Scientists Fault Response of Government to Oil Spill in Gulf

[Karmadillo]

Source: New York Times

Tensions between the Obama administration and the scientific community over the gulf oil spill are escalating, with prominent oceanographers accusing the government of failing to conduct an adequate scientific analysis of the damage and of allowing BP to obscure the spill’s true scope.

Go to Blog The scientists assert that the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and other agencies have been slow to organize necessary scientific expeditions, especially to get a better handle on problems that may be occurring from large plumes of oil droplets that appear to be spreading beneath the ocean surface.

They point out that in the month since the Deepwater Horizon oil rig exploded, the government has failed to make public a single test result on water from the deep ocean. And the scientists say the administration has been too reluctant to demand an accurate test of how many gallons of oil are flowing into the sea from the gushing oil well. “It seems baffling that we don’t know how much oil is being spilled,” Sylvia Earle, a famed oceanographer, said Wednesday on Capitol Hill. “It seems baffling that we don’t know where the oil is in the water column.”

The administration acknowledges that its scientific resources are stretched thin by the disaster, but contends that it is moving to get better information, including a more complete picture of the underwater plumes.

more...



Read more: http://www.nytimes.com/2010/05/20/science/earth/20noaa.html

[tblue]

1. This is not good.

Something this egregiously horrible needs to be stabbed in the heart with a stake. No more trusting BP or them halfway. The NOAA scientists know a lot more about this than most of us do, and they're not trying to protect anyone's hide. I have to say, they've got a point.

[Downwinder]

2. They complain now that they are on the other end of the stick.

How much do they say about their own "Government research?"

[readmoreoften]

3. Huh? Your post makes zero sense.

Zero.

[TheEuclideanOne]

4. I can tell you how much oil

A LOT OF FUCKING OIL!!!

Is that really the biggest concern that we have right now? Figuring out how much oil is in the ocean? You can see from any of the videos that it is enough to create a monumental disaster that will take generations to recover from. Being able to measure it will not be that helpful at the moment. Stopping it will be helpful. We all know that it is horrible and measuring just how horrible it is doesn't seem as urgent as stopping it.

If they want to yell at somebody, why not play a clip of the right wing asking "Where is the oil?

[Lucky Luciano]

6. Knowing how much seems key to the equation that needs to be solved!

[protocol rv]

14. Generations to recover?

I don't think it's that bad. So far there isn't enough oil to make up one super tanker volume. Say it has been blowing 20 thousand barrels per day for 30 days. That's 600 thousand barrels. A supertanker carries 2 million barrels. So thus far it's not really that bad.

[daleo]

17. You have to quantify a problem to solve it

If the country was being attacked by an army you would have to know the size of the invading force to effectively counter it. Same thing here.

[defendandprotect]

5. Obama made a big mistake in this -- even average citizen gets that -- !!

Saw some of this on C-span this afternoon -- not enough.

Corruption of our government is immense -- and long term!

As Robert Redford was saying on the Olbermann Show tonight -- this is the time

to get going on an energy bill as everyone is focused on this catastrophe!!

Redford also calls for government taking over the complete operation in the Gulf -- !!

Of course!!

[LakeSamish706]

7. And I totally agree with Robert Redford, we need to get BP off of this ASAP.

They are doing absolutely nothing positive about stopping the flow. There concern seems to be salvaging as much of there precious oil as possible instead of stopping the flow.

[ProSense]

8. "The administration has mounted a huge response to the spill"

The scale of the disaster is such that demands for the government to do more are expected.

Scientists Fault Response of Government to Oil Spill in Gulf

By JUSTIN GILLIS
Published: May 19, 2010

<...>

The administration acknowledges that its scientific resources are stretched by the disaster, but contends that it is moving to get better information, including a more complete picture of the underwater plumes.

“We’re in the early stages of doing that, and we do not have a comprehensive understanding as of yet of where that oil is,” Jane Lubchenco, the NOAA administrator, told Congress on Wednesday. “But we are devoting all possible resources to understanding where the oil is and what its impact might be.”

The administration has mounted a huge response to the spill, deploying 1,105 vessels to try to skim oil, burn it and block it from shorelines. As part of the effort, the federal government and the Gulf Coast states have begun an extensive effort to catalog any environmental damage to the coast. The Environmental Protection Agency is releasing results from water sampling near shore. In most places, save for parts of Louisiana, the contamination appears modest so far.

The big scientific question now is what is happening in deeper water. While it is clear that water samples have been taken, the results have not been made public.

Lisa P. Jackson, administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency, told Congress on Wednesday that she was pressing for the release of additional test results, including some samples taken by boats under contract to BP.

link

(NOAA) Response to date

• Total response vessels: 950
  
  
• Containment Boom deployed: over 1.36 million feet

  
  
• Containment boom available: nearly 350,000 feet

  
  
• Sorbent boom deployed: over 480,000 feet
  
  
• Sorbent boom available: over 800,000 feet

  
  
• Boom deployed: over 1.8 million feet (regular plus sorbent boom)
  
  
• Boom available: over 1.15 million feet (regular plus sorbent boom)
  
  
• Oily water recovered: more than 7.65 million gallons
  
  
• Dispersant used: over 590,000 gallon
s
  
  
• Dispersant available: more than 300,000 gallons

  
  
• Overall personnel responding: more than 20,000
  
  
• 17 staging areas are in place and ready to protect sensitive shorelines

EPA Response to BP Spill in the Gulf of Mexico

The administration and Congress need to put more pressure on BP to cooperate and pay for additional support.

[Hell Hath No Fury]

9. Good god, it's been a whole month???

BP should have been given two weeks to kill the damned thing and then the Govt. should have taken over. BP was too interested in saving the drilling situation instead of stopping the flow dead.

Where is this guy?



It's way past time to knock some heads, toss BP aside, and get on with the business of shutting this thing down. And if it fucks up BP's ability to work that area in the future -- TOUGH SHIT.

[defendandprotect]

11. BP was lying for a week or more saying there was "no leak" -- !!

[Bragi]

10. The politics of this blowout

Forget the hypocrisy and most of the facts. What matters politically is that Obama's evident refusal to be tough on BP 4 weeks into this disaster, and his apparent continued support for offshore drilling, will alienate his potential supporters while giving the right a set of media-plausible talking points about how this is "Obama's Katrina."

I honestly wish I could say he deserves better on this matter, but I don't think he does.

[defendandprotect]

12. Think your criticism of Obama is quite fair, actually -- and wish he'd move on this!!

[protocol rv]

13. They're looking for grants

All those PhDs are eyeballing all the money sitting in BP's bank accounts, and want a piece of the action. So of course they want grants to go study. If it was up to them, there would be so many scientists bobbing up and down in the water in the Gulf of Mexico, there would be no need to pick up the oil, it would be cleaned up when they come out of the water, all oil soaked, and go to take a shower at their motel in Mobile.

[daleo]

18. Do you hate science?

Because I can't imagine any other motive for that strange, baseless and illogical rant against scientists.

[IndianaGreen]

15. K&R n/t

:kick:

[TomCADem]

16. Wow, Maybe Rush Limbaugh Was Right, The Oil Spill Was On Purpose!

I love how the news media is focusing on the actions of government in privately caused environmental disaster while simultaneously playing Republican soundbites that any form of regulation is a government take over.

[newscott]

19. Lesson learned. YOU CAN'T TRUST PRIVATE INDUSTRY.