Gulf of Mexico Oil Spill Blog Thad Allen

Thad Allen

Thad Allen Dishes On Oil Spill: Sparring With The Press, BP And Nuking The Well

by Evan McMorris-Santoro

Remember when people thought it might a good idea to nuke the well at the height of the BP spill in the Gulf of Mexico this summer?

Yeah, that was never gonna happen. But not for lack of interest.

So says retired Coast Guard Admiral Thad Allen, the man who ran the government response to the devastating spill. Allen addressed an audience at the Center For Strategic and International Studies in Washington Tuesday evening, where he laid out the trials and tribulations of being the public face of the efforts to clean up the largest ecological disaster in US history. One of those trials, Allen said, was trying to explain why a military designed to fight wars didn’t have the right equipment to stop an oil spill.

“I had many, many conversations about why the Department of Defense wasn’t brought in to solve this problem,” he said. “I got asked at least on five occasions throughout the course of this thing why we didn’t think about using a nuclear weapon on the well, ok?”

The uncomfortable truth, Allen said, was that the only people who had the equipment to stop the Gulf of Mexico oil spill were the companies that pull the oil out of the ground in the first place.

source: Thad Allen Dishes On Oil Spill: Sparring With The Press, BP And Nuking The Well | TPMDC

Gulf of Mexico Oil Spill Blog BP “World Needs New Oil”

BP “World Needs New Oil”

World needs new oil, BP says

LONDON, Nov. 18 (UPI) — The world is in desperate need of the oil and gas reserves that lie under the sea floor in the Gulf of Mexico and other oceans, a BP executive said in London.

Iain Conn, the top refining and marketing executive at BP, spoke at Imperial College in London on developments in the energy sector following the summer oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico.

He said global energy demand forecasts meant deep-water reserves couldn’t be ignored.

“There was a good reason why the Macondo well was being drilled in the first place,” he said of the failed well that lead to the oil spill. “It’s because the world badly needs the oil and gas that reside beneath the seabed of the Gulf of Mexico, the Atlantic and other oceans in order to meet inexorably growing energy demand.”

Even if the world’s major oil-producing countries were able to honor commitments, depleted reserves and rising demand were putting a strain on conventional oil and gas fields.

New oil frontiers were emerging in places like the deep waters of the Gulf of Mexico, offshore Brazil and the arctic, where receding sea ice is exposing vast oil and gas reserves.

What happened in the Gulf of Mexico was “a significant failure,” said Conn. But with deep-water reserves accounting for 7 percent of global supplies, alternative reserves will continue to play a role in the world’s energy future.

source: World needs new oil, BP says – UPI.com

Gulf of Mexico Oil Spill Blog U.S. Senator Richard Shelby

U.S. Senator Richard Shelby

Shelby presses Feinberg on Gulf Claims

WASHINGTON, DC (WALA) – U.S. Senator Richard Shelby Thursday met with claims administrator Ken Feinberg, regarding the oil claims process progress in Alabama. After the meeting, Shelby released the following statement:

“The GCCF is not acting with appropriate urgency. Many small businesses have received inadequate payment and explanation, if any at all. I called today’s meeting with Mr. Feinberg because victims on the Gulf Coast are frustrated and because I am frustrated.

“Over the past several months, I have visited the Alabama Gulf Coast many times to survey firsthand the damage caused by the Gulf of Mexico oil spill. In the intervening time, my office and I have been in close contact with local leaders and residents affected by the disaster. Businesses along the Gulf Coast are not only trying to survive now but also prepare for the next tourist season, which is quickly approaching.

“I raised a number of issues with Mr. Feinberg today. First, there is no clear formula to determine payment of a claim. Filers deserve clarification as to why their claims were denied or their payments were less than expected.

“In addition, I made clear to Mr. Feinberg my concern that there is no process for claimants to submit an appeal prior to a final payment. These victims deserve a fair opportunity to appeal inadequate payments, particularly in light of the lack of transparency, clarity, and consistency in the payment process.

“Finally, Mr. Feinberg and the GCCF must eliminate the backlog of claims that were already submitted to BP. These claims have been outstanding the longest and need to be resolved expeditiously.

“Mr. Feinberg pledged that he would create a task force to address these concerns. This task force will be on the Alabama Gulf Coast within two weeks. Any business that believes it was treated unfairly will now be able to file for an interim payment every three months for the next three years. Mr. Feinberg stated he would re-evaluate the original payment and provide additional payments if necessary. Further, no claimants will have to sign away their right to sue.

“I appreciate Mr. Feinberg’s pledge, but I will be monitoring the situation closely to see that it is fulfilled. I told him to address these issues and meet back with me after the task force visits Alabama to show me exactly what steps were taken to resolve these concerns.”

source: Shelby presses Feinberg on Gulf Claims | Fox10tv.com

Gulf of Mexico Oil Spill Blog Oysters For Thanksgiving?

Oysters For Thanksgiving?

Gulf oysters for Thanksgiving? They’re available, but pricey

Judy Walker, The Times-Picayune

You can add Kim Vanderbrook’s name to the list of locals suffering from the new stress disorder that’s sweeping the Gulf Coast: holiday oyster anxiety, or HOA

“Thanksgiving without oyster dressing? It’s never happened. It’s unimaginable,” said Vanderbrook, a Covington resident who is preparing a traditional Thanksgiving meal for 30 people this year.

Her usual seafood supplier quoted her a price of $86 a gallon, which is how much she needs to make her grandmother’s revered dressing recipe for all her guests. Compared with what she paid last year for oysters, Vanderbrook said, “They’re twice as expensive.”

And then she said, in words that will sound like hyperbole to absolutely no one in Louisiana: “I’m having a crisis.”

Vanderbrook’s angst is shared by countless local home cooks in the throes of post-oil spill holiday meal planning. Oysters, the Gulf seafood most imperiled by the spill, are a tradition on thousands of local holiday tables.

“Everybody’s been stressing out all year over what they’re going to do for oyster dressing for Thanksgiving,” said James Breuehl, seafood manager for the Rouse’s chain of supermarkets. “Fortunately, we’ve been able to get a decent amount of inventory.”

Yes, oysters are available, said Mike Voisin of Motivatit Seafoods, a member of the Louisiana Oyster Task Force, but retail prices are up 20 percent to 50 percent from last fall. Expect spot shortages. His advice: If you usually wait until the Wednesday before Thanksgiving to buy oysters, better buy them on Monday or Tuesday this year.

“Be prepared by scoping out where you’re going to get them, rather than waiting,” Voisin said.

Gulf oysters are coming into the market from Texas, Mississippi and Alabama as well as Louisiana, Voisin said, adding that most of the Louisiana ones are coming from the Calcasieu Lake area near the Texas border.

“The oystermen want to make sure Louisiana and Gulf oysters are available for the holidays. There’s been a big push to make that happen,” he said.

Because oysters have been so scarce, pent-up demand and tradition will prompt many consumers to pay the higher prices, Voisin predicted. “Now that they’re available,” he said, “people don’t mind spending money on the holiday to eat.”

That would include Kourtnie Berry, a native New Orleanian who has never eaten cornbread dressing and doesn’t plan to do so this year. She makes her mother’s oyster dressing recipe, laden with crabmeat and shrimp.

“I’m going to still make it because it’s just something we do every year for Thanksgiving,” she said. With about $30 worth of crabmeat and the added oyster cost, she expects to spend around $50 to prepare a pan of dressing for her household this year, not counting the macaroni and cheese, dinner rolls, sweet potato pie, cranberry sauce and stuffed bell peppers and roasted turkey legs she will serve.

“We have to stay committed and we have to support our culture,” Berry said. “We can’t abandon that. No matter how much it costs, I’m going to do my dinners as long as the Lord provides me with money to do it.”

A spot check of several local supermarkets and seafood stores found oyster prices ranging from $7.99 to $16.99 per pint, with most costing more than $11.

“Customers are calling every day, all day long, asking about availability, quality and so on,” said Michael Foto, seafood manager at Dorignac’s. “I tell them the quality is pretty good, except for the fact we can’t get any unwashed. A few weeks ago the size was kind of smallish, but that’s improved a little bit.”

Bonnie Gros, of Danny and Bonnie’s Seafood in Marrero and Gretna, said her customers do not seem to be afraid of possible contamination from oil.

“I’m getting customers who want unwashed oysters,” said Gros, who is among the few offering the unwashed variety. “I was surprised.”

Earlier this season, Gros’ stores carried oysters from Alabama and Oregon, and she was worried about supplies during the holidays.

“But one of our guys in Port Sulphur just opened up,” she said. “My guy came through. He’s back at work.”

The supply of oysters “has been tight, but it just started loosening up in the last week or so,” agreed Bobby Esteves of Bobby’s Seafood in River Ridge.

Last week Esteves put up a sign asking customers to consider freezing oysters when they’re available “and some people have done that. We recommend to freeze them in zip-lock plastic bags, so they freeze faster and thaw faster,” he said.

Joe Zuppardo, one of the owners of Zuppardo’s Family Supermarket in Metairie, said the price of the oyster dressing made by their family recipe has gone up by $2 to $14.99 a quart. His retired cousin comes back at Thanksgiving to oversee the making of the traditional oyster dressing.

The price increases are forcing some families to change traditions by making seafood dishes without oysters for Thanksgiving.

Art Scott is taking even more extreme measures: He’s going with chicken.

Scott, of Folsom, usually prepares oyster soup for 40 friends and family members who gather in Destin during Thanksgiving week. He makes the soup from two gallons of liquefied oysters, then freezes and transports it. On site, he adds whole oysters from another gallon. Some of that gallon of oysters also gets fried along with the turkey, and some are eaten raw.

The phone has been disconnected for his usual oyster dealer on the north shore, Scott said.

“I know I can get oysters” elsewhere,” Scott said, “but they tend to be pasteurized and they don’t have that flavor. I wasn’t willing to get several sacks of oysters and open them myself. I’ve made a chicken dish I call BP Chicken, because we’re having it in place of the oyster stew we would have had if they hadn’t had the BP spill.

“These people are coming from North Carolina, Georgia and Florida, and this is my way of saying this oil spill is affecting us all.”

Vanderbrook said even though oysters are going to be pricey this year, she has to have them, even if she makes only a small pan of dressing for her group of 30. Usually, she and her mother spend a day making a double batch of oyster dressing, freezing half of it for Christmas. She doesn’t see that happening in 2010.

“(It) has made us thankful for all the years we’ve taken oysters for granted,” Vanderbrook said. “All of us, from birth, have enjoyed this. Sometimes paying a little bit more for something makes it more special.”

Food editor Judy Walker can be reached at jwalker@timespicayune.com or 504.826.3485. Comment and read more at nola.com/food.

Gulf of Mexico Oil Spill Blog Energy Warning

Energy Warning

‘Oil crunch’ prompts energy warning

The UK must speed up the switch to alternative energy sources to protect the country from the impacts of rising oil prices, business leaders have urged.

The group of companies warned that in the wake of the Gulf of Mexico oil spill, tightened regulation of deep water drilling could see oil prices rise, threatening the UK economy within the next five years.

Sir Richard Branson, founder of Virgin Group, one of the businesses in the UK industry taskforce on peak oil and energy security, said the disaster in the Gulf of Mexico had increased the chances of an “oil crunch” in the coming decade.

He said: “This will lead to much higher sustained prices which will in many ways rival the impact of the credit crunch of 2007 on UK growth, jobs and stability.

“The time to take out our insurance policies against such an outcome is now.

“We must do this to avoid the horrible shocks to the UK economy which will be mirrored in many other parts of the world.”

The taskforce, which includes companies such as Arup, Solarcentury, Stagecoach group, Scottish and Southern Energy and Virgin, said deep water drilling would become increasingly important as it was likely to provide 29% of new capacity by 2015, compared to 5% today.

A Department of Energy and Climate Change spokeswoman said: “We agree we need to change how we produce and consume energy, that’s why we have a clear strategy to make sure the lights stay on.

“We are taking three big steps forward right now, in creating a market for energy savings through the Green Deal, ensuring a properly functioning electricity market, and a strengthened carbon price.

“Through this leadership, the low carbon revolution can be driven by entrepreneurs, the private sector and local communities.”

source: The Press Association: Oil crunch prompts energy warning

Gulf of Mexico Oil Spill Blog Oil Safety Policies

Oil Safety Policies

Oil companies review their safety policies following Macondo spill

Oil and gas industry executives surveyed by Delotte LLP were about evenly split regarding whether changing US offshore regulations actually will improve drilling safety.

Of 201 executives polled earlier this month, 41% said yes while 42% said no. The rest said they don’t know.

Regarding future corporate health and safety policy, 57% said their companies are more likely to review and update HSE policy as a result of BP PLC’s Macondo well blowout and the resulting explosion and fire on Transocean Ltd.’s Deepwater Horizon semisubmersible. The accident triggered a massive Gulf of Mexico oil spill.

Nearly 60% of those polled said any improvements in drilling safety will come from the industry itself rather than from government regulations or third-party insurance and financing requirements.

source: Oil companies review their safety policies following Macondo spill

Gulf of Mexico Oil Spill Blog Consumer Confidence

Consumer Confidence

Gulf of Mexico Oil Spill Fix Part 2: Consumer Confidence

by Malcolm Wittenberg CEO, Micro Analytical Systems

The Gulf of Mexico oil spill is being called the single largest man-made environmental disaster in human history, and at this point the extent of damage to the marine environment in the Gulf and the surrounding waters can’t even be fully measured — without a doubt the marine ecosystem will be recovering from this event for decades. However, even beyond the damage to the Gulf are the latent ramifications of this event, the consequences that aren’t yet realized. The question begs to be asked: What is the real price of the Gulf of Mexico oil spill? For example, what is the social and economic impact of diminished confidence and reduced consumption of seafood?

A recent survey conducted by the University of Minnesota really tells the tale for the American consumer. The survey found that more than half of Americans (54 percent) have changed their seafood consumption as a result of the Gulf of Mexico oil spill — and nearly a third of those intend to eat less seafood irrespective of its origin. Responses from 1,076 individuals show that 89 percent of respondents were at least somewhat concerned about the effect of the spill on the safety of seafood from the Gulf, and 50 percent said they were “extremely concerned.” Moreover, out of the 54 percent of respondents that reported some impact to their seafood consumption habits, 44 percent of that group said they would only eat seafood that they knew did not come from the Gulf. Even more importantly, another 31 percent said they would eat less seafood no matter what its origin.

Dennis Degeneffe a research fellow at The Food Industry Center at the University of Minnesota said that while the results aren’t surprising, they do show that “consumers are connecting the event to food safety”.

And why shouldn’t they? According to a recent Huffington Post blog article from Gina Solomon of the Natural Resource Defense Council (NRDC):

What we know from previous spills is that oil contaminants are processed differently by fish and shellfish and the length of contamination varies, and that metals, such as mercury, cadmium, and lead can be found in crude oil. When these metals accumulate they can damage the liver, kidneys, brain, and nervous system… The highest levels of oil-related metals will likely occur in large fish such as tuna and mackerel many years in the future. Shellfish like oysters, crabs and shrimp are much slower at removing contaminants — one study found that oysters continued to be contaminated seven years after an oil spill.

And all of these facts seem to contradict the announcement that just this last month 70% of Louisiana waters were declared safe and opened for commercial fishing. Even with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) touting that they’re “taking extraordinary steps to assure a high level of confidence in the seafood” many consumers (and rightly so) are still highly suspect of the government’s response to this disaster and the safety of seafood in general (interesting sidebar is the fact that the full sampling plan that NOAA and FDA are using to collect seafood samples has not been made public).

In addition to the social impact of the spill, the economic impact has been devastating–the oil spill has derailed a slew of businesses along the Gulf Coast, from fishermen to marinas to restaurants and hotels. And while seafood supply is obviously hurting, at the same time seafood demand has fallen dramatically because processors’ longtime customers, such as restaurants and grocery chains, have turned to other sources or are skittish to buy Gulf seafood. Figures included in a recent issue of Seafood Business show that locally approximately 27,000 people rely on Gulf seafood for employment/livelihood, a figure that becomes exponentially more important for the local economy given that “processors across Louisiana have reported laying off workers and operating at around a 20% production level.” Ewell Smith, director of the Louisiana Seafood Promotion and Marketing Board also articulates that businesses that typically buy from local processors are getting their seafood from other sources, including the East Coast, West Coast and foreign countries, a trend that could take years to reverse, he says .

Today more than 6 months after the spill, it’s clear the social and economic consequences of this disaster are just beginning to be realized. Now more than ever it’s of the utmost importance that the private sector take tangible steps to help boost consumer confidence in seafood, particularly Gulf seafood. As the CEO of Safe Harbor, a company whose sole purpose is to increase confidence in seafood, I encourage industry fence-sitters and skeptics to take action by testing for major risk factors in the seafood products they provide. By doing so, as an industry we can help get the Gulf economy back on its feet and help the seafood industry in general rebound from this debilitating event.

source: Malcolm Wittenberg: Gulf Spill Fix Part 2: Consumer Confidence

Gulf of Mexico Oil Spill Blog Troy King Consumer Alert

Troy King Consumer Alert

Troy King issues ‘consumer alert’ on spill claims process; says Feinberg works for BP

George Altman, Press-Register

Attorney General Troy King issued a “consumer alert” about the Gulf Coast Claims Facility this morning, warning that claims administrator Ken Feinberg “works for BP” and has been misleading oil spill victims.

In the news release, King cautions Alabamians about joining the claims process, noting complaints about unpaid, underpaid and slowly paid claims made against BP PLC and other responsible parties because of the summer’s massive oil spill.

Feinberg, who was named to lead the claims process by President Barack Obama, has encouraged those affected by the spill to join the process. But King said he is not a neutral arbiter because he is paid an $850,000 monthly fee by BP.  

“It is unfortunate, but clear to me, that our citizens cannot simply accept Mr. Feinberg’s words and follow his advice, trusting it to be in their best interest. In some cases, it may well not be so,” King said in the news release.

The Press-Register was unable to immediately reach Feinberg for comment.

King went on to accuse Feinberg of misrepresenting himself to spill victims regarding whether his role in the process is neutral or tilted in favor of the oil giant.

“I am deeply concerned that people may be misled by statements that claims administrator Kenneth Feinberg has made, which quite frankly, are simply not true,” the statement said.

source: Troy King issues ‘consumer alert’ on spill claims process; says Feinberg works for BP | al.com

Gulf of Mexico Oil Spill Blog International Bird Rescue/WildRescue Talk

International Bird Rescue/WildRescue Talk

Gulf of Mexico Oil Spill talk in Monterey December 4th

After spending nearly 5 months along the Gulf Coast, lead wildlife rescuers will give an eye opening account of their experiences on Saturday afternoon, December 4th in Monterey, CA.

Jay Holcomb of International Bird Rescue (San Francisco), world leader in oiled wildlife recovery and aquatic bird care, will join WildRescue (Monterey) directors Rebecca Dmytryk and Duane Titus in recounting their experiences. Anecdotes and never‐seen video clips and pictures will offer a firsthand look at what it was like to be on the frontlines of the largest oil spill disaster in U.S. history.

The program will be presented at Monterey Peninsula College ‐ Lecture Hall 103, 980 Fremont St., Monterey, CA. It starts at 3 PM and will until 4:30 PM. Download the flyer

Tickets are $15; $20 at the door.

Buy online now:

http://wildrescue.bigcartel.com/product/gulf-oil-spill-presentation-at-mpc

source: International Bird Rescue Research Center: Gulf Oil Spill talk in Monterey December 4th

Gulf of Mexico Oil Spill Blog Unknown Environmental Damage

Unknown Environmental Damage

Harm to Gulf from oil spill unclear

Environmental damage may not be known for years, panel says

By MATTHEW TRESAUGUE

GALVESTON — So how much harm did the BP oil spill cause to the Gulf of Mexico?

It’s a crucial and necessary question, but one that will take years, if not decades, to answer, a panel of scientific experts said Wednesday.

“I caution anyone who says that we’re on our way to recovery after a year or two,” marine biologist Tom Shirley told a gathering of public officials, researchers and conservationists at the Restore America’s Estuaries conference here.

The ecological toll of the Gulf of Mexico oil spill has been evident for months with the images of oil-soaked pelicans and grassy marshes turning black.

But to get a fuller picture of the injury to the Gulf, the federal government has plans for more than 100 separate studies, said Cynthia Dohner, who oversees U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service activities in 11 southeast states.

The goal, Dohner said, is to restore the Gulf to its state before the ill-fated Macondo well sent millions of barrels of oil gushing into the sea. An accounting of the losses is also a priority because it will be the government’s primary tool to hold BP accountable for the spill.

“You have to compensate for the injuries, so you have to understand what they are,” Dohner said.

A primary focus will be the marshes along Louisiana‘s coast. That’s because the wetlands provide functions beyond producing seafood, such as cleaning water of pollution and buffering New Orleans and the rest of the state from storm surges.

In recent years, Louisiana has been losing a football field’s worth of its marshes every 38 minutes, a process that has been accelerated by canals dredged through the wetlands, mostly used by the oil and gas industry.

Irving Mendelssohn, a wetlands expert at Louisiana State University and adviser to BP, said federal officials must determine if the spill has quickened the pace of marsh loss.

“We don’t know if it has,” he said, “but there is clearly the potential.”

Mendelssohn said studies show oil fouled 419 miles of wetlands, particularly along Barataria Bay and at the mouth of the Mississippi River, but it could have been worse.

Much of the interior marshes, which are harder to protect and to clean, were spared, he said.

Still, he said it won’t be until spring – the time for rebirth in the natural cycle – before it’s clear how much oil penetrated the soil below the marsh grasses, Mendelssohn said.

Attempts to measure the impact in the Gulf may be more complex, considering its astonishing array of life.

The north-northeast part of the Gulf, the area closest to the runaway well, contains at least 8,300 species of plants and animals, according to the Harte Research Institute for Gulf of Mexico Studies in Corpus Christi.

“If you were looking for a worst-place scenario for this spill, that’s it,” said Shirley, who is one of the researchers at the Harte Institute.

Shirley said officials should be conservative in their estimates for the Gulf’s recovery, noting the collapse of the Pacific herring fishery in the Prince William Sound four years after the Exxon Valdez oil spill.

And scientists still do not understand what devastated the herring population, which used to be harvested each year by the tens of thousands of tons but has not recovered and may never return.

matthew.tresaugue@chron.com

source: Panel: Extent of damage to Gulf from BP spill unclear | Houston & Texas News |  Chron.com – Houston Chronicle