Total For GOM Oil Spills Caused By Katrina, Rita - 741,384 Gallons

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WASHINGTON · When hurricanes Katrina and Rita swept across the Gulf of Mexico last year, they destroyed scores of offshore oil and gas rigs, damaged hundreds of pipelines and spilled 741,384 gallons of petroleum products into the sea, federal records show. A damage assessment released this week by the U.S. Minerals Management Service said the largest of the spills poured about 76,000 gallons of condensate, a toxic form of liquefied gas, into Gulf waters.

Initially overlooked during news of the storms' human toll, the offshore leaks could become an important consideration when Congress resumes debate next month on legislation that would spread energy exploration into the eastern Gulf, closer to Florida shores.

Many members supported a House-passed energy bill on the argument that offshore drilling would pose little risk to clean waters and beaches. They pointed to assurances from drilling advocates that production in the western Gulf had withstood major hurricanes with little or no pollution.

Yet helicopter flyovers and satellite photographs after Katrina and Rita revealed widespread slicks spreading from damaged platforms in the western Gulf. "In the imagery soon after the storm, we saw thin slicks cover a huge area. That indicates to me it had to be coming from a lot of sources to form a big complex," said John Amos, a former energy consultant and now president of SkyTruth, a nonprofit group based in Shepherdstown, W.V., that takes satellite and aerial photographs to illustrate environmental problems.

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http://www.sun-sentinel.com/news/local/southflorida/sfl-aspills17aug17,0,6029689.story