ladder, but lately Change seems to be at my doorstep like one of those burning bags of shit. Ahem
You've noticed I hope that I liked your comment so much as to re-hang it proper onto today's (July 2nd) post in full, with some Editoring and Tweeking and a few lagniappe surprises on da'side.
We just got one in from Ladder'illa beat reporter Georgianne Neinaber on this very problem of Chemical Poisoning, so it's new afternoon post. But you're right there beneath our hero American Zombie --who is ALSO onto this from other angles of da'dangles ahem.