I have been wanting to write about the disaster in the Gulf Of Mexico but whenever I tried to learn about the impacts of the oil, the more irritated I got.
So now that I am in a more objective emotional state of mind I will try to asses the future term impacts. This is just the start as ridiculous amounts of poison gasses liquid, and solids will be pumping into the ocean for several more months.
The oil we see washing ashore and being burnt up on top of the water is just the tip of the iceberg so to speak. What is coming out of the bottom of the gulf is a diverse mixture of petroleum with different densities and thus buoyancy. The vast majority is under the surface mingling with the fishes and shrimp.
Dispersants makes even more oil go underwater but is necessary to protect the coastlines. Either way most of the oil will collect in The Gulf and then the ocean currants will take it around the world, first the North Atlantic, then the South Atlantic, and then on to the Mediterranean, Indian Ocean and Pacific.
The politics surrounding this event are also very disconcerting. This was not a completely unanticipated event. There has always been the possibility that offshore rigs can be compromised. It is unfortunate that is takes a real disaster to wake people up.
The best shrimp came from the Bayou but I believe those days may already be over.
The Mississippi Meets the oil
Filed under: Business, Energy, Environment, News, Politics | Tagged: Business, Conservation, history, Oceans, oil, Public Policy | 2 Comments »
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