Former BP oil spill clean up worker Kellie Fellows discusses her experiences working on a beach cleanup team cleaning up oil from BP's Gulf oil disaster.
Monday, July 19, 2010
The hidden L.A. oil rigs
I find it funny that so many people from California don't want drilling off their coast, but I wonder if they know their city has oil fields all over the place!!
H/T Huffington Post
H/T Huffington Post
Thanks, Jimmy Buffet
from deepwaterhorizonresponse.com
GULF SHORES, Ala. – Today, Alabama Unified Command’s efforts to recover wildlife along the Gulf Coast were enhanced with the donation of a special boat from singer-songwriter Jimmy Buffett.
The popular entertainer has donated a boat to help recover oil-soaked wildlife. The boat, built by Dragonfly Boatworks in Vero Beach, Fla., was designed specifically to navigate the shallow waters and marshes of the Gulf Coast to retrieve injured wildlife.
The boat will play an important role in the efforts of Alabama Unified Command to ensure that local wildlife are rescued and transported to rehabilitation centers.
The vessel was given to the Friends of the Bon Secour National Wildlife Refuge, a non-profit organization that supports Bon Secour National Wildlife Refuge. The refuge is located in coastal Alabama and is managed by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.
“Alabama Unified Command is excited to be working with the local community to do all we can to address the needs of wildlife affected by the oil spill,” said Pete Benjamin, a Fish and Wildlife employee with Mobile Wildlife Operations. “This new asset will improve our efforts to rescue wildlife and ensure that animals are cared for and rehabilitated.”
“We are going to ensure the boat is provided to the wildlife recovery teams, which will patrol the shallow areas around Bon Secour and Grand Bay National Wildlife Refuges along with other sensitive places,” said Ralph Gilges, President of the Friends of Bon Secour NWR.
Shallow Water Attention Terminal (S.W.A.T.) boats are built on a flat hull and operate in waters as shallow as 8-10 inches. This particular boat was designed by Mark Castlow and Jimbo Meador, co-owners of Dragonfly Boatworks, who recognized the need for a boat with the ability to operate in shallow waters and marshy areas.
“The folks from Dragonfly Boatworks are thrilled to help: I’m excited we have a relationship with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and that the boat will be used for what it was intended,” said co-owner Jimbo Meador.
Bon Secour National Wildlife Refuge Manager Jereme Phillips lauded the duo.
“Castlow and Meador recognized a need, identified a solution, and made it happen with the help of Jimmy Buffett,” said Phillips. “Friends of Bon Secour National Wildlife Refuge, our refuge support group, closed the loop to facilitate the donation by accepting the boat on behalf of the Refuge. We are immensely grateful to Mr. Buffett for his gift and concern for our treasured wildlife.”
The Dragonfly co-owners have been working nonstop for weeks to modify a popular design for shallow-draft fishing boats, literally turning them into mobile triage wards for oiled wildlife. Designed specifically with wildlife rescue in mind, it has a canopy to protect workers and birds from the sun and a table to make it easier to examine wildlife. The boat also has a misting system to provide further cooling and is equipped with Wi-Fi and video cameras to enable remote viewing of the rescue operations.
The boat is scheduled to begin wildlife recovery operations during the week of July 19.
Greg Vergari, wildlife recovery operations coordinator, will be selecting a two-person crew trained for the safe recovery of injured wildlife. The crew will follow standard wildlife rescue protocol, which quickly transports recovered animals to nearby treatment centers.
“The S.W.A.T boat will be added to the fleet of 14 wildlife recovery boats, and it will work initially around our local national wildlife refuges,” stated Vergari. “The crew can inspect habitat conditions for oil contamination while they search for injured wildlife.”
Bon Secour National Wildlife Refuge is one of Alabama's best-kept secrets and protects a variety of habitats. For more information on Bon Secour, log on to: http://www.fws.gov/bonsecour/.
GULF SHORES, Ala. – Today, Alabama Unified Command’s efforts to recover wildlife along the Gulf Coast were enhanced with the donation of a special boat from singer-songwriter Jimmy Buffett.
The popular entertainer has donated a boat to help recover oil-soaked wildlife. The boat, built by Dragonfly Boatworks in Vero Beach, Fla., was designed specifically to navigate the shallow waters and marshes of the Gulf Coast to retrieve injured wildlife.
The boat will play an important role in the efforts of Alabama Unified Command to ensure that local wildlife are rescued and transported to rehabilitation centers.
The vessel was given to the Friends of the Bon Secour National Wildlife Refuge, a non-profit organization that supports Bon Secour National Wildlife Refuge. The refuge is located in coastal Alabama and is managed by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.
“Alabama Unified Command is excited to be working with the local community to do all we can to address the needs of wildlife affected by the oil spill,” said Pete Benjamin, a Fish and Wildlife employee with Mobile Wildlife Operations. “This new asset will improve our efforts to rescue wildlife and ensure that animals are cared for and rehabilitated.”
“We are going to ensure the boat is provided to the wildlife recovery teams, which will patrol the shallow areas around Bon Secour and Grand Bay National Wildlife Refuges along with other sensitive places,” said Ralph Gilges, President of the Friends of Bon Secour NWR.
Shallow Water Attention Terminal (S.W.A.T.) boats are built on a flat hull and operate in waters as shallow as 8-10 inches. This particular boat was designed by Mark Castlow and Jimbo Meador, co-owners of Dragonfly Boatworks, who recognized the need for a boat with the ability to operate in shallow waters and marshy areas.
“The folks from Dragonfly Boatworks are thrilled to help: I’m excited we have a relationship with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and that the boat will be used for what it was intended,” said co-owner Jimbo Meador.
Bon Secour National Wildlife Refuge Manager Jereme Phillips lauded the duo.
“Castlow and Meador recognized a need, identified a solution, and made it happen with the help of Jimmy Buffett,” said Phillips. “Friends of Bon Secour National Wildlife Refuge, our refuge support group, closed the loop to facilitate the donation by accepting the boat on behalf of the Refuge. We are immensely grateful to Mr. Buffett for his gift and concern for our treasured wildlife.”
The Dragonfly co-owners have been working nonstop for weeks to modify a popular design for shallow-draft fishing boats, literally turning them into mobile triage wards for oiled wildlife. Designed specifically with wildlife rescue in mind, it has a canopy to protect workers and birds from the sun and a table to make it easier to examine wildlife. The boat also has a misting system to provide further cooling and is equipped with Wi-Fi and video cameras to enable remote viewing of the rescue operations.
The boat is scheduled to begin wildlife recovery operations during the week of July 19.
Greg Vergari, wildlife recovery operations coordinator, will be selecting a two-person crew trained for the safe recovery of injured wildlife. The crew will follow standard wildlife rescue protocol, which quickly transports recovered animals to nearby treatment centers.
“The S.W.A.T boat will be added to the fleet of 14 wildlife recovery boats, and it will work initially around our local national wildlife refuges,” stated Vergari. “The crew can inspect habitat conditions for oil contamination while they search for injured wildlife.”
Bon Secour National Wildlife Refuge is one of Alabama's best-kept secrets and protects a variety of habitats. For more information on Bon Secour, log on to: http://www.fws.gov/bonsecour/.
Sunday, July 18, 2010
History of the Oil Industry in Gulf Coast
Great history of the oil industry in Louisiana from nola dot com.
Here's a graphic showing the jobs lost due to Obama's moratorium. Click on the graphic for a larger version.
Here's a graphic showing the jobs lost due to Obama's moratorium. Click on the graphic for a larger version.
Interview with Kindra Arneson
Kindra Arnesen, outspoken critic of BP from Venice, Louisiana and advocate for the fishermen of the Gulf Coast and their families, indeed for all families in trouble from the oil catastrophe in the Gulf, was interviewed live on Hard Tail News of Freedomizer Radio by regular host "Doc" on July 15th. The topics include the new cap, BP coverups and double-crosses, toxic rain, oil plumes and hurricane impacts on the oil disaster.
Here is her hour interview with Doc in five parts
Click here to hear the interview
Here is her hour interview with Doc in five parts
Click here to hear the interview
Help for pets of Fishermen/Seafood Workers
Louisiana SPCA is ready to help fisher people and those that work in the Seafood business.
The Louisiana SPCA is offering free food, free spay/neutering,free microchipping, free vacinations and bloodwork. All you need to provide is proof that you work in the industry (license, pay stub). Go to the link above for details for your area.
The Louisiana SPCA is offering free food, free spay/neutering,free microchipping, free vacinations and bloodwork. All you need to provide is proof that you work in the industry (license, pay stub). Go to the link above for details for your area.
Saturday, July 17, 2010
Oil Spill Day 88 Numbers
July 16, 2010 from deepwaterhorizon.com
Approximately 43,800 personnel are currently responding to protect the shoreline and wildlife and cleanup vital coastlines.
More than 6,900 vessels are currently responding on site, including skimmers, tugs, barges, and recovery vessels to assist in containment and cleanup efforts—in addition to dozens of aircraft, remotely operated vehicles, and multiple mobile offshore drilling units.
More than 3.32 million feet of containment boom and 7 million feet of sorbent boom have been deployed to contain the spill—and approximately 856,000 feet of containment boom and 2.74 million feet of sorbent boom are available.
More than 33.3 million gallons of an oil-water mix have been recovered.
Approximately 1.84 million gallons of total dispersant have been applied—1.07 million on the surface and 771,000 sub-sea. Approximately 541,000 gallons are available.
387 controlled burns have been conducted, efficiently removing a total of more than 10.98 million gallons of oil from the open water in an effort to protect shoreline and wildlife. Because calculations on the volume of oil burned can take more than 48 hours, the reported total volume may not reflect the most recent controlled burns.
17 staging areas are in place to protect sensitive shorelines.
Approximately 587 miles of Gulf Coast shoreline is currently oiled—approximately 336 miles in Louisiana, 112 miles in Mississippi, 68 miles in Alabama, and 71 miles in Florida. These numbers reflect a daily snapshot of shoreline currently experiencing impacts from oil so that planning and field operations can more quickly respond to new impacts; they do not include cumulative impacts to date, or shoreline that has already been cleared.
Approximately 83,927 square miles of Gulf of Mexico federal waters remain closed to fishing in order to balance economic and public health concerns. More than 65 percent remains open. Details can be found at http://sero.nmfs.noaa.gov/.
To date, the administration has leveraged assets and skills from numerous foreign countries and international organizations as part of this historic, all-hands-on-deck response, including Belgium, Canada, China, France, Germany, Ireland, Japan, Kenya, Mexico, Netherlands, Norway, Qatar, Russia, Spain, Tunisia, United Arab Emirates, United Kingdom, the United Nations’ International Maritime Organization, the European Union's Monitoring and Information Centre, and the European Maritime Safety Agency.
Approximately 43,800 personnel are currently responding to protect the shoreline and wildlife and cleanup vital coastlines.
More than 6,900 vessels are currently responding on site, including skimmers, tugs, barges, and recovery vessels to assist in containment and cleanup efforts—in addition to dozens of aircraft, remotely operated vehicles, and multiple mobile offshore drilling units.
More than 3.32 million feet of containment boom and 7 million feet of sorbent boom have been deployed to contain the spill—and approximately 856,000 feet of containment boom and 2.74 million feet of sorbent boom are available.
More than 33.3 million gallons of an oil-water mix have been recovered.
Approximately 1.84 million gallons of total dispersant have been applied—1.07 million on the surface and 771,000 sub-sea. Approximately 541,000 gallons are available.
387 controlled burns have been conducted, efficiently removing a total of more than 10.98 million gallons of oil from the open water in an effort to protect shoreline and wildlife. Because calculations on the volume of oil burned can take more than 48 hours, the reported total volume may not reflect the most recent controlled burns.
17 staging areas are in place to protect sensitive shorelines.
Approximately 587 miles of Gulf Coast shoreline is currently oiled—approximately 336 miles in Louisiana, 112 miles in Mississippi, 68 miles in Alabama, and 71 miles in Florida. These numbers reflect a daily snapshot of shoreline currently experiencing impacts from oil so that planning and field operations can more quickly respond to new impacts; they do not include cumulative impacts to date, or shoreline that has already been cleared.
Approximately 83,927 square miles of Gulf of Mexico federal waters remain closed to fishing in order to balance economic and public health concerns. More than 65 percent remains open. Details can be found at http://sero.nmfs.noaa.gov/.
To date, the administration has leveraged assets and skills from numerous foreign countries and international organizations as part of this historic, all-hands-on-deck response, including Belgium, Canada, China, France, Germany, Ireland, Japan, Kenya, Mexico, Netherlands, Norway, Qatar, Russia, Spain, Tunisia, United Arab Emirates, United Kingdom, the United Nations’ International Maritime Organization, the European Union's Monitoring and Information Centre, and the European Maritime Safety Agency.
Friday, July 16, 2010
Tarballs on the beach
We took a trip to Waveland/Bay St. Louis today to see how the Mississippi coast was fairing.
Click on any picture for a larger version.
We spied a few victims of the oil spill:
We entered the beach area by the Silver Slipper Casino. As we walked the beach in Lakeshore/Waveland it was very clean.
Thinking we could venture behind the casino - to a place that sold bait - I drove to the back of the building but was stopped by a guy clad all in black who told me I couldn't go any further and to turn around. I complied.
As we were leaving the casino grounds, we spotted two "vessels of opportunity" leaving the command center to lay boom.
We walked out onto the beach outside the casino and it was clean and pristine. I felt great. So we decided to venture down the beach towards Bay St. Louis.
Beach Boulevard is being resurfaced and it was very slow going.(Waveland seems to be doing construction on 90% of their roads simultaneously).
We came upon a group people cleaning the beach - so that's why it appeared so clean!!
Apparently, they bus the beach cleaners to the spots to be cleaned every day. Each group is escorted by rent a cops. As we approached the group, I could see the Barney Fife guy coming towards my car. I ignored him and kept driving.
It's true what they say about these beach cleaners working 20 minutes and taking 20 minute breaks.
I drove about a mile past the beach cleaners and we got out and walked the beach. We were now on the Waveland/Bay St. Louis city limits.
Five years post Katrina, views like this represent the majority of the beach front homes.
Walking down to the shoreline, it was apparent that the beach cleaners hadn't been here since high tide.
The tarballs are the black "rocks" in this picture.
The lines made as the tide receded seem to contain minute pieces of oil by product.
The size and shape of the tar balls varied. I supposed this is due to "weathering".
This group of globs had the consistency of clay. Very ugly.
This was the largest tar ball we found.
A dead blue crab amidst petroleum. So sad.
Boom is useless on beaches due to the wind and tides.
After walking down the beach for some time we noticed storm clouds moving our way, so we headed back towards the car.
Along the sidewalk of the beach we spotted three straw booms that apparently had blown off the beach.
Walking back to the car, I snapped a few pictures that I'd like to use in my calendar next year.
We the residents of the Gulf Coast survived Katrina. We will survive this.
Click on any picture for a larger version.
We spied a few victims of the oil spill:
We entered the beach area by the Silver Slipper Casino. As we walked the beach in Lakeshore/Waveland it was very clean.
Thinking we could venture behind the casino - to a place that sold bait - I drove to the back of the building but was stopped by a guy clad all in black who told me I couldn't go any further and to turn around. I complied.
As we were leaving the casino grounds, we spotted two "vessels of opportunity" leaving the command center to lay boom.
We walked out onto the beach outside the casino and it was clean and pristine. I felt great. So we decided to venture down the beach towards Bay St. Louis.
Beach Boulevard is being resurfaced and it was very slow going.(Waveland seems to be doing construction on 90% of their roads simultaneously).
We came upon a group people cleaning the beach - so that's why it appeared so clean!!
Apparently, they bus the beach cleaners to the spots to be cleaned every day. Each group is escorted by rent a cops. As we approached the group, I could see the Barney Fife guy coming towards my car. I ignored him and kept driving.
It's true what they say about these beach cleaners working 20 minutes and taking 20 minute breaks.
I drove about a mile past the beach cleaners and we got out and walked the beach. We were now on the Waveland/Bay St. Louis city limits.
Five years post Katrina, views like this represent the majority of the beach front homes.
Walking down to the shoreline, it was apparent that the beach cleaners hadn't been here since high tide.
The tarballs are the black "rocks" in this picture.
The lines made as the tide receded seem to contain minute pieces of oil by product.
The size and shape of the tar balls varied. I supposed this is due to "weathering".
This group of globs had the consistency of clay. Very ugly.
This was the largest tar ball we found.
A dead blue crab amidst petroleum. So sad.
Boom is useless on beaches due to the wind and tides.
After walking down the beach for some time we noticed storm clouds moving our way, so we headed back towards the car.
Along the sidewalk of the beach we spotted three straw booms that apparently had blown off the beach.
Walking back to the car, I snapped a few pictures that I'd like to use in my calendar next year.
We the residents of the Gulf Coast survived Katrina. We will survive this.
Thursday, July 15, 2010
they choked off the well
Baby steps, but check it out here….the only thing you see is the dispersants being squirted out:
http://www.wwl.com/View-all-12---Spill-Cam---video-feeds/7381402
pray!
The Gulf and Me
| Interactive Project Spotlights Lives Changed by Oil Spill ; Effort to culminate in customizable book "The Gulf and Me: A Storygathering Journey" has two components: a community-driven website where people affected by the spill can upload their stories and images to share with others, and an upcoming journey through the Gulf region by Atlanta-based writer, personal historian and custom book designer Michael Pearson to collect additional stories. The project will culminate with publication of "The Gulf and Me," a book of stories and photos chronicling the experiences of Gulf Coast residents affected by the spill. Individuals, organizations and communities will have an opportunity to customize the book to feature their own experiences, creating a unique memoir of an unprecedented disaster. Stories posted to the website, including those generated during the storygathering expedition, will remain freely available on the Web indefinitely. A portion of any proceeds will go to Gulf recovery efforts. "The Deepwater Horizon oil spill has disrupted untold thousands of lives and threatens to change life in the Gulf of Mexico for years to come," Pearson said. "It's important to tell the stories of everyday people affected by what's happened and to preserve those stories. We need to remember years from now that this disaster will have had not just enormous environmental and policy impacts, but significant personal impacts, as well." An integral part of "The Gulf and Me" is the opportunity for the people closest to the story, Gulf Coast residents, to help direct the expedition by nominating people and places to be profiled, according to Pearson, a former journalist with The Associated Press and The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. The trip is being designed to be detailed in near-real time on the website, with frequent image and video updates, journal entries and an active Twitter feed. Some interviews and tours may be streamed live, with visitors having an opportunity to participate by asking their own questions. To view the project, please visit www.thegulfandme.com. To submit profile nominations, visit "The Assignment Desk" http:// www.thegulfandme.com/the-assignment-desk. SOURCE The Gulf and Me Project |
Day 86 numbers
By the Numbers to Date:
• More than 6,800 vessels are currently responding on site, including skimmers, tugs, barges, and recovery vessels to assist in containment and cleanup efforts—in addition to dozens of aircraft, remotely operated vehicles, and multiple mobile offshore drilling units.
• More than 3.21 million feet of containment boom and 6.6 million feet of sorbent boom have been deployed to contain the spill—and approximately 875,000 feet of containment boom and 2.65 million feet of sorbent boom are available.
• More than 31.8 million gallons of an oil-water mix have been recovered.
• Approximately 1.82 million gallons of total dispersant have been applied—1.07 million on the surface and 749,000 sub-sea. Approximately 516,000 gallons are available.
• 348 controlled burns have been conducted, efficiently removing a total of more than 10.3 million gallons of oil from the open water in an effort to protect shoreline and wildlife. Because calculations on the volume of oil burned can take more than 48 hours, the reported total volume may not reflect the most recent controlled burns.
• 17 staging areas are in place to protect sensitive shorelines.
• Approximately 572 miles of Gulf Coast shoreline is currently oiled—approximately 328 miles in Louisiana, 108 miles in Mississippi, 67 miles in Alabama, and 69 miles in Florida. These numbers reflect a daily snapshot of shoreline currently experiencing impacts from oil so that planning and field operations can more quickly respond to new impacts; they do not include cumulative impacts to date, or shoreline that has already been cleared.
• Approximately 83,927 square miles of Gulf of Mexico federal waters remain closed to fishing in order to balance economic and public health concerns. More than 65 percent remains open. Details can be found at http://sero.nmfs.noaa.gov/
• To date, the administration has leveraged assets and skills from numerous foreign countries and international organizations as part of this historic, all-hands-on-deck response, including Belgium, Canada, China, France, Germany, Ireland, Japan, Kenya, Mexico, Netherlands, Norway, Qatar, Russia, Spain, Tunisia, United Arab Emirates, United Kingdom, the United Nations’ International Maritime Organization, the European Union's Monitoring and Information Centre, and the European Maritime Safety Agency.
• More than 6,800 vessels are currently responding on site, including skimmers, tugs, barges, and recovery vessels to assist in containment and cleanup efforts—in addition to dozens of aircraft, remotely operated vehicles, and multiple mobile offshore drilling units.
• More than 3.21 million feet of containment boom and 6.6 million feet of sorbent boom have been deployed to contain the spill—and approximately 875,000 feet of containment boom and 2.65 million feet of sorbent boom are available.
• More than 31.8 million gallons of an oil-water mix have been recovered.
• Approximately 1.82 million gallons of total dispersant have been applied—1.07 million on the surface and 749,000 sub-sea. Approximately 516,000 gallons are available.
• 348 controlled burns have been conducted, efficiently removing a total of more than 10.3 million gallons of oil from the open water in an effort to protect shoreline and wildlife. Because calculations on the volume of oil burned can take more than 48 hours, the reported total volume may not reflect the most recent controlled burns.
• 17 staging areas are in place to protect sensitive shorelines.
• Approximately 572 miles of Gulf Coast shoreline is currently oiled—approximately 328 miles in Louisiana, 108 miles in Mississippi, 67 miles in Alabama, and 69 miles in Florida. These numbers reflect a daily snapshot of shoreline currently experiencing impacts from oil so that planning and field operations can more quickly respond to new impacts; they do not include cumulative impacts to date, or shoreline that has already been cleared.
• Approximately 83,927 square miles of Gulf of Mexico federal waters remain closed to fishing in order to balance economic and public health concerns. More than 65 percent remains open. Details can be found at http://sero.nmfs.noaa.gov/
• To date, the administration has leveraged assets and skills from numerous foreign countries and international organizations as part of this historic, all-hands-on-deck response, including Belgium, Canada, China, France, Germany, Ireland, Japan, Kenya, Mexico, Netherlands, Norway, Qatar, Russia, Spain, Tunisia, United Arab Emirates, United Kingdom, the United Nations’ International Maritime Organization, the European Union's Monitoring and Information Centre, and the European Maritime Safety Agency.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
The SCOTUS Women
Women of the Supreme Court just did what far too many elected officials have failed to do: they stood up to Trump’s MAGA regime and called b...
-
I think I'm missing something. Razoo Bouncers not guilty of murder. Levon Jones, 26, of Statesboro, Ga., died after being pinned to th...
-
Harrah's New Orleans Hotel I can identify all but one of the flags flying, which depict the city of New Orleans and Louisiana's...
