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The Tragic Case Against Offshore Drilling


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View Liz Judge's blog posts
28 April 2010, 10:25 AM
Oil rig spill moving toward Louisiana coast, leaving a wake of loss
NASA image of the oil slick as it approaches Louisiana's ecologically fragile coast

As a crude oil spill bigger than West Virginia wreaks havoc on the Gulf of Mexico’s underwater ecosystems and makes its way to the U.S. shore, a rescue task force continues unsuccessfully to contain the pipes and seal off the leak caused by a giant oil rig explosion last week which took 11 lives.

News reports say that officials—who are about to set the slick on fire in an effort to contain it before it hits shore and devastates the fragile ecosystems there—fear that this could become one of the worst oil spills in U.S. history.

“If this oil reaches the coast, there will be some pretty severe impacts to these habitats,” said Tom Minello, a Galveston-based ecologist for the National Marine Fisheries Service, in a Houston Chronicle report on the spill’s impact on endangered species and prized fisheries yesterday.

The Coast Guard is predicting the spill will hit U.S. shores in three days, and when it does, it will endanger  southeast Louisiana, home to some 40 percent of the nation’s wetlands and the nation’s second oldest wildlife refuge, the Breton National Wildlife Refuge. This area provides habitat for endangered species including the brown pelican, least tern, and piping plover, as well as 23 species of seabirds and shorebirds, and hundreds of other species of wildlife.   

All of this while the pipes of the rig that exploded last week are still leaking 42,000 gallons of oil a day into the Gulf of Mexico and threatening an astonishing range of sea life, including endangered sperm whales (three were spotted near the spill this week); western Atlantic bluefin tuna, a protected species; sea turtles; migratory birds; shrimp; and Louisiana’s $300 million-a-year oyster business. 

For shock-inducing photos, see TIME’s slideshow. For helpful maps and diagrams, see the BBC’s coverage. 

Tragically, there isn’t a better case against offshore drilling.

Very informative and trustworthy blog. Please keep updating with great posts like this one. I have booked marked your site and am about to email it to a few friends of mine that I know would enjoy reading
omegle

This area provides habitat for endangered species north face outlet including the brown pelican, least tern, and piping plover, the north face outlet as well as 23 species of seabirds and shorebirds, and hundreds of north face jackets on sale other species of wildlife.

The recent Deepwater Horizon oil rig explosion in the Gulf of Mexico is spilling massive amounts of crude oil into the sea and is threatening the environment and those people who depend on the wetlands for their livelihood, such as fishermen and lobstermen. sesli sohbet

i hate u damn brits!!!
pollutin water

You all better get mean and loud or that 42,000 gallons a day spilled is coming to your state - they drill off your coast, cut regulatory corners as much as possible, hire cheap labor and expect tax payers to pick up the bill when they spill the oil. Plus the money they make comes from a resource off your coast and goes into banks in TEXAS. They don't give a damn about your tourist industry, your quality of life, the health of your fishing industry or if your food chain has been decimated and contaminated.

They are carpet baggers who pull out of their home port on their huge gas guzzling yachts and sail luxuriously to the Caribbean or South Pacific - the last places on earth they haven't totally destroyed. Don't turn your State over to the vultures raping our land.

Paul Burke
Author-Journey Home

Drill, baby, drill is one of the most terrifying modern political slogans. Even President Obama is proposing to open offshore drilling along the Atlantic coastline, from the northern tip of Delaware to central Florida. Turning our atmosphere into a giant tanning bed is not a prudent idea, however immediately lucrative it may be. Lets hope we learn from this current tragedy in the gulf and affect some legislation.

The recent Deepwater Horizon oil rig explosion in the Gulf of Mexico is spilling massive amounts of crude oil into the sea and is threatening the environment and those people who depend on the wetlands for their livelihood, such as fishermen and lobstermen. There is also the issue of a possible loss of revenue for the hospitality industry and other industries in which people are affected and wages could be lost, all of which lead to potential damage claims. Sadly, other oil rig workers are leaving the site and losing wages, but they have valid fears that the spill will catch fire. The tragedy is also raising very serious environmental concerns, and could threaten the fragile ecosystem of the Louisiana and Mississippi coasts, which serve as nurseries for fish and shrimp and habitat for birds. The disaster is in violation of a number of environmental acts, including the Clean Water Act and the Oil Pollution Act and is among the worst offshore drilling disasters in recent U.S. history, and could be the deadliest. More information on this tragedy and its devastating effects on our environment can be found at http://www.oil-rig-explosions.com/

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