Gulf Oil Spill's Worst-Hit Victims (Hint: You Can't See Them)

We've all seen the heartbreaking photos of oil-drenched whales, dolphins, seals and other sunlit wildlife affected by the Deepwater Horizon spill, but few of us are privy to a part of the ocean most affected worst: a massive community of living creatures living thousands of feet below the surface, known as the deep scattering layer (DSL).

Mother Jones writer Julia Whitty was tracking the DSL offshore with ecologists from Oregon State University, when the well exploded 4,400 miles away. Shooting thousands of feet below the surface, the oil dispersed through the mesopelagic stratosphere, for which 80% of the DSL dwells. Suddenly, Whitty's original story on technology to explore the DSL would take a turn a drastic turn for the worse.

The DSL is an incredibly diverse body of organisms upon which these whales, dolphins, seals and turtles survive. They thrive in dark ocean layers by day, and float towards the surface by night. Discovered by hydrographers in the 1920's, the DSL accounts for 80% of all the biomass located in the mesopelagic zone, Whitty writes.

Before the spill, Whitty says the DSL's rich biodiversity made it the "last great resource to be exploited." Ironically, BP beat the fisherman to the chase when it set out to drill at "unprecedented depths [without the] extreme safety equipment needed to stave off disaster," Whitty writes.

And then, the cover up:

Unable or unwilling to skim much oil, BP has poured its energies into skimming up all available resources: renting virtually every hotel room on the Louisiana shores, helping to keep the press at bay; buying the silence of scientists with lucrative pay and confidentiality clauses; chartering nearly every boat on the coast and employing virtually every fisherman and captain made jobless by the spill.

BP has also managed to stifle widespread knowledge of a "frightening recipe" of other toxins gushing into the ocean. Along with oil and Corexit is a list of heavy metals from drilling fluid, such as arsenic, lead, mercury, chrome, zinc, and radionuclides.

Never before in human history has the vast food web of the ocean--rooted in the dark, and flowering at the surface--come under so many assaults from below, above, and within the water column: marine warfare masquerading as a cleanup.

"[The DSL is] constantly on the move, not only up and down, but inshore and offshore, back and forth, every day and every night," says Kelly Benoit-Bird, an oceanographer from OSU to Whitty. "This greatly increases the likelihood that any given animal or layers of life will be exposed to the pollutants at some point in the course of their travels. And each of these exposures will cascade up and down through the food web."

Click here to READ Julia Whitty's full cover story at Mother Jones, entitled The BP Cover-Up. Recently re-tasked to the Gulf, you can also follow her on Twitter @juliawhitty.

Comments

[RightsGuy]

10:40 PM on 08/17/2010

We must fight corporate corruption and political barriers head-on to preserve our future for future generations and ourselves. Here are several good resources:

1. OpenSecrets.org
Congress is directed by Corporate interests, not by the people. . .You can find how much your Senators and Representatives have received from corporate interests here: http://www.opensecrets.org/politicians/index.php

2. DIRTY ENERGY MONEY:
http://dirtyenergymoney.com/
“Dirty Energy Money is an interactive website that tracks the flow of oil, gas, and coal money in U.S. Congress. Find out which energy companies are pumping their dirty money into politics and which politicians are receiving it.”

3. Get a “CLEAN UP DIRTY MONEY TOOL KIT” from Greenpeace here: http://gpeace.convio.net/site/DocServer/DirtyMoneyToolkit.pdf?docID=601
This terrific kit provides a step-by-step plan and everything you need to fight the $15,000,000 donated in the last Congress alone from Dirty Energy Polluters like BP.

4. Use the OpenSecrets , Dirty Energy Money websites and the Clean up Dirty Money Tool Kit to find out about how much money your Senators and Representatives have received. Share what you have found out with the media, on blogs, facebook, Twitter, etc.

5. MOST IMPORTANT -- CALL AND WRITE TO YOUR SENATORS AND REPRESENTATIVES. Confront those who are corrupt. HOLD YOUR LEGISLATORS ACCOUNTABLE. You can find your legislators’ contact information here: http://www.usa.gov/Contact/Elected.shtml

6. See: OIL CHANGE INTERNATIONAL - http://priceofoil.org/

[digger0007]

02:19 PM on 08/15/2010

President Obama appears to place his trust in the advisers originating from BP, either directly or indirectly through lobbying efforts at the Coast Guard or the Gulf business associations. He placed a similar trust in the advisers who helped him steer the country out of the financial crisis.

It is worth remembering that these expert advisers often have their own agenda. They advised the President to take his family for a swim in the Gulf. They will advise him to eat some Gulf oysters or crab next.

With friends like these, who needs enemies? It's remarkable that someone as intelligent as President Obama would do something so ill-advised. Perhaps there is a curse in Washington. Anyone who works there get their IQ reduced.

[RightsGuy]

07:02 PM on 08/14/2010

TO TEACHERS, EDUCATORS, EDUCATIONAL ADMINISTRATORS, CAMP DIRECTORS and others:

Let’s teach our children and young people the truth and educate them about the dangers of oil drilling and corporate corruption! If you’re in the Gulf States, ask your students to document what they see on the beaches, in the ocean, and the effects of the disaster on people and their communities. For those who don’t live in the Gulf States, ask your students to create art projects, photography, and films about the tragedy of the oil spill.

GIVEN BP’s and THE MEDIA’S BLACKOUT AND SPIN, IT IS ESPECIALLY IMPORTANT TO DOCUMENT THE DAMAGE FROM BP’S OIL SPILL.

1. Submit photos, pictures, and art work to BetterGulf.org here: http://www.bettergulf.org

2. Please take pictures and videos of the damage from BP’s oil spill. Note time and place. Some smart phone cameras' GPS chip will record location even when there is no cell signal.

Get FREE SMART PHONE APPS to help document the damage of the oil spill.
iPhone App - http://foo.am/dH4
Android App - http://foo.am/dH3
Blackberry App - Point your Blackberry web browser to: http://swooshsoftware.com/SpillReporter.jad

If you have a digital video or still camera, up load your images to: http://gulfcoastspill.com
(Thanks Yobie Benjamin for this information: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/blogs/ybenjamin/detail??blogid=150&entry_id=64912 )

Together we can show and document the truth.

IMAGINE IF STUDENTS OF ALL AGES FROM ALL OVER THE COUNTRY PARTICIPATED!

[tinys]

07:56 AM on 08/14/2010

Behind the Scenes Video: When the Saints Go Cooking Shrimp

Spending time in the White House kitchen and meeting Sam was really cool for all of us. I've met some famous chefs in New Orleans; they are treasures of our city. To us, food is art. Emeril and John Besh, our artists. So meeting Sam Kass was kind of like meeting Picasso. The best part was that we were cooking something that’s already so good, it's hard to mess up. Our shrimp, from near Houma, Louisiana, speak for themselves. So when Sam took his first bite and said, "Those are the best shrimp I've ever had," it didn't come as much of a surprise to me. I said the exact same thing the first time I had Gulf shrimp.

http://www.whitehouse.gov/blog/2010/08/13/behind-scenes-video-when-saints-go-cooking-shrimp

[Bolkonsky]

11:18 AM on 08/13/2010

Who are Cain Burdeau and Jeffrey Collins ? The AP reporters who filed that BP press release as a news story. Do they have a history of work for petro, or were they just purchased recently ?

[Mammon]

06:58 AM on 08/13/2010

More good news: According to Bob Cavnar, the BP static kill didn't take. See his article here:http://www.huffingtonpost.com/robert-l-cavnar/adm-allen-confused---so-n_b_680031.html

[Mammon]

05:30 AM on 08/13/2010

Here's what's wrong with this whole stinking oily mess:http://www.sunherald.com/2010/08/12/2402801/new-emphasis-on-oil-in-gulfs-depths.html

We have seen several photos of submerged oil in Mississippi Sound and environs. Now the Feds say they haven't seen any off Mississippi, but will be looking for it so they can take care of it. How? You guessed it: Corexit or some other dispersant. Now you will really be seeing death and destruction because based on this statement, something will be done. Adm Allen was asked if dispersants have been used in marshes and bays and he refused to comment. BP is still in charge.

[Mammon]

04:38 AM on 08/13/2010

Oh, here's a link I forgot to send. Here it is now: http://www.shreveport.thedailyyou.com/news/2010/aug/11/oil-sightings-continue-along-gulf-coast-despite-fe/?refscroll=956

[RightsGuy]

07:05 PM on 08/14/2010

Thanks for the link.

[Mammon]

01:36 AM on 08/15/2010

You are welcome.

[Mammon]

04:35 AM on 08/13/2010

Please read from bottom to top as per usual here on Huffpost.

[Mammon]

04:33 AM on 08/13/2010

In fact NOAA has teamed up with the petrochemical industry to attempt to remedy the water ways so people can once again live, swim and fish near these waters. But you know what? After many years of trying they are no close today than they were when the started. Still the efforts continue. Just a sec and I'll get you a link. Here you go: http://response.restoration.noaa.gov/type_subtopic_entry.php?RECORD_KEY%28entry_subtopic_type%29=entry_id,subtopic_id,type_id&entry_id(entry_subtopic_type)=361&subtopic_id(entry_subtopic_type)=12&type_id(entry_subtopic_type)=4 This is another area where I grew up: Lake Charles, home of Dow Chemical, Firestone and hundreds of related businesses. Take a look at the Mehnaden fish. It has a tumor growing on top of its head. Take a good look. That is what we are worried about for the entire Gulf coast, not just the Calcasieu Estuary. That is why we need more information from the government - not platitudes and wishful thinking statements telling us to go shopping and don't ask questions. Many questions need answering and many more questions are needed. Here is one final question to you. How much sea life has already been destroyed by this oil rampage? How much death is acceptable to you? How much more?

[tarlipps]

05:47 PM on 08/14/2010

Every day millions of gallons of contaminated water flows into the gulf from agriculture run containing herbicides, pesticides, fertilizers, sewage and storm run off they're said to be responsible for the dead zone.

[Mammon]

04:21 AM on 08/13/2010

As I was saying, oil in the gulf is underwater but rarely at the surface in great amounts. We never had tar balls on the beaches when I was a kid. I didn't see that in the Mississippi, Alabama and Florida beaches at all. It wasn't until I moved to Texas that tar balls were a common occurrence. As you might know one way to confirm this is to understand biology and evolution. No higher organism seeks out oil to eat or live in. In fact, it is toxic to most microscopic plants and animals as well as most of the animals we consume for food. About the only organism that eats oil is microbial in form. There's not a lot of that which suggests that oil is not abundant in the environment or we would all be seeking it out and eating it. Just the opposite is true and bad things happen when we encounter quantities of oil that overwhelm our environment. Having also grown up around and among the oil industry, I can tell you that oil kills, that it kills severely and kills for a long time. There are still places where oil spilled unto the marshes many years ago where everything is dead. Grass, cane, - todos. In fact there are rivers and bays in Louisiana that are so spoiled by the petrochemical contaminates that people cannot live on or near the bayous and rivers so despoiled. More to follow.

[Mammon]

04:10 AM on 08/13/2010

tarlipps, I do wish you were right. All of us here wish your rosy optimism would be true, but the information I keep seeing is telling me nothing could be further from the truth: I don't know if you've seen this news item from today or not, but Biloxi is reporting a huge fish kill. That should be near where the dark fingers of ooze that was photographed near Mississippi Sound last week and this one. As Dr. Shumaker's flights were over the sound and near Ship Island, that would be where we could see the underwater plumes of hydrocarbons and chemical dispersants. Take a look here and ask whomever you can to see if this correlates. http://theamericanzombie.blogspot.com/search?updated-max=2010-07-31T00%3A08%3A00-05%3A00

Thanks for the NOLA links, btw. NOLA is one of my favorite newspapers as I grew up near New Orleans in Biloxi, about ten blocks from the Gulf. I got to know the coast pretty damned well, and I can tell you we never had tar balls on the beaches when I was a kid. While oil leaks on the floor of the Gulf are normal, they don't make it to the surface in anything like we see today. That's because we keep spilling more and more oil at all levels rather than their seeping many feet below the surface. Yes, oil in the Gulf is normal, but not at these levels. More to follow.

[tarlipps]

12:31 AM on 08/13/2010

Marshes fouled by Gulf of Mexico oil spill show signs of regrowth
Published: Thursday, August 12, 2010, 9:00 AM
The Associated Press The Associated Press

Shoots of marsh grass and bushes of mangrove trees already are starting to grow back in Barataria Bay, where just months ago photographers shot startling images of dying pelicans coated in oil from the massive Gulf of Mexico oil spill.

More than a dozen scientists interviewed by The Associated Press say the marsh here and across the Louisiana coast is healing itself, giving them hope delicate wetlands might weather the worst offshore spill in U.S. history better than they had feared. Some marshland could be lost, but the amount appears to be small compared with what the coast loses every year through human development.
http://www.nola.com/news/gulf-oil-spill/index.ssf/2010/08/marshes_fouled_by_gulf_of_mexi.html

[tarlipps]

12:16 AM on 08/13/2010

Here is a list, released by Louisiana emergency officials, of areas where oil was sighted Thursday. The list is not a comprehensive tally of areas affected by the Gulf of Mexico oil spill.

St Bernard Parish

* Dark brown substance, 50 feet by 25 feet, in an unnamed marsh island in Lake Fortuna 0.4 mile north-northeast of Point Gardner.

Plaquemines Parish

* Oil sheen in Pass Abel 1 mile N of the E end of Isle Grande Terre.
* Oil sheen in Lake Grand Ecaille 1.46 miles W of Rattlesnake Bayou.
* Oil patch, 20 feet by 10 feet, in an unnamed marsh island in Black Bay a half mile north-northwest of Grassy Point.

Jefferson Parish

* Oil sheen in Bayou Saint Denis 0.54 mile southwest of the south entrance to Bayou Cutler.

Lafourche Parish

* Three very small pools of oil on the east bank of Bell Pass 0.7 mile north of the mouth.

[Jan Moore]

11:04 PM on 08/12/2010

Is there any way to research if any of the oil has entered the current loop and wound its way up the eastern coast? There are major fishkills that have taken place in NJ and Massachusertts, and testing of water seems to place the reason as low oxygen. Hypoxia is killing our oceans, and I do believe this s a wake up call we cannot miss.