Saturday, July 24, 2010

Rolling Stone: The Poisoning

This is a must read account of the most massive environmental disaster in American history. The chemicals from the oil and dispersants (Corexit) are going to poison people, animals, and plants alike. We are killing our future by poisoning ourselves and our environment:
http://www.rollingstone.com/politics/news/17390/183349?RS_show_page=0

Excerpt from this excellent essay from Jeff Goodell published on July 23, 2010:

"The Macondo Reservoir, which BP was tapping into when the blowout occurred, is estimated to hold up to 500 million barrels. The reservoir is not particularly large by industry standards: It contains about as much oil as Americans consume in a month. . . .

". . .As soon as oil began erupting out of BP's well and into the water, the compounds in the oil began to separate, some drifting up to the surface, others remaining near the bottom, where they will inevitably spread a toxic brew into the cellular structure of virtually every plant and animal in the Gulf, from microscopic plankton all the way up to sperm whales. Even worse, BP has responded to the disaster by pumping nearly 2 million gallons of toxic chemicals into the Gulf in an effort to break up the oil into smaller, camera-friendly slicks. The cleanup operation, in effect, has turned the Gulf into a vast science experiment, one whose consequences – untested and unforeseeable – are likely to haunt the planet for decades to come. . . ."

...One local resident tells me that he has it on good authority that BP is shredding sperm whales and bottlenose dolphins at sea, then bringing them to shore and disposing of their remains. Impossible to imagine. . ."

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