05.31.10

Gulf Oil Disaster: The Worst Environmental Disaster Ever

Posted in Chemicals, Environment, Gulf Oil Disaster, Oil Pollution, Pollution control, Recycling, eco system, pollution at 3:27 am by Administrator

I haven’t heard anyone chant, “Drill Baby Drill,” lately, have you? In the South at least and around the Gulf Coast, that would be political suicide. The fears, anger, and plain disgust is raging here and grows worse each day.

As the spill continues gushing thousands to millions (according to whose figures you look at, BP’s or other experts/scientists) of barrels of oil each day, an overwhelming feeling of powerlessness also builds. Questions are asked that go unanswered because no one really knows the answers. How long will it keep gushing out into the Gulf, poisoning every living creature in its path? So far the quick fixes have not worked. The BP explosion happened on April 17, 2010. The leak was not discovered until April 24, 2010 - a week later. Then it took them to May 7, 2010 to put the first containment dome in place. After that failed, it took until May 14 to try another approach. When that did not work on May 26, 2010 they tried the next quick fix which also did not work. BP did however start early on May 2, 2010 drilling a relief well. This well BP says will definitely stop the leak, but it will take until August 2010 to complete the relief well. So it seems this oil will be draining into the Gulf all summer, unless BP can come up with another quick fix that works.

The immediate question is how this will affect tourism, the fishing industry and related businesses - the overall economical impact. Knowing that this amount of oil is certain to change lifestyles for years to come, a cultural aspect is also at risk. The questions about how the spill will affect the eco system, the animals in the water and on land can to some degree be answered; it will be devastating for a long time. One news reporter stated it would be “decades” before the region was near back to normal. In the meantime fears mount that some sea life species will not survive the disaster, thus extinction in some cases.

The latest news states that the oil is moving into the Loop Current which is the current that moves out of the Gulf, around Florida, into the Keys, Cuba and on out into the Atlantic. Once hitting the Atlantic currents, it literally could end up anywhere the Atlantic touches. This is the overall summary of the worst case scenario. Our grandchildren’s grandchildren will be still dealing with the effects of this disaster in one way or another.

Then, there is the all important question. Just how will the oil that ends up on beaches, in fresh water ways and other coastal properties affect the health of humans? How far reaching will health hazards go? Will it affect the air we breathe? It is certain to affect our food chain. How will we even know what to look for health wise, as this type of massive disaster is unprecedented? Environmentalists who have been working for years to clean pollutants and litter from rivers, lakes, and everywhere else are now stepping back and trying to size up how much bigger this problem is than anything before it. It is mind boggling. Other things right now almost seem insignificant.

The most important question is what can regular people like me and you do about it? There has got to be something, surely. BP has set up a response page with contacts for whatever way you think you can help. There is even a number listed for, “Do You Have Ideas To Help Us?” So if you cannot actively do anything, but have ideas, sounds like they are ready to listen. Their website address is http://www.BP.com. There are numbers for volunteers to call, an environmental and community information hotline, and a wildlife hotline. There are numbers to register your boat if you can assist with one and to register your professional skills and expertise if you can volunteer in that way.

BP also has website links to the four immediate States involved, Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama and Florida. The State websites give more detailed information about local areas and needs. Visit the website and see what fits you as far as helping.

We can use this disaster to improve on what we have already been doing (or not doing) to help the earth. If you have been recycling already, look around and see what you’re missing that you can add to your recycle bin. Begin volunteering at an animal shelter, wildlife rescue program, the Audubon Society, or whatever else interests you and that your efforts will help the earth directly or the animals that live on it. We can all build a more environmental activist attitude or way of thinking and keep our powers that be one step ahead to hopefully prevent such things from happening again. We can write letters to every one of our representatives, local, state and federal and keep writing to remind them that our environment is important to us and to stay with the environmental issues that come up for a vote. Keep reminding them of this disaster. That is the only way we can gain some good out of a very terrible situation; only if we do something.

“All that is necessary for evil to succeed is for good men to do nothing.” Edmond Burke

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05.17.10

May Flowers and Laying by the Garden

Posted in Country Living, Environment, Gardening, Green Living, Soil Erosion at 2:31 am by Administrator

May has been a good and busy month so far. My flower gardens have had beautiful red azaleas, roses, lilies, Sweet Williams and more. The snow ball bush was covered with big, bright, white flowers. There were some other flowers that were given to me that I don’t know the name, but were beautiful just as well. The yard was very colorful.

We completed our soil erosion project in the back yard. We planted cedars and holly as well as rose bushes and some annual flowering plants like daisies and petunias and planted wild flower seed behind it all. So we are hoping that all these roots plus the cross ties will save our back yard, especially if we continue to have the rain we have been blessed with the last six months.

I finally finished my inside spring cleaning and can really tell the difference by the improvement in my sinus allergies. As far as outside, the calendar is full. Although pollen is still about and almost everyone is complaining there is too much to do to stay inside. The Alabama Extension Calendar suggests that we complete the spray program for fruits and nuts. Those new shrubs I planted to prevent erosion need mulching, fertilizer and continued watering as do the new rose bushes.

Where the water wiped away our backyard topsoil, we have worked on replacing the soil and planting grass seed. I have planted some annual and perennial bedding plants to add a little more color.

I was blessed by gifts of bulbs from two different friends which amounted to about 1,000 bulbs that still need to be planted. The Extension Service advises not to remove foliage from spring flowering bulbs but let it die down naturally. They also suggest to not allow seed heads to form on tulips and other spring flowering bulbs. I did not know this and have already let seed heads form. So now I need to remove them.

Then there is the vegetable garden. It’s time to get the tomatoes in the ground along with peppers, eggplants, sweet potatoes, beans, peas, squash and corn if not already planted. Staking some of these plants will also be necessary, especially the tomatoes and pole beans. Once the garden is “laid by” as the old folks used to say, I’ll have a little more time to devote to flowers and other outside projects. Maybe even a few days of vacation before the crops start ripening.

We also need to clean undergrowth from around our blueberry bushes. They are already full of berries, but will also have less water available and more critters walking about if we don’t clean around them. We also need to put more pine bark down around the bushes. So far the blueberries look very healthy and if all goes well, we should have plenty for jams or freezing.

I’m sure there will be even more to do. If I can get the most important of the above completed, I’ll feel good about May. Happy May to everyone!

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