A telling comparison on the toxity warnings given to residents of the Utah Oil Spill and the Gulf.
Utah: Stay away, don't touch, it's hazardous material.
The Gulf: well, you know.
What do you think?
Is BP et al downplaying the health risks for the Gulf residents and/or clean up workers?
I noticed even the Coast Guard personnel were not wearing any protective gear/respirators while boating in a sea of oil. Why not?
Case in point:
Last week's Salt Lake City oil spill:
The number of barrels of oil released is estimated at 400 to 500.
200 ducks were cleaned by the staff at the Hogle Zoo after the oil spill in Utah last week.
It was reported on the nightly news that the soapy, oily, ducky water had to be contained and then shipped to a toxic waste dump.
So, if ducky wash water is toxic waste, what are the waters of the Gulf?
And here is the warning to residents of Salt Lake:
Crews continue with clean-up efforts at Liberty Park. Officials are warning nearby residents to not assist in oil clean up efforts.
"The main issue that we're asking is that residents don't engage in cleaning up the oil in their backyard. It is a hazardous material, it does have a skin contaminant element to it and we're asking them to stop," said Lisa Harrison-Smith.
Residents are advised to stay away from Red Butte Canyon and Liberty Park so crews can adequately manage the spill. All water access points along Red Butte Creek, Liberty Park and the Jordan River should be avoided by humans and animals at this time.
http://www.fox13now.com/...
Chevron, the spiller, said at an open public meeting of furious residents living along the rivers the oil whizzed through:
.....Tucker (of Chevron) conceded he lacked concrete answers at this time, predicting total removal of the soil and sludge from affected soils and habitat would be a lengthy process that will take weeks and months.
...warned residents that as the rainy days fade into the heat of summer, the inconvenience of the spill will grow.
"As the days get warmer, that oil is going to evaporate and the smell is probably going to get worse before it gets better," Tucker said.
http://www.deseretnews.com/...
What, what!!??
Chevron lacked answers?
Does this indicate they didn't have a plan in case of a problem with piping oil from Colorado to Utah's refinery THROUGH RESIDENTIAL NEIGHBORHOODS?
Good grief, you couldn't write this stuff.
The above is the limited news regarding the Salt Lake City oil spill I found. News seems to have stopped, other than this citizen report and other reports of oil slicks entering the Great Salt Lake:
Day 6 in the Salt Lake Oil Spill: Traces of Oil Found in the Great Salt Lake
BY catspirit Salt Lake City : UT : USA | Jun 17, 2010
The worst case scenario with the Chevron Oil Spill, Friday, June 11th, 2010; has happened. Small traces of oily film have been detected in the Great Salt Lake. The oil spill has already contaminated the Jordan River, Liberty Park Pond, the Mt. Olivet City Cemetary, the Red Butte Creek, and the Farmington Bay Recreation and Water Conservatory.
The Jordan River has turned into a sewer, states neighbors who live by the water lifeline. Clean up is taking longer than expected. Fish are found dead along the banks of the waterline that feeds into the largest natural lake west of the Mississippi; the Great Salt Lake.
http://www.allvoices.com/...
Where's the updated news? Here's the Google search results for: Utah "oil spill"
http://www.google.com/...
And that smell:
Already Louisiana residents along the Gulf coast have been complaining about a gas station-like odor. This odor is indicative of VOCs in the air.
What are VOCs:
The hydrocarbons that are the most worrisome are known as volatile organic compounds or VOCs. The VOCs that pose the greatest risk to human health are benzene, toluene, ethylbenzen, and xylene. Oil is also comprised of mercury, arsenic, lead, and hydrogen sulfide. Headaches, dizziness, nausea, vomiting, irritation of the eyes and throat, and difficulty breathing are some of the side effects of inhaling hydrocarbons.
And the Gulf:
Reporters covering the Deepwater Horizon disaster have filed stories accusing BP not only of trying to keep the health hazards under wraps, but also of threatening to fire workers who show up wearing protective respirator masks.
Yet according to Gina Solomon, a Senior Scientist at the Natural Resources Defense Council Workers, maritime workers and clean up crews who are around the oil spill should wear a half-face vapor cartridge respirator, rubber boots, butyl rubber gloves, Tyvek arm protectors, and if there is a risk of contact with the skin, a Tyvek suit. For proper protection, it is better to be fit-tested for the respirator to make sure it is providing adequate protection. Wearing a paper respirator mask and thin latex gloves will not offer protection from the hazards presented by this monumental oil spill. This advice indicates the potential presence of seriously toxic chemicals.
http://www.offshoreinjuries.com/...
Where's all the water from the oil/water syphoning being disposed? Back into the Gulf?
Why such warnings to Utah residents and not to the Gulf residents, accept not to swim on certain beaches?
Here's the Google Search for: "gulf residents" "health warnings"
http://www.google.com/...
An aside: An idea to create jobs for displaced workers in the Gulf.
Reality can really be hard to reconcile; however, solid plans for economic recovery, like new manufacturing moving onto the Gulf, can help ease the pain, can't it?
We all know that manufacturing whizzed overseas since Nafta Shafta was unleashed.
We may not want to admit it; however, it appears that the fishing industry in the Gulf is probably history. Sadly so!
We all also agree that there is a security need for the US to do some manufacturing here.
Can the same Fed/States that subsidize agriculture, spends millions on private contractors, and can grant tax incentives to private industries, do the same to lure clean manufacturing from overseas if they build in the Gulf to provide displaced fishermen jobs?
Food for thought, heartbreakingly, not seafood.