by Luis R. Miranda
The Real Agenda
July 10, 2011
There is not a big scandal that lasts more than a few weeks on the main stream media’s scope of attention. In the case of the BP oil catastrophe, it is incredible that after the size of the deadly disaster in the Gulf of Mexico, neither the main stream media nor the alternative news media followed up on what has been going on there. What has been going on there is inaction, and the BP oil conspiracy continues to develop.(1)
As we now know, the BP explosion that cost the lives of several workers was not an accident, but negligence at best and a conspiracy at worst. The direct result of the Deepwater Horizon’s explosion was the massive destruction of life through miles of coastline. The less than adequate cleanup, which helped worsened the disaster, condemned the area to living with tons of toxic chemical dispersants that simply destroyed the eco systems and negatively affected the health of the thousands of people who lived nearby and millions of others who directly and indirectly depended on the fishing, tourism and natural beauty of the marine life, wildlife and environment.
The greatest impact was felt immediately on the health, environmental and economic side of things. Regardless of what Obama and the U.S. government says, the Gulf Coast has not been the same ever since the BP explosion occurred.
This oil sheen can only be coming from fresh oil, newly coming out of the seabed.
Perhaps the most surprising fact is that the spill continues to exist, despite government and main stream media reports that the worst is over. As recently taken pictures show, there are still large amounts of oil floating around the Gulf of Mexico. This is not oil that remains from the original explosion, but fresh oil. Airplanes continue to spray toxic chemicals on the Gulf, which continue to sicken people and animal life there. Recent spraying was done as early as March 15th, 2011, even though the EPA said that no more dispersants had been applied since July 23, 2010. According to the Gulf Rescue Alliance, aerial photos taken between March 19, 2011 and April 21, 2011, reveal new “massive amounts” of oil floating on Gulf’s waters. (2)
Analysis conducted to test the consequences of using Corexit show that the chemical helps the oil dissolve into the water. These chemicals (volatile contaminants) would otherwise evaporated if the oil had been left
sitting on the surface. Laboratory tests conducted with Corexit 9500, saltwater and oil show the same foam found on Gulf waters after the application of the toxic chemical. For the most recent images of the newest oil leaks as well as military airplanes spraying chemicals in the Gulf with detailed dates and places see the PDF report titled Fresh Oil in the Gulf (Pages 4-21)
“Photos taken by Denise Rednour, John Wathen and Bonnie Schumacher prove that the Macondo well and / or the fractured seabed around the well was never fully plugged”. One of the most recent reports titled Fresh Oil in the Gulf includes a press release from NOAA that details its findings about the detection of limits of toxic chemicals, which the organization establishes at 100 parts per million for finfish and 500 parts per million for shrimp. However, chemist Bob Naman who works at the Analytical Chemical Testing lab in Mobile, Alabama tested samples from several places in the Gulf and his results do not match those of NOAA. According to Naman’s calculations, toxic chemical levels are around 5 parts per billion.
EPA Not Coming Clean
In another report titled Questioning EPA Fraud, a group of Gulf residents compiled what they say amounts to clear proof that the Environmental Protection Agency lied and continues to lie about the health impact on Gulf residents, contaminated beaches, water and seafood. According to the report there is an alarming difference between the levels of exposure to toxic chemicals considered as “safe” back in 1999 and those emitted more recently by the EPA, which are “thousands of times higher”. Part of the report relates how much easier would it be for governmental organizations to claim that no chemicals were detected while the health and lives of the residents are gravely put in danger. (3)
Government agencies have been caught giving false statements about the state of affairs in the Gulf of Mexico. In one occasion, government official said they were “not sure of the effect of utilizing dispersants, sub sea,” and on the surface in this volume, but that the use of such chemicals were a necessary risk. Unfortunately, those very same official failed to detailed the very same risks they knew existed once the spraying of Corexit began on Gulf waters. They also admitted that more studies on the actual effects need to be performed.
According to the document titled Questioning EPA Fraud, sub sea test performed in the North Sea near Norway by major oil companies showed that the oil was split into fractions and left the most toxic parts (PAH’s) suspended throughout the water. These parts cause grave adverse effects to the marine species. “Over 60% of marine species normally thrive in those sub sea strata of ocean waters”, cites the study.
Still a Public Health Crisis
The Gulf Rescue Alliance, a coalition composed by Scientists, Doctors, Attorneys, Seafood and Tourism Industry Professionals, Civic and Government Leaders, Non-profits, and Citizens, documents the current health crisis that began back on the day of the BP oil disaster and that continues to get worse on a daily basis. The Alliance’s claims are supported by, among other documents, a report from the American Medical Association entitled Health Effects of the Gulf Oil Spill that explains how the toxic chemicals used in the supposed cleanup of the Gulf caused innumerable cases of disease in local residents.
“The main components of crude oil are aliphatic and aromatic hydrocarbons.1 Lower-molecular weight aromatics—such as benzene, toluene, and xylene—are volatile organic compounds (VOCs) and evaporate within hours after the oil reaches the surface. Volatile organic compounds can cause respiratory irritation and central nervous system (CNS) depression. Benzene is known to cause leukemia in humans, and toluene is a recognized teratogen at high doses.” (4)
Although the EPA and the CDC have downplayed the consequences of continuous exposure to the toxic chemicals in the Gulf, citing only minor health problems such as temporary eye, nose, or throat irritation, nausea, or headaches, and “are not thought to be high enough to cause long-term harm” BP’s own website warns that current conditions are dangerous for both offshore workers and local residents. According to the JAMA report, temperatures pose a risk of heat-related illness exacerbated by wearing coveralls and respirators.
The report continues to point out that when in contact with dispersants and other chemicals now present in the Gulf, people can suffer adverse health effects that may end in dermatitis and secondary skin infections. “Some people may develop a dermal hypersensitivity reaction, erythema, edema, burning sensations, or a follicular rash.” But the health conditions now being experienced by residents and wildlife are not the only problems that remain in the heads of the citizens in the coast. There are a number of long-term health risks that not highlighted now, but that will appear later.
Although visible effects such as contamination, floating oil and dispersants as well as the death of the eco systems are some of the problems we see now, more pressing consequences are still to come. One of those consequences is the accumulation of chemicals that will remain with Gulf residents for years. The exposure to these chemicals will continue to endanger people generation after generation unless they are properly cleaned up. Because the Gulf of Mexico is one of the most important sources of seafood for the United States, the chemicals found on that seafood will potentially contaminate consumers with toxins such as cadmium, mercury, and lead that can accumulate over time in fish and shellfish. (5)
Fishing through oil and dispersant. Photo taken March 19th, 2011.
It is undoubtedly the damage to human health what worries most residents of the Gulf coast, though. Some of the most serious effects on humans are reflected on red blood cells. Exposure to the toxic chemicals people and marine life are now swimming in causes hemolysis. This happens because the fat of the cells’ membrane is dissolved and as a result the membrane breaks down. Another health problem is hematuria, or the appearance of blood in the urine and the feces. This happens as a result of kidney damage. If untreated, this damage can progress and lead to kidney failure.
“The chemicals extend their damage to other body parts such as the spleen, the bones in the spinal column, and bone marrow (where new blood cells are formed) and the liver, where chemicals are detoxified (broken down for easy excretion from the body). Chronic exposure can cause anemia, and lead to insufficient blood supply, cold extremities, and necrosis (a condition basically akin to flesh rot.) Females may exhibit more sensitivity to fore-stomach necrosis, ulceration, and inflammation occurring at half the dose required to cause the same problems in males. (6)
In women, fertility could also be reduced due to embryo mortality. Women are considered to be more likely to suffer from ocular damage. Some bodily injuries of that kind include severe damage to the eye such as retinal detachment, photoreceptor degeneration and occlusion resulting from multiple thrombosis of the blood vessels in the eye.
Reaching out to the Government
Marine Toxicologist, Riki Ott
In a letter to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Marine toxicologist and Exxon Valdez survivor, Riki Ott, details how the organization was ignorant about the effects of using dispersants in an area that went from Louisiana to Florida. The agency and other government organization were unaware of the existence of “subsurface oil-dispersant plumes and sunken oil on ocean and estuary water bottoms”, said Ott. He also asked for proof that it was a violation of existent law to spray sinking agents such as the ones BP had been using.(7)
Although under EPA rules BP had been banned from using Corexit on Gulf waters due to its toxicity and the reactions it caused when in contact with the oil, the company continued spraying the chemical after the March 19, 2010 warning to stop using the product. “By July 30, the congressional Subcommittee on Energy and the Environment reported the USCG on-scene commander (OSC) had approved 74 exemption requests to spray dispersants between May 28 and July 14″, cites the document.
The Sane Available Solution
On section four of the The Gulf of Mexico A Crisis That Must Be Resolved document, a proposal is presented to end the tragedy known as the BP Gulf Oil Spill. Under the Code of Federal Regulations (CFR 40), it is stated that in the event of environmental disasters such as the one in the Gulf of Mexico, the agencies in charge could use non-toxic products called “bio remediation” products. Bio remediation is the use living micro organisms to enhance the rates of biodegradation of oil. The the use of bio remediation results in the appearance of organic substances such as carbon dioxide, water, biomass, and benign substances. This process, transforms oil into non-toxic products and the environmental impact is almost zero. It is basically the same process mother nature uses to clean itself, but performed at an accelerated pace. It speeds up the process.
Under the bio remediation category, there seems to be only one product left, from a total of 11 that existed in the near past. It is called OSE II. This product, as requested by government regulators, does not introduce foreign microbes into any body of water. OSE II can be used on refined or unrefined hydrocarbons or hydrocarbon-based compounds. This product was shown to EPA and other government representatives at least 14 times in laboratory experiments and on-location. Every single time, OSE II proved its capacity to detoxify the oil and dispersant in a matter of hours. “After getting in contact with the oil, it turns it into water and CO2 within 2 to 4 weeks, which is its defined end result.”
OSE II is used in 35 countries where the use of dispersants is prohibited or simply a non starter. In the United States, the EPA prevented the use of this product even though its manufacturer has provided it to the U.S. military for 21 years.
References:
(1) The BP Oil Spill Conspiracy You Didn’t Hear About
(2) Fresh Oil in the Gulf Of Mexico and Fresh Chemical Dispersant Being Sprayed
(3) Summary of EPA/NOAA Fraud Regarding the Testing for Safety of Gulf Seafood, Water, and Sediment
(4) Public Health Crisis in the Gulf of Mexico as a Direct Result of the Inadequate Response to the Deepwater Horizon Oil Blowout Disaster
(5) University scientist’s seafood sample results were “hundreds of times higher than the levels the government tests found”
(6) General Overview of Symptoms Related to Exposure to Dispersed Oil and Toxic Chemical Dispersants
(7) The Gulf of Mexico A Crisis That Must Be Resolved
