Why the oil spill is an environmental and human health disaster
It's been 50 days since the BP oil disaster began. Can the catastrophe possibly get any worse?
Certainly, life in the Gulf may never be the same.
While BP made a live-stream video of the leak available, Green Planet's ocean correspondent Philippe Coustaeu Jr. dove right into the oily mess with ABC anchor Sam Champion for another perspective. They took underwater cameras with them. Watch this video:
Coustaeu and Champion gave us a look underneath the surface.
It is the undersea crude oil that is destroying marine life in the Gulf of Mexico.
BP questioned the existence of the underwater plumes, saying that oil would rise to the top. Opps, scientists found that doesn't happen when oil is released in deep water — now Congress is on BP's case.
Scientists aboard research vessels found that the plumes are actually more like clouds. The findings suggest the oil disappears in clouds that spread underneath the ocean and drift far from the original site. Scientists worry that the invisible diluted oil might kill off marine life.
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration confirmed the existence of subsurface oil that has spread along the deep ocean floor, but says more tests need to be done to confirm the link to the Deep Water Horizon leak and warned against drawing early conclusions.
In the meantime, the underwater plumes could get worse, as BP continues to use chemical dispersants.
Business Week reports, "Scientists maintain that oil could have become trapped in the water due to the company’s unprecedented application of chemical dispersants, natural phenomenon, or a combination of the two." So by adding dispersants into the water, the oil is diluted and sinks out of sight from the surface.
The problem is that these clouds are creating enormous oxygen consumption that could choke the supply for marine life and make its way up the food chain.
Normally the hydrocarbons would evaporate near the surface. But this isn't what is happening here — the subsurface oil remains stuck deep below the surface and it continues to spread. Some forms of hydrocarbons can be toxic and carcinogenic, reports the LA Times.
The environmental disaster could soon be a human health tragedy.
Over 70 people have been hospitalized in Louisiana after they were exposed to either the oil spill or the secret chemicals used to disperse the oil.
When people inhale the chemicals and vapors, it could irritate the nose, throat and lungs. Additionally, the oil compounds can give people headaches and make them dizzy.
ABC News reports:
"In the long haul, there is a significant worry in terms of the development of chronic conditions -- chronic asthma, chronic lung, and in some cases cancer," said [Dr. Michael Harbut, director of the environmental cancer program at Wayne State University in Detroit]. "I will not be surprised to see an increase in cancer."
This post was originally published on Smartplanet.com