Tech | February 13, 2011 | 46 comments

Naomi Klein: The Search for BP’s Oil

treewolf39
by admin was published on January 26th, 2011

As we've noted before, the oil from BP's spill in the Gulf didn't just magically disappear. Naomi Klein and Big Noise Films' Jacquie Soohen headed to the Gulf aboard the research vessel Weatherbird II, they found plenty of evidence of the damage still being done. It's not just the birds and dolphins we have to worry about, the scientists note in this report from our friends at the Nation.
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46 comments // Naomi Klein: The Search for BP’s Oil

  • Wetdog
    • +2
      Wetdog  

    • When CNN was covering the BP spill 24/7----there was a small piece on how the government lab "tested" shrimp for oil.

      Basically, they cooked them-----then they did three high tech tests.

      First they looked them to determine if they could SEE any oil.

      Then, they sniffed them to determine if they could SMELL any oil.

      Then, they tasted them to determine if they could TASTE any oil.

      I was completely blown away------here are these "scientists" assuring everyone on nationwide TV, that shrimp taken out of this huge oil spill was "completely safe" to eat----because they tried a little and didn't smell or taste anything????????????????????????

      I think I'd have more trust in my dogs to tell me if the shrimp are completely safe------AT LEAST THEY have much more sensitive sniffers.

      But then again----I know some of the things my dogs will eat, and think they are delicious.

      I have no idea what government scientists will eat and think is delicious---but I may be getting some ideas.

    • 1 year ago
  • treewolf39
  • UrSexPoodle
  • Schnookums
    • +6
      Schnookums  

    • I went to NOLA last August to witness the 'recovery' for myself. I was on the road anyway and it was a small, unplanned, diversion. The first thing I noticed in visiting the waterfront was the smell. It wasn't so much that it smelled of gasoline, but that the smell of the ocean was gone.

      I don't live by the ocean and rarely go (I'm from the Midwest), but if you've ever been a infrequent visitor to a big body of saltwater you know the smell I'm talking about. It's unique and, at least in me, elicits relaxation. It was gone, and it's absence was conspicuous. It was only then that the enormity of the disaster became clear. It was worse than actually seeing oil in the marshes or the beach. Seriously.

      What makes me the saddest in watching this video is the knowledge that this disaster and the enormous aftermath will become more likely to be repeated in the future (despite any 'lessons' we might learn from this episode) rather than less. As we continue to rape the earth of every last bit of hydrocarbon wealth it has to offer, the impact on humanity is something I fear that more people than necessary will have to endure.

    • 1 year ago
  • Wetdog
    • +2
      Wetdog  
    • Schnookums:

      ---------"....... but if you've ever been a infrequent visitor to a big body of saltwater you know the smell I'm talking about."-----------

      That is the smell of life. The smell of live organisms.

      It is the same kind of smell that you get from rich humus earth. It smells that way because if you look at it under a microscope---you will see that it is teeming with live organisms going about living.

    • 1 year ago
  • ConcernedAboutRFuture
  • treewolf39
  • treewolf39
    • +3
      treewolf39  
    • Image

    • http://www.mediafreedominternational.org/2011/02/09/bp%E2%80%99s-use-of-nalco-di...
      Oil quickly surged from the Deepwater Horizon Drilling Rig shortly after the unit burst into flames. The oil began gushing out of the deep-sea floor at an astonishing rate, slowly making its way to the surface. British Petroleum (BP) announced the company would use Corexit 9500 and Corexit 9527 to help break down massive oil slicks. The chemical’s purpose was to help aid in breaking down the molecular structure of crude-oil. Corexit was able to reduce the size of massive oil slicks, allowing them to decompose at a much faster rate. BP applied Corexit to areas in large quantities, hoping the chemical could reduce the surface volume of oil.
      Throughout the process of treating the oil clouds, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) released statements regarding the toxicity levels of Corexit 9500 and Corexit 9527. After 50 days of public and congressional scrutiny, Nalco released the ingredients contained in both dispersant formulas. British Petroleum had many other dispersant options when deciding which chemical to use. Watching with envy, other dispersant manufacturers have cried foul, and linked the exclusive use of Corexit to Nalco’s close relationship to BP, rather than to the products’ superiority. Rodney F. Chase, one of Nalco’s boards of directors, was a former president to the Exxon Mobil Corporation. “It’s a chemical that the oil industry makes to sell to itself, basically,” said Richard Charter, a senior policy adviser for Defenders of Wildlife.
      Because BP was receiving criticism and humiliation, gallons and gallons of Corexit entered into environmental ecosystems in hopes of covering up the damage. The formula would cause oil to sink until collecting on the ocean floor. Many critics believe that Corexit did nothing more than sink the petroleum below the surface. The absence of oil on the surface created a misconception in the minds of many individuals worldwide.
      Student Researcher: Christopher Petrovich
      Faculty Evaluator: Elliot D. Cohen, Ph.D.
      Indian River State College
      Sources:
      Terry J. Allen, Gulf Dispersants: BP and Nalco Play Toxic Roulette, Corpwatch http://www.corpwatch.org/article.php?id=15609

    • 1 year ago
  • cbsrf
    • +6
      cbsrf  
    • Image
    • treewolf39:

      This photo was taken 6 miles south of Panama City on January 30. The photographer is a Captain who has worked this area for more than 20 years and said he's never seen anything like it.

    • 1 year ago
  • treewolf39
    • +3
      treewolf39  
    • cbsrf:

      That is some yucky looking shit in the water. Man, I live by the ocean and it breaks my heart to see the environment sabotaged by greed and ignorance. I want people to see this on TV. Maybe we can get Current TV to give some air time; show up the other corporate jackass networks.

    • 1 year ago
  • KSirys
    • +1
      KSirys  
    • treewolf39:

      that won't happen... current tv is turning into another MTV... haven't you noticed the new "shows" the, new reality series? that's how mtv started and now current tv is following their lead... i hope i'm wrong and current proves me wrong.. but i don't see anything different..

    • 1 year ago
  • treewolf39
    • 0
      treewolf39  
    • KSirys:

      I don't have television, don't want it either. I watch the shows i like on the net the day after for free, well almost free. I have to pay for high-speed $56 dollars a month. I watched some of the best reporting on the oil spill from Rachel Maddow and I was kind of hoping that Keith would bring some honesty to the forefront as he did at MSNBC. Your probably right, but can't a guy dream? Its not like there are many other options of possibly spreading truth to the brainwashed general public who choose to remain ignorant.

      WeAreChangeKy posted this story and I for one am inclined to believe that something bad is afoot.
      http://current.com/entertainment/comedy/92986126_cia-spy-captured-giving-nuclear...

    • 1 year ago
  • KSirys
    • 0
      KSirys  
    • treewolf39:

      Like i said bud, i hope i'm proved wrong. I rather be wrong and proven that we still have people and companies we can trust on... than hope and get my stabbed in the back, for hoping too much.

    • 1 year ago
  • treewolf39
  • cbsrf
    • +2
      cbsrf  
    • cbsrf:

      It would be nice if someone picked it up. Most around the area are back to eating the seafood. Some act like it never happened. All are trying to get BP claims.

    • 1 year ago
  • Unshriven
  • Mr_Brainwash
  • remanns
    • +3
      remanns  
    • Mr_Brainwash:

      The way you need to DEAL with them,....is to call in the federal butcher, and chop them up ; chop chop chop ! Small manageable cutlet corporations held in the nationalized freezer ! +^d

      p.s. some of the FAT just needs to be thrown to the dogs

    • 1 year ago
  • Mr_Brainwash
  • Mary_Jane_Stewart
    • +4
      Mary_Jane_Stewart  

    • BP has the worst safety record of all. They hire cheap labor, have skeleton crews and do not invest in infrastructure or repairs of equipment that has been operating since the fifties. Check out their safety violations on their rigs. MJS.

    • 1 year ago
  • Jake_Leonard
    • +7
      Jake_Leonard  

    • I wish I could find the massively long article I read a while back, but in a nut shell, BP dumped dispersants (corexit) onto the oil spill--which it would have been much easier to skim the surface than deal with cloudy volumes of it penetrating and mixing deep into the ocean (and being pulled along the currents). BP did this because they were going to be fined by the barrel--somewhere around $1,100 to $4,000/barrel if "gross negligence" could be proved. The consequences of their actions extend well beyond BP's tangible existence.

    • 1 year ago
  • treewolf39
    • +5
      treewolf39  
    • Jake_Leonard:

      Yes this can never be completely fixed. People died. Wildlife died. Poison is seeping into the very bottom of the food chain possibly changing the genetics. The best we can hope for is to keep the pressure on so as to avert another disaster of this magnitude.

    • 1 year ago
  • eternal_springs
  • treewolf39
  • Jeremy_Benson
    • +4
      Jeremy_Benson  

    • Is this really surprising? Was it not clear that everyone dropped what they were doing mid-way in favor of the next big media bomb; that the cleanup effort was just some half-ass slap-job designed to do little appease the public? Did you expect anything different?

    • 1 year ago
  • treewolf39
  • Jeremy_Benson
  • treewolf39
    • 0
      treewolf39  
    • Jeremy_Benson:

      I try not to shout about this but to bring it up as a question to others I see regularly in public. Like, hey, have YOU heard of any new information about that awful oil spill in the gulf?

      My all time favorite answer, which speaks volumes, is "What oil spill?"

    • 1 year ago
  • Jeremy_Benson
  • Prijedor
  • treewolf39
  • remanns
  • Jeremy_Benson
  • remanns
  • Progresshiv
  • artemis6
  • remanns
  • KSirys
  • remanns
  • treewolf39
    • +5
      treewolf39  
    • KSirys:

      It is sad. Even worse is that it took my six year old to remind ME to remember. How quickly we let ourselves forget even when millions of people are still potentially being poisoned.

    • 1 year ago
  • KSirys
  • treewolf39
    • +5
      treewolf39  
    • KSirys:

      She blows my mind. It is very rewarding investing in your children by throwing out the television! I let her watch NOVA on the computer and I share with her the views of people on Current. There are many studies that suggest that young children can learn much more complicated stuff if we chose not to pollute their minds and bodies with unhealthy crap.

    • 1 year ago
  • KSirys
    • +5
      KSirys  
    • treewolf39:

      That's great to hear! You're doing an amazing job, specially when children like yours could be the leaders of tomorrow. We need more kids to be aware and ready to take over when we are long gone... great job and keep it up bud!

    • 1 year ago
  • artemis6
  • Prijedor
  • KSirys
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