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Oil Spill - Florida, Cuba, Bahamas & Eastern Seaboard Prospects, Deep Horizon Blowout
"Deep Horizon" Spill Response Page
http://www.deepwaterhorizonresponse.com/go/site/2931/ Florida DEP page dealing with State response and tracking: http://www.dep.state.fl.us/deepwaterhorizon/default.htm Oil a long-range threat to southwest and southeast Florida, Cuba, and the Bahamas http://polar.ncep.noaa.gov/ofs/aofs_...st_gulfmex.png "The surface ocean currents that transport the oil are driven by the wind and by the large scale ocean current structure of the Gulf of Mexico. The latest surface ocean current forecast (Figure 3) from NOAA's RTOFS model indicates a complicated current structure along the Gulf Coast over the next seven days, making it difficult to predict exactly where the oil slick might go. The warm Loop Current enters the Gulf from the south and loops around to the southeast to exit through the Florida Keys. A counter-clockwise rotating cool eddy is located a few hundred miles south of the Florida Panhandle, and a clockwise-rotating warm eddy is located south of Louisiana's Mississippi Delta. If next Tuesday's cold front brings strong enough northwesterly winds to the oil spill region, it is possible that a portion of the spill will get caught in the circulation of these two eddies and sucked southwards into the Loop Current. If this occurs, the oil would be move relatively rapidly at 2 - 4 mph to the southeast and then eastwards through the Keys, potentially fouling beaches in the Keys, northwest Cuba, the southwest and southeast coasts of Florida, and the western Bahamas. Based on the movement of the spill earlier this week during offshore winds, I don't think the spill will be able to make it into the Loop Current next week. However, if the oil keeps spewing from the ocean floor for many months, eventually a wind pattern will set up that will take the oil into the Loop Current. This would most likely happen if a persistent trough of low pressure settles over the East Coast in May, or if a tropical storm makes landfall along the Florida Panhandle this summer. We're fortunate that there are no hurricanes to worry about right now, as the strong winds and storm surge of a hurricane would be able to drive the oil far inland along a wide swath of coast" From: http://www.wunderground.com/blog/Jef...?entrynum=1470 An overview in the Sunsentinel: http://snsimages.tribune.com/media/g...5/53598229.jpg "Outer bands of the powerful Loop Current moved north to within 31 miles of the destroyed wellhead, spewing thousands of barrels a day. If the current reaches the spill, it could drag the slick south to the Florida Keys within days, and push it north to Broward and Palm Beach counties in a week to two weeks, marine scientists said. "If it continues to move in that direction, and there is no reason why it shouldn't, the Loop Current could very well be at the wellhead," said Bob Weisberg, who is using satellite images to track the slick at the College of Marine Science at the University of South Florida. "So there is a strong likelihood that at some point in the future oil will be entrained into the Loop Current." Gov. Charlie Crist on Monday extended a state of emergency south to Sarasota County. Everglades National Park, Big Cypress National Preserve, Dry Tortugas National Park and Biscayne National Park began disaster preparations, establishing a response team comparable to that set up for hurricanes, and Tuesday they will begin assessing vulnerable natural systems, such as mangrove shorelines." Continued at: http://www.sun-sentinel.com/fl-loop-...,2846542.story An article in the Miami Herald: "Winds expected to shift and ease in the next few days could buy some time for weather-beaten crews battling to bottle up and burn off a massive slick of rust-colored crude before it fouls fragile marshes and sugary beaches across four Gulf Coast states. But that brief reprieve could soon send a nasty ripple effect toward South Florida -- pushing outlying plumes of polluted surface water and patches of tar balls into the Gulf of Mexico's powerful loop current. That would propel the mess across the mangrove islands, seagrass beds and coral reefs of the Florida Keys, then up toward Miami Beach, Fort Lauderdale and beyond. Oceanographers tracking the BP oil slick -- still expanding from an uncapped well belching an estimated 210,000 gallons a day -- said Monday that questions about the loop's impact have increasingly turned from if to when. Satellite images suggest the loop, which moves seasonally, is creeping north, spinning off small whirls of current that University of Miami oceanographer Nick Shay said may already have drawn in the slick's leading, and lightest, edge. Robert Weisberg, an oceanographer at the University of South Florida, who updates daily tracking models, pinpoints the loop still about 30 miles south of the slick. But, he stressed, ``The immediacy of the collision of these two features is real. Will it happen in a day, two days, three days, a week, two weeks? I don't know. I'm not willing to say that yet.'' Read more: http://www.miamiherald.com/2010/05/0...#ixzz0myo17Jmr An article from the Tampa Tribune: TAMPA - Northerly winds that slowed a massive oil spill's approach Tuesday to the Panhandle and northern Gulf Coast could mean disaster for the rest of Florida. Those winds, prompted by the passage of a cold front, helped to keep oil at bay along the immediate shoreline in the Gulf of Mexico. But those winds might push the oil closer to the conveyor belt of ocean currents that could eventually send the oil all the way to the Florida Keys and up the state's east coast. The oil moved precariously closer to the so-called Loop Current, the river of water in the Gulf that surges to the north before dipping southward through the Florida Keys. That current then turns into the Gulf Stream, which moves along the U.S. east coast." Continued at: http://www2.tbo.com/content/2010/may...news-breaking/ ....... Transport of the spill to Florida and into the Straits of Florida and up the east side of the state will depend upon many factors. Extension of the spill eastward to and entrainment by the Loop Current, transport southward and passage into flow of the Florida Current and up into the Straits of Florida. Weather, prevailing winds and nature of the oil plume along the way are key factors. Animated current model chart over time at: http://polar.ncep.noaa.gov/ofs/viewe...rundate=latest There is a cold front passing over Florida currently (May 4, 2010) with winds clocking with that passage. Spill transport in a given direction is in part a function of the speed and duration of wind relative to that direction. Winds shift in terms of direction and speed regularly throughout time further complicating transport predictions. Model winds and waves out to 180 hours from the present appear at: http://dadecosurf.com/nww3_height More wind and related weather information at: http://fksa.org/showthread.php?t=6734 More about transport and fate of oil releases at sea http://www.offshore-environment.com/oil.html . |
Here is the latest update from:
Dr. Jeff Masters' WunderBlog Last Updated: 2:48 PM GMT on May 04, 2010 http://www.wunderground.com/blog/JeffMasters/show.html "Oil spill update The oil slick from the April 20 explosion and blowout of the offshore oil rig Deepwater Horizon has retreated from the coast, thanks to a slackening of the persistent onshore winds that have affected the northern Gulf of Mexico over the past week. According to the latest NWS marine forecast, winds will be light and variable through Wednesday, resulting in little transport of the oil slick. Winds will then resume a weak onshore flow at 5 - 10 knots, Thursday through Friday, then reverse to blow offshore at 5 - 10 knots over the weekend. The net result of this wind pattern will be little transport of the oil slick. The only areas at risk of landfalling oil over the next five days will be the mouth of the Mississippi River in Louisiana, and the Chandeleur Islands. The latest forecast of Gulf currents from the NOAA HYCOM model (see also this alternative view of the HYCOM ocean current forecast) show weak ocean currents affecting the region during the remainder of the week. These currents will not be strong enough to push any oil southwards into the Loop Current over the next five days, so the Keys and South Florida are safe from oil for now. I'll have a post on the long-range prospects for oil to enter the Loop Current later this week, and a discussion of how a hurricane might affect and be affected by the oil spill." http://www.wunderground.com/hurrican...l_forecast.png AND A slide show of weather considerations impacting the migration of the oil spill at: http://www.weather.com/outlook/weath...0-05-04?page=2 http://i.imwx.com/images/maps/foreca...us_600x405.jpg . |
Quote:
It is informed speculation but Jeff Masters' Blog has become an information source worth considering during tropical weather season. Weather will have a major hand in determining how this mess turns out. See his latest update above regarding his opinion about near term spill migration prospects. |
Volunteer Alerts, Biological Impacts
Additional information, including calls for volunteers to help in the major response likely to be required in this crisis at: General Information, Observer Reporting Links And Details On Biological Impacts: http://marinebio.org/blog/ http://marinebio.org/ Volunteer Alerts: http://www.volunteerfloridadisaster....ater/Image.jpg Comprehensive site - VOLUNTEER FLORIDA, CLICK IMAGE to access site Surf Rider Foundation resources: http://oilonthebeach.blogspot.com/ http://www.usnews.com/money/blogs/fr...oil-spill.html . |
To help updates make more sense, I've split this topic into two threads including this one. Updates may or may not be made on a regular basis.
The original information websites should be used for reliance and not information posted here. An important site for updates on combined response efforts to the spill is: http://www.deepwaterhorizonresponse.com/go/site/2931/ The other thread on fksa.org pertaining to this spill includes: Deep Horizon Oil Spill - Source Plume & Blowout Mitigation Updates http://fksa.org/showthread.php?t=9609 . |
Situation Report #7, May 5, 2010
http://www.dep.state.fl.us/deepwater...rt7_050510.pdf Latest NOAA Update, May 4, 2010 http://tinyurl.com/NOAA-Update An update regarding preparations in Florida: "Florida Deepwater Horizon Response MAY 4, 2010 Florida Department of Environmental Protection TALLAHASSEE – The State Emergency Response Team, in support of the Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) as the lead response agency for the state of Florida, is actively monitoring the Deepwater Horizon response. The following is a summary of state and BP response actions to date, as well as tips for residents and visitors to take precautions both pre and post-landfall. Landfall Predictions: Deepwater Horizon continues to discharge an estimated 5,000 barrels (210,000 gallons) per day. BP has completed construction of a dome, expected to be in place as early as next weekend, which will be used in an attempt to contain the oil discharge. BP has also begun drilling a relief well to eliminate the discharge. Currently, there are no impacts to the state projected in the next 72 hours; however, Florida continues to make preparations to safeguard the state’s shoreline. The state of Florida reminds its residents and visitors that the state’s coastline has not been impacted at this time and remains open for public enjoyment. State Actions: Continued at: http://www.panhandleparade.com/index...#ixzz0n4bQV6yq Update from the Miami Herald: "Workers stop one of three leaks at Gulf oil spill, Posted on Wednesday, 05.05.10 BY MARIA RECIO, AUDRA BURCH, JOSEPH GOODMAN AND JENNIFER LEBOVICH PANAMA CITY, Fla. -- As emergency workers along the Gulf Coast on Wednesday raced to defend sensitive shorelines from the massive oil spill, authorities said they'd stopped one of the leaks at the deep-water well. It won't reduce the amount of oil flowing from BP's sunken rig, but it will allow the oil company to focus efforts on attacking the two remaining leaks, said Coast Guard Petty Officer David Mosley. ``This is definitely a step toward the shut off or containment of the leak,'' Mosley said." Continued at: http://www.miamiherald.com/2010/05/0...#ixzz0n4m6f0YD "Oil: Experts say it's not if it'll reach the Keys, but when By KEVIN WADLOW, Posted - Wednesday, May 05, 2010 07:28 AM EDT The outer edges of the Gulf of Mexico oil spill crept closer to the Loop Current Tuesday as Florida Keys response agencies convened to draft a battle plan. One scientist tracking the extent of the spill cautioned South Florida "to go into hurricane mode." "We have to prepare for the worst while hoping for the best," said Nick Shay, an oceanographer at the University of Miami Rosenstiel School of Marine and Atmospheric Science who specializes in currents. "This is like a oceanic hurricane. It's already a disaster for the northern gulf." The Loop Current flows north in the Gulf of Mexico, then loops west and south before heading to the east through the Florida Straits. Shay said it appears "inevitable that at least some part of the oil slick is going to make it into the Loop Current, but at this point the exact concentration is uncertain." Efforts to use a giant concrete box to catch oil leaking from the Deepwater Horizon drill site, 5,000 feet below the gulf surface, were under way at press time. If attempts to use the concrete collection domes fail and the leak continues to feed an estimated 210,000 gallons of crude oil into the gulf each day, Shay said, "This will far surpass any [environmental damage] the Exxon Valdez did." Audubon of Florida research director Jerry Lorenz said if the oil reaches South Florida's mangrove forests, the critical ecosystems could be destroyed. "Once it's in the mangroves, it really can't be cleaned out," Lorenz said on a conference call held by the Everglades Foundation. "It would take years, if not decades, to wash out."" Continued at: http://www.keysnet.com/2010/05/05/21...-the-keys.html "Other experts say oil 'pretty unlikely' to hit Keys, Wednesday, May 5, 2010 Some scientists say the Loop Current is a moving target, one that will dodge the bullet of having oil trapped in it -- thanks also in part to weak winds and a weak feeder eddy. The core of the Loop Current was 150 miles from the oil slick Tuesday and has begun to move south, as it does seasonally, one computer model shows. It will be 200 to 300 miles away from the slick's location on Tuesday within the next five days, according to Eric Chassignet, director of the Center for Ocean Atmospheric Prediction Studies at Florida State University. That makes the possibility of the slick reaching the Loop Current and bringing oil south along the Florida Coast to the Florida Keys, Florida Bay and Dry Tortugas "pretty unlikely," Chassignet said. His prediction comes from a tried-and-true model that his agency, the Navy and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) have been using for the past five years, he said, adding that he is "confident" of its accuracy. The possibility of wind blowing the slick into the Loop Current was refuted Tuesday by Doug Helton, NOAA's incident operations coordinator from the oil rig accident. He said the winds have not been strong enough in one consistent direction to push the slick to one specific area. Even if the wind did blow it into a counterclockwise-moving eddy that was 50 miles from slick on Tuesday, that feeder current isn't strong enough to push the oil into the main Loop Current, Chassignet said. "If it (oil) is trapped in the eddy, not much will be captured by the main Loop Current," Chassignet said. The immediate concern for environmental damage has been and remains on the offshore islands on the northern Gulf Coast and the wetlands and estuaries of the Mississippi Delta, Helton said." From: http://keysnews.com/node/23026 "Gulf oil spill could 'devastate' South Florida's environment By David Fleshler, Sun Sentinel, 10:03 a.m. EDT, May 5, 2010 Few parts of the United States would be as devastated by an oil slick as the southern coast of Florida. A necklace of federal wildlife refuges wraps around the tip of the peninsula, protecting wading birds, Key deer, American crocodiles and nesting sea turtles. The largest coral reef system in the continental United States forms an undersea rainforest of fish, crabs, sponges and coral, extending from the southern end of the Keys to the shallows off Palm Beach. The beaches from Broward County up the coast are among the most important in the world for loggerhead sea turtles, now just beginning their annual nesting season. "A major oil spill would devastate the ecosystem and the economy based on that ecosystem," said Larry Crowder, professor of marine biology at Duke University's Nicholas School of the Environment. "It's a particularly bad time of year because just about everything is nesting or replicating. "In the Gulf of Mexico giant blue fin tuna are spawning, and their eggs and larvae float on the surface," he said. "Seabirds and gulls are nesting. For nesting sea turtles, obviously, oiling the beaches could have a devastating impact." The critical question for South Florida is whether the slick spreading across the northern Gulf of Mexico will be dragged south by the Loop Current, a swift stream of water that flows from the Gulf through the Florida Straits between the Keys and Cuba, feeding into the Gulf Stream, a current that comes within a few miles of the southeast Florida beaches. "Exactly when the oil will enter the Loop Current is unknown, but it appears to be imminent," said Robert Weisberg, an oceanographer at the University of South Florida who tracks the current. "Once it's in the Loop Current, it's only a matter of a week or so before the oil is at the entrance to the Florida Straits, and one more week in the vicinity of Miami and Palm Beach." Continued at: http://www.sun-sentinel.com/news/flo...,6744447.story Putting the current state of things in the area into perspective, a news video from Key Largo: http://www.nbcmiami.com/news/local-b...-92814149.html Will the oil spill seriously impact South Florida, the Keys, Cuba and the Bahamas? No way to know yet, it is still too soon. Preparations are underway just in case. . |
Thanks for all the info rick!
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You're welcome, here's some more:
NOAA - Coral Reefs: Spills and Other Threats http://tinyurl.com/Coral-Spill-Response NOAA - Home | Emergency Responders | Responding to Oil Spills http://tinyurl.com/NOAA-Responder-Guide Also, some ideas about how this mess may have come about are explored in the latest update to the other thread, along with mitigation efforts, new plume drift modeling here: http://fksa.org/showthread.php?p=45276#post45276 |
Florida Response Update - May 6, 2010:
http://www.dep.state.fl.us/deepwater...nse_050610.pdf Florida Situation Report #8: http://www.dep.state.fl.us/deepwater...rt8_050610.pdf API Summary for today: http://news.moneycentral.msn.com/pro...06&id=11484342 The plume is still keeping its distance from the Panhandle and the Loop Current for now, a good thing. Efforts are underway to drill a cutoff well, to place a containment over the leak at 5000 ft., to intercept existing product with booms, skimmers and through ongoing controlled burns around the source area. |
"Florida Specific:
• The 72-hour NOAA trajectory shows no oil landfall in Florida. • Oil Containment Boom (in feet) o 93,500 deployed in Florida o Pensacola staging area: 160,900 deployed/ 11,300 staged/ 20,000 ordered o Panama City staging area: 6,000 staged/ 20,000 ordered • In accordance with established plans, protective booming is now being deployed in the coastal areas of Escambia, Okaloosa, and Santa Rosa Counties. • There are 401 British Petroleum (BP) and contract personnel working on the effort in the Pensacola area. • BP issued a 25 million dollar block grant to Florida, which is being used for booming costs. • The incident command post is established in the U.S. Coast Guard’s Sector St. Petersburg for the west coast of Florida. A virtual planning section is set up for Sector Key West." Continued at: http://www.dep.state.fl.us/deepwater...rt9_050710.pdf "Boom Placement: • Approximately 160,400 feet of boom has been placed out of the Pensacola and Panama City staging areas. • An additional 16,700 feet is expected to be placed today. • Currently 11,300 feet of boom is staged in Pensacola with an additional 20,000 booms on order. In Panama City, there is 6,000 feet staged and an additional 53,000 feet of boom on order. • Placement of boom is based on tides and where the oil is threatening, as well as direction given in each region’s area contingency plan. • The booming strategy focuses on identified environmentally sensitive areas. o Estuaries and inlets are at the top of the list, not the beach areas. o This is to protect sensitive habitat that support wildlife and fish. o If the oil washes on the beach, the sand can be cleaned. o Note that booms are not a failsafe solution. o They can become ineffective in high seas, strong winds, or currents over one knot. • Florida’s countieswill notice an advisory if conditions become unsafe. • Consider the following tips for avoiding negative health impacts from an oiled shoreline: o Avoid entering areas where oil can be seen or smelled. o Avoid direct skin contact with oil, oil-contaminated water and sediments. o Do not swim or ski in areas affected by the oil spill, and if traveling through the area by boat, take precautions when hoisting the boat anchor. If oil makes contact with skin, wash it off with soap and water. o Do not fish in oil spill-affected waters. o Do not harvest or eat dead fish, fish with oily residue or fish that have a petroleum odor. o Avoid boating through oil slicks or sheens. o Young children, pregnant women, people with compromised immune systems, and individuals with underlying respiratory conditions should avoid the area. o Prevent pets from entering oil-contaminated areas. • Those near Florida’s Gulf Coast may detect an odor because of the oil spill. Some people are more sensitive to these odors and may experience nasal irritation and feelings of nausea. In combination with seasonal allergies, such as sensitivity to pollen or pre-existing respiratory conditions such as asthma, some people may experience more severe symptoms. • Individuals experiencing symptoms that are aggravated by the odors from the oil spill should consider: o Staying indoors, in air conditioning, and avoiding strenuous outdoor activity. o If symptoms do not improve, contact a primary care physician or other health care provider for medical advice. o Individuals who have pre-existing medical conditions, such as asthma or other respiratory illness should contact their health care provider if feeling symptomatic." Continued at: http://www.dep.state.fl.us/deepwater...nse_050710.pdf "Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill: NOAA Modifies and Extends Commercial and Recreational Fishing Closure in the Oil-Affected Portions of the Gulf of Mexico Closed area restricts fishing in less than five percent of the Gulf" http://www.noaanews.noaa.gov/stories...0507-small.png Continued at: http://www.dep.state.fl.us/deepwater...y_bulletin.pdf . |
An update from Jeff Masters:
Long-range prospects for oil to enter the Loop Current and hit the Keys Posted by: JeffMasters, 3:21 PM GMT on May 06, 2010 The oil slick from the April 20 explosion and blowout of the offshore oil rig Deepwater Horizon is moving little, thanks to the light winds of 10 knots or less that have affected the northern Gulf of Mexico over the past few days. According to the latest NWS marine forecast, winds will remain light through Saturday, which should result in little transport of the oil slick. The latest trajectory forecast from the NOAA Office of Response and Restoration continues to show that the mouth of the Mississippi River and the Chandeleur Islands will be the only land areas affected by the spill over the next two days. On Sunday, the winds will begin increasing and shifting to the southeast. The latest run of the GFS model shows that this will be a week-long period of southeast winds, with wind speeds at times reaching 20 - 25 knots. These winds will threaten to bring oil to a large portion of the Louisiana coast, including regions of the central Louisiana coast west of the mouth of the Mississippi River. The Mississippi and Alabama coasts will also be at risk next week, but the risk to the Florida Panhandle is lower. A major concern with the Deepwater Horizon oil spill is the possibility for the oil to move southwards and become entrained into the mighty Gulf of Mexico Loop Current, which would rapidly transport the oil through the Florida Keys, impacting northwest Cuba, South Florida, the western Bahamas, and the U.S. East Coast all the way to Cape Hatteras, North Carolina. However, there is no immediate danger of this happening. The latest forecast of Gulf currents from the NOAA HYCOM model (see also this alternative view of the HYCOM ocean current forecast) indicate that the currents will not be favorable for pulling any oil southwards into the Loop Current over the next five days. Oil will have to travel approximately 100 miles to the south-southeast to get entrained into the Loop Current, and we probably would need a 2+ day period of strong winds out of the north for this to happen. The long-range GFS model indicates that the earliest this might happen is 10+ days from now. As summer gets closer, the incidence of cold fronts making it far enough south to bring an extended period of offshore northerly winds to the Gulf of Mexico decreases. I think there is a 40% chance that the next cold front capable of pushing oil into the Loop Current will arrive by the end of June. However, I think it is more likely that the next such front will not arrive until October, when fall comes. That makes a tropical storm or hurricane as perhaps the most likely weather event to push oil into the Loop Current over the next few months. A tropical storm hitting the Panhandle of Florida would do the trick, by bringing northerly winds over the oil spill location, thanks to the counter-clockwise flow of air around the storm. Looking ahead to June, June tropical storms tend to form in the Gulf of Mexico, and we've been averaging one June storm every two years since 1995. This year, the odds of a June Gulf of Mexico storm are probably a little lower than usual. While Gulf of Mexico sea surface temperatures are near average, wind shear from our lingering El Niño will probably be above average. Since 1995, there have been three June tropical storms in the Gulf of Mexico that have followed a track capable of pushing oil into the Loop Current. These storms were Hurricane Allison of 1995, Tropical Storm Allison of 2001, and Tropical Storm Arlene of 2005. Taking into account all these factors, I'll give a 20% chance that we'll get a June tropical storm capable of transporting oil into the Loop Current." http://www.wunderground.com/blog/Jef...?entrynum=1475 A USF plume transport model: http://ocg6.marine.usf.edu/~liu/Drifters/roms1.png The red, warmer waters below the release represents the loop current. There is a time animated version of the model display at: http://ocg6.marine.usf.edu/~liu/Drif...atest_roms.htm . |
More on possible outcomes to the Keys and east coast mainland from National Geographic. Hope it doesn't come to this but it might. It really seems to depend on how long oil is allowed to continue to pump into the Gulf and prevailing wind patterns. If this had happened a couple of months ago while strong cold fronts were still passing, the Loop Current may well have transported a lot of crude. With the seasonal easterly winds it may not happen as soon. Of course with tropical systems over the summer, this could change.
"Gulf Oil Spill Could Reach East Coast Beaches .... "If oil gets swept up by the Loop Current, the crude should take about ten more days to hit the Florida Keys, Roffer said. Spilled oil can be eaten and digested by animals, chemically altered by sunlight, or broken into different-size droplets by winds and currents—among other "weathering" processes that can change the oil's buoyancy as it travels. If it's picked up by the Loop Current, the tarlike, smelly oil won't have weathered enough to lose its noxious properties by the time it reaches Florida. The floating oil could get pulled into inlets and harbors along the peninsula, where it would settle into the mangrove forests that are nurseries for many species of sea life, Roffer pointed out. "You can't go to every mangrove and clean off every root from the oil," he said. As oil travels farther north via the Gulf Stream, weathering would cause the crude to sink deeper into the water column, he added, further complicating cleanup. (Related: "Gulf Oil Spill Fight Turns to Chemicals.")" http://s.ngeo.com/wpf/media-live/pho...91_600x450.jpg http://news.nationalgeographic.com/n...91_600x450.jpg Continued at: http://s.ngeo.com/wpf/media-live/pho...66_600x450.jpg |
Volunteers Needed In The Keys If you live in the Keys, visit there or live in Miami-Dade County or elsewhere and want to help please read on and get involved. If the oil plume makes it to the Keys the resulting damage and die off of mangroves, estuarine species and dependent wildlife and aquatic species could be staggering. Your help is needed!
http://keysspill.com/images/mast2.jpg http://keysspill.com/ "We Need Volunteers! Florida Keys Oil Spill Response In an effort to be proactive in protecting our Florida Keys environment, this website has been created to help link all partner projects (US Navy, Marine Sanctuary) with volunteers, including Charter Captains,Divemasters, businesses, organizations and individuals.This website is constantly being updated with the latest news on meetings and events, visit this site often to stay informed. Things that you might help with include pre-assessments, boom deployment, beach clean ups, boat work, organizing efforts, local informational meetings, trainings, etc. Please email "EVERYONE" you know and tell them to sign up at www.keysspill.com, we need volunteers. If the Gulf Spill enters the "Gulfstream Current Loop," oil could potentially be in the Keys area in as little as 5 days! We want to be prepared and you can help. (Note: Professional Wildlife Rehabbers are being sought click the link below for a PDF file with more info.) Professional Wildlife Rehabbers" There is a lot of information on the website including a calendar. This important course of some important things you need to know in a petroleum cleanup appears there: "May 11th (Tues) – OSHA Marine Oil Spill Class. This 4 hour course will give you the HazMat training needed to help with some aspects of Oil Spill Post Emergency Response and Clean Up. This course is designed mainly to address Safety and Healthy Awareness for Crude Oil exposures. It is OSHA certified HAZWOPER trianing as specified in 29 CFR1910.120(q)(11). The class is first-come-first-served, has 40 slots, and costs $100. To sign up, contact Cathy Torres at FKCC at (305) 809-3250.West" There are many useful links and other information at the website, http://keysspill.com/ Your help could make a difference, please get involved. . |
SERT Gator, a powerful visualization tool of threat, weather and response
http://www.fksa.org/albums/album501/Sert_Gator.jpg Located at http://map.floridadisaster.org/gator/ The State Emergency Response Team (SERT) have created this nice webpage integrating oil plume, weather and other data, emergency response by sector, search functions and a good deal more on an interactive map platform. Or, in bureau geek-speak: "Flex Viewer to demonstrate the best practice to develop GeoWeb application by leveraging the power of spatial technologies." Click on the earth icon beneath the title to convert it to a satellite map. It was created to deal with emergencies in general, so hurricanes, floods, droughts, fire, etc., you can check them out here and resources to go with. Lots of interesting features on this! More at: http://www.floridadisaster.org/eoc/update/home.asp and You can see some of this same stuff yourself on google earth. Just click on this flame icon off New Orleans and a window will pop up with several links. It will show you things like size, proximity and landfall of the oil plume: http://www.fksa.org/albums/album501/...re_5_15_10.jpg and http://www.fksa.org/albums/album501/...ume_5_8_10.jpg Actual fairly recent satellite imagery of the plume. This is from May 8, 2010. Note the wispy colored features around the release point and extending west, east and north. That is the oil plume. |
"Scientist: Oil may be entering Gulf Loop current, could reach Palm Beach County
Oil may be on its way. New satellite images show oil starting to enter the Gulf Loop current, which would pull it through the Florida Keys, into the Gulf Stream and up to Palm Beach County, according to a scientist tracking the oil spewing into the gulf. The new images, taken Saturday by NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, "clearly [show] that the oil is being pulled into the Loop current," according to a release from Mitch Roffer, an oceanographer who runs Roffer's Ocean Fishing Forecasting Service and has been providing daily updates on the spill's movement. "We still don't know how long it's going to take to get around to the Keys and then the east coast of Florida - it just remains to be seen," Roffer said Saturday. That process, which is difficult to predict, would take at least a week, and possibly several, scientists say." Continued: http://www.sun-sentinel.com/news/pal...,7727606.story "ROFFS™ OCEANOGRAPHIC ANALYSIS FOR THE DEEPWATER HORIZON OIL SPILL AREA UPDATED SATURDAY 15 MAY 2010 (16:00 HRS) See enclosed PDF analysis as the graphic is enclosed. Higher resolution graphics are available. We received some dramatic and clear synthetic aperture radar (SAR) imagery from the NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory (thank you Ben Holt) that clearly shows that the oil is being pulled into the Loop Current. The first two images are from today and the third and fourth one is from May 12, 2010. I have annotated the imagery so you can see the oil. On the image from May 12, one can also see the tendrils of oil that have moved west and southwest. These images confirm again our water mass– sequential image analysis technique that we have been using. See the analyses from earlier this week on other evidence of this. Obviously the oil has moved further into the Loop Current system than we had seen the last few days using infrared, ocean color and RGB satellite data. The question now is how fast and how much of this oil will be entrained into the Loop Current.The other critical questions are what is below the slick and what is in the water masses we have been tracking since the original spill? What will we do to stop the impacts of this oil and the other oil moving along the northern Gulf of Mexico." Continued at: http://www.roffs.com/DeepwaterHorizo...il15May10b.pdf http://www.fksa.org/albums/album501/plume.jpg JPL Imagery via Roffs. Labeling and highlighted areas have been added to aid clarity. You can see static and animated JPL sat. imagery of the Gulf, oil plume and Loop Current at ROFFS website where the plume appears to merge with the Loop Current at: http://www.roffs.com/deepwaterhorizon.html The animated imagery shows what appears to be the entrainment of the oil plume more clearly than the image above. http://www2.worldpub.net/images/MAR/...ROFFS04_02.jpg More Roffs imagery from earlier in the month. From: http://www.marlinmag.com/news/news/r...000082714.html Information was not provided regarding quantities and nature of the floating component of the spill that may be transported into the Straits of Florida. What near term impacts that may be experienced in these areas, if any, particularly closer to shore will be controlled in part by these factors and local weather/current conditions. Roffs previously monitored transport of oil spills created by Hurricane Katrina via the Loop Current into the Straits. . |
A NOAA document for - Oil Spills in Coral Reefs: Planning and Response Considerations
http://tinyurl.com/coralreefresponse This 2001 report summarizes relevant research on coral reefs. It was written for spill response decisionmakers and anyone working in or planning for spill response in coral reef regions. Oil Spills in Coral Reefs is the first in a series of publications prepared by NOAA's Office of Response and Restoration (OR&R) to provide response-related information on specific warm-water resources. * Title Page, Table of Contents, Introduction * Chapter 1, Coral Reef Ecology Introduces pertinent aspects of the coral ecosystem. * Chapter 2, Global and Local Impacts Summarizes the environmental impacts on coral from human and natural causes. * Chapter 3, Oil Toxicity to Corals A current review of the research available on oil toxicity to coral. * Chapter 4, Response Methods for Coral Reef Areas General guidance for responding to spills in coral reefs and specific considerations for open-water cleanup measures. * Chapter 5, Coral Reef Restoration Discusses the emerging science of restoration of damaged reefs, and presents data on recovery patterns and rates from a variety of impacts in coral habitats. * Chapter 6, Coral Case Studies Several case studies that illustrate a range of issues, including the new technologies being used to restore coral reefs. * Glossary * Coral Websites A list of websites that provide useful data on reefs. * Coral Reefs: Spills and Other Threats AND a response document for mangroves and oil spills at: http://tinyurl.com/mangroveoilresponse . |
REAL bad news if this is from the spill in the Gulf.
http://www.sun-sentinel.com/media/ph...5/53800238.jpg Tar balls retrieved from Fort Zachary State Park in Key West, Fla., is shown Monday, May 17, 2010, in this photo released by the U.S. Coast Guard on Tuesday, May 18, 2010. "Coast Guard investigates reports that more tar balls found in Florida Keys KEY WEST The Coast Guard was checking reports that more tar balls were found in the Florida Keys on Tuesday, a day after 20 of them were found off Key West. Tar balls were reported on the beach in Big Pine Key at 8 a.m., Smathers Beach in Key West at 8:20 a.m., and on Loggerhead Key in the Dry Tortugas National Park at 9 a.m., according to the Coast Guard. Twenty tar balls were found off Key West on Monday. They are being tested by the Coast Guard to see if they came from the Gulf of Mexico oil spill or elsewhere. Tar balls can occur naturally or come from other sources, such as ships. The Coast Guard said the Keys beaches remain open. Crews are checking the shorelines of Key West and Big Pine Key, and a helicopter is surveying the scene from the air. University of South Florida scientists are forecasting that oil from the spill off Louisiana could reach Key West by Sunday. The researchers said Tuesday that the southern arm of the massive spill has entered or is near the so-called loop current, which circulates in the Gulf and takes water south to the Florida Keys and the Gulf Stream. The Gulf Stream could eventually take the oil up Florida's Atlantic coast. Jane Lubchenco, administrator of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, says aerial surveys show some tendrils of light oil close to or already in the loop current. But most of the oil is dozens of miles away from the current. Lubchenco says it will take about eight to 10 days after oil enters the current before it begins to reach Florida. The Coast Guard reported that Monday's tar balls were found along the shore at Fort Zachary Taylor State Park in Key West. Samples of the tar balls — found by park rangers and ranging in size from 3 inches to 8 inches in diameter — will be sent to a Connecticut laboratory for analysis, according to the Coast Guard." Continued at: http://www.sun-sentinel.com/news/loc...,2331747.story and http://media.miamiherald.com/smedia/...filiate.56.jpg "Park rangers discovered 20 ''tar balls'' on a Key West shore and spotted oil residue farther west in the Dry Tortugas Tuesday, stirring fear that the first sign of the massive BP oil spill had washed up on a Florida shore. The Coast Guard urged calm and sent samples of the three- to eight-inch flattened tar balls for lab analysis in Groton, Conn., to determine whether the hazardous waste was from the massive leak in the Gulf of Mexico or perhaps oil remnants from a passing ship. ``There is no proof or reason to believe these tar balls are from the Gulf at this point,'' said Coast Guard Lt.j.g. Anna K. Dixon, adding that analysis of the tar balls' origins would not be complete before day's end. Still, the discovery stirred fears of a financial fallout -- stoked all the more by a fishing ban in 19 percent of the Gulf of Mexico, plus a grim new tracking map that graphically predicted a black oil slick encircling the Florida peninsula in 10 days. ``While I always hope for the best, this is looking like really out-of-control bad,'' Florida Democratic Sen. Bill Nelson said about fresh research by the University of South Florida College of Marine Science in St. Petersburg. The team predicted the Deepwater Horizon's slick would reach the Keys by this weekend -- and Miami next week. In the Keys, however, a midday survey found a second ``oil residue'' sighting at Loggerhead Key in the Dry Tortugas, said Larry Perez, information officer for Everglades National Park. Loggerhead is home to a well-known lighthouse in the popular if remote tourist destination -- about 70 miles west of Key West and far closer to the Gulf of Mexico. Perez said a U.S. Coast Guard team was flying to the island to inspect the shoreline. It was not immediately known when the oil residue was spotted, or whether it was the kind of tar balls found at Fort Zachary Taylor. Read more: http://www.miamiherald.com/2010/05/1...-over-tar.html " Roffs identified oil spill plume by the loop current in satellite imagery as far back as 2 weeks ago. That might explain the arrival of tar balls around now. More at: http://www.marlinmag.com/news/news/r...000082714.html |
Some good news,
"KEY WEST The Coast Guard announced this morning that that blobs of tar that have washed up on the Florida Keys this week are not related to the Gulf oil spill. The Coast Guard set to work analyzing blobs of tar that washed up on the Keys on Monday and Tuesday, as evidence mounted that at least some oil from the Gulf spill soon would be in South Florida. The analysis determined conclusively that the tar balls collected from the Keys beaches do not match the type of oil from the Gulf spill, the agency announced in a press release. The source of those tar blobs is unknown. "The conclusion that these tar balls are not from the Deepwater Horizon oil spill incident in no way diminishes the need to continue to aggressively identify and clean up tar ball-contaminated areas in the Florida Keys," said Capt. Pat DeQuattro, commanding officer of sector Key West. Tar balls washed up in Key West, Loggerhead Key in the Dry Tortugas and Big Pine Key, home of the Key Deer National Wildlife Refuge. Sticky blobs of congealed oil, which range from the size of a coin to the size of a baseball glove, occasionally turn up on beaches, having formed from oil dumped from ships' bilges, leaks from offshore rigs and natural seepage from the ocean floor. But their sudden appearance in the Keys prompted concern that the tar balls were the leading edge of a wave of oil headed for the state's coasts." Continued at: http://www.sun-sentinel.com/news/pal...,5068086.story More at: http://www.deepwaterhorizonresponse....oc/586/554303/ Back to waiting, hope not much makes it over to the east coast. Time will tell. |
USCG goes on record, acknowledges oil slick has intersected Loop Current:
"Part of the giant oil spill in the Gulf has entered the Loop Current and is headed for the Florida Keys, a Coast Guard official warned Florida members of Congress on Wednesday morning. The tar balls found in the Keys this week are unrelated to the spill, said Coast Guard Rear Admiral Paul Zukunft. But he said Floridians should expect to see tar balls from the spill in another week or two. Asked whether there is anything that can be done to stop the spill from coming ashore in South Florida, Zukunft said: “It would take an act of God. That technology does not exist.” He said the government is rounding up more floating boom to try to help protect the shores. But oil slicks can flow under the booms in heavy seas. Zukunft suggested setting up two lines of booms while trying to skim oil from the surface. The best way to fend off the slick, Zukunft said, is to apply chemical dispersants at the source of the spill. He said dispersants should not be used near the Keys because of its damaging effects on coral reefs. The admiral appeared before a meeting of the Florida delegation, full of members concerned about the slick’s impact on recreational boating, fishing and tourism. Scientists have warned since Monday that the slick had entered the current, but the Coast Guard had denied it. “The Loop current has intersected with the Southern-most part of that slick,” Zukunft acknowledged on Wednesday. It will likely be a week or more before the slick arrives at the southern tip of the state, he said. The tar balls already found in the Keys and tested in a lab could not possibly have come from the spill, he said. But he said the slick will show up in the form of tar balls on beaches when it does arrive.The Loop Current carries debris of all kinds from the northern Gulf all the way to the Gulf Stream that runs along the shores of southeast Florida and up the Eastern Seaboard. Zukunft said it likely will be August before the damaged well in the Gulf is sealed and the spill is stopped.** “We will never recover all that oil, 100 percent, at sea,” he said. “We will experience tar balls.”" From: http://weblogs.sun-sentinel.com/news..._headed_f.html ** Note: By some estimates that could equate to 8.4 Million barrels or 350 Million gallons of crude released to the ocean, plus or minus 70 Million gallons. HOPEFULLY, some of the efforts to diminish the flow will be significant in the next three months reducing this projection. What oil is released will be fair game for distribution by current forces and wild card factors introduced by tropical weather systems. This later factor could weigh significantly on the distribution, damage caused by and fate of components of the release. http://ocg6.marine.usf.edu/~liu/Drifters/roms35.png USF model of oil plume relative to the Loop Current and coast of Florida out to May 23, 2010. From: http://ocg6.marine.usf.edu/~liu/Drif...atest_roms.htm |
Regarding current conditions in the Florida Keys and Mainland, they're FANTASTIC, warm sunny and the water's great! Canceling reservations based on current conditions would be a mistake, leaving more Florida for those that do go to enjoy.
that said on to news updates ... "A small portion of oil from the BP spill could reach the Florida Keys within 10 days, although the bulk of the massive slick will remain in the Gulf of Mexico for the immediate future, federal authorities said Wednesday. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration said "light to very light sheens" had been picked up by the loop current, which conveys water from the Gulf along the Keys and up the southeast Florida coast. The possibility of a massive delivery of oil via the loop current has led to meetings among emergency officials in Broward, Miami-Dade and Palm Beach counties, as they plan how to protect beaches, wildlife and the tourist industry. But the small amount of oil picked up so far is unlikely to cause much harm to South Florida, authorities said. Much of it will evaporate along the way, and it might get caught up in a clockwise eddy that would prevent it from even leaving the Gulf, according to NOAA. "That oil is going to move slowly with the loop current, and we actually expect most of that to dissipate or probably degrade or weather before it actually comes close to threatening the South Florida area and the Straits of Florida," said Charlie Henry, scientific support coordinator for the oil spill for NOAA, at a news conference in Robert, La. The bulk of the oil remains well to the northwest. If the current reached up and caught that oil, the outlook for South Florida would be much worse. But at this point, officials said, the immediate danger to South Florida is minimal. Florida Department of Environmental Protection Secretary Michael Sole said Wednesday that he did not foresee a major environmental impact from the oil. By the time it reaches South Florida, much of it will have evaporated and what's left of it will have degraded and congealed into less toxic tar balls, he said. "When you look at the length of transport of the oil when it goes through the loop current, the expectation is that mostly it's going to be tar balls, which shouldn't be a significant impact generally," he said. "These are things that can actually be hand-picked up." COMMENT: Not if they clog up in the prop roots of mangroves or adhere to seagrass at lower tides. Weathering and characteristics of tar balls may differ. "They are significantly less toxic at that stage," he said. "I don't want to go to the extent of saying they are innocuous. They're not. They actually have an impact. Turtles will try to eat tar balls, which is obviously not a healthy thing for marine turtles. But it would not have a significant impact of the kind currently being experienced in Louisiana." Sole, who was in Washington on Wednesday for a meeting on the Everglades, does not foresee precautionary measures to protect the Everglades. "You can't boom against tar balls," he said. "Tar balls go underneath the boom, around the boom easily. It's really not something that you can take oil-spill precautionary measures." COMMENT: Not good news about booming off tar balls. If large quantities make it to the Keys, they could well foul mangroves along the Straits side of the Keys and worse be vacuumed into Florida Bay and the abundant estuarine areas there by tides and local winds. Depending on the consistency, softness of tar balls and response to mechanical pressures, they may be more or less of a problem. If they readily break open, less weathered petroleum will be exposed to air and water creating other issues. " Complete article at: http://www.sun-sentinel.com/news/pal...,2784720.story and "Efforts spring up to protect Florida Keys KEY WEST -- With the Gulf of Mexico's massive oil spill now in an ocean current that could bring it to Florida's East Coast, 74-year-old Bobby Kieber felt it was time to act. On Wednesday he went to Florida Keys Community College and plunked down $575 for a class to get him certified on how to do a coastal cleanup. ``I've lived here for 50 years and I make a living off the water,'' said Kieber, who makes his living sailing yachts between the Keys and the Caribbean. ``We're all doing what we can to stop this. When they need me, I'll be ready.'' Kieber was one of about 30 Keys residents who began the three-day Hazardous Waste Operations and Emergency Response course to achieve a technician level -- a standard set by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration, OSHA. There are other ways to contribute as well, and for free, environmentalists say. Volunteers can get trained on the spot and help clean up Sunshine State shorelines. The idea is to clear the shores of ordinary debris that can become hazardous once the oil hits it. All training emphasizes that volunteers don't touch hazardous waste -- and tar balls are hazardous material -- but instead alert hazmat teams to handle it. ``Preemptively removing artificial debris from the shoreline of the preserve will reduce potential impacts from oil, and it is good for the environment in any event,'' the Nature Conservancy of Florida said in a statement." "Meantime, the nonprofit Green Living Energy Education has divided up the Keys into a Coast Watch map that offers a grid at www.KeysSpill.com where trained volunteers can pick a portion of beach to clean, plus a coastal cleanup checklist and other critical information. The spill scare has put a spotlight on the grass-roots effort to the protect the Keys, said Dan Robey, a Key Largo author and environmental activist who created the site to mobilize local volunteers. ``People have adopted shores from the Upper Keys down to Key West,'' he said, noting: ``It's taken off way beyond what we've expected.'' About 500 people volunteered Tuesday, the day the tar ball discovery was publicized. In all, he said, 2,000 have volunteered. Hundreds of the volunteers include boat owners with large vessels that could be used to help lay booms or send out skimmers in the event that a slick of oil makes it down to the Keys, he said. But before boat owners can take on such work, they have to receive certification in a hazardous materials course." Complete article at: http://www.miamiherald.com/2010/05/2...otect-the.html |
So word on the street is that a giant oil spill exists and is predicted to bring oil to the keys. 20 tar balls happen to wash up in an area expected to get hit by oil yet these are unrelated? I'm not buying this one...
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Lots of oil in the ocean, finger printing crude is usually fairly easy to do as well. Any reports of rafts of tar balls off the Keys or new reports of tar balls on the beach? Seems like it is a matter of time but a lot depends on what quantity makes it into the Straits along, consistency of it and local weather conditions. and "Loop Current might swing west, lessen Keys oil threat With Monroe County newly added to Florida's list of areas under a state of emergency because of the BP Deepwater Horizon oil spill, Florida Keys residents can do little but watch the meandering of the Loop Current. But some good news: Oceanography researchers at the University of South Florida told the Tampa Tribune Friday that the Loop Current that would carry oil or tar down to the Keys could be shifting to the west, which could potentially direct the spill away from the Keys. Chuamin Hu, a UCF oceanography associate professor, called the perceived shift "absolutely good news for the Florida Keys. But that's not a 100 percent certainty. It's a possibility." Earlier this week, experts concluded that some oil from the month-old spill had entered the Loop Current, which normally circulates through the Gulf of Mexico. The current tends to carry gulf water down the state's west coast to the Florida Straits, which run eastward past the Florida Keys. A "tendril" of oil apparently had become caught in the outer bands of the current, which means some oil could reach Keys waters in days. Tar balls were found at seven locations in the Lower Keys Monday and Tuesday -- and since then some have been found as north as Islamorada -- but tests conducted at a U.S. Coast Guard laboratory concluded the chemical makeup of the Lower Keys balls proves they are not from the Deepwater Horizon spill. Information on the ones found in Islamorada wasn't available. However, tar balls similar to those could be the most visible sign of the spilled oil reaching the Keys, officials acknowledged. Some businesses have reported cancellations. The Key West Chamber of Commerce launched a survey on Friday asking how the spill has affected local businesses. The "Deepwater Horizon oil spill has created uncertainty in the minds of potential visitors," the chamber says. Islamorada offshore charter captain Larry Wren said one customer canceled his booked motel for a July trip and changed his fishing reservation "from a definite to a maybe," depending on the spill situation. "Another customer called to ask if we were still going out" Friday, Wren said. "I told him everything is fine." "There is definite worry about there" on local fishing docks, Wren said. "We were already impacted this year by the economy, and now this comes along. It's craziness."" Complete article at: http://www.keysnet.com/2010/05/22/22...wing-west.html |
http://oilspill.fsu.edu/model_output/latest_spill.gif
"Oil stays away from South Florida for now South Florida has gained a temporary reprieve from the danger of globs of oil arriving from the spill in the Gulf of Mexico, according to the state's top environmental official. Michael Sole, secretary of the Florida Department of Environmental Protection, said that two disruptions in the loop current, which leads from the Gulf of Mexico to the Gulf Stream off the southeast Florida coast, should keep the oil away, at least for now. An eddy at the top of the current has drawn away the portion of the slick that had been caught in the current. And at the south end, another eddy has pinched off the current entirely, he said. "This is great news," Sole said, speaking at a news conference with Gov. Charlie Crist at the state's emergency operations center in Tallahassee. "And what it does is keep the oil from getting into the Florida Straits." Oil — at least in the degraded congealed form of tar balls — had been expected to arrive in the Keys and South Florida within the next two weeks or so, but Sole said the disruptions in the current have stopped any movement of oil to the area. But the main part of the slick, which remains dozens of miles from the loop current, could constitute a much greater threat to South Florida if it got caught in the current. Also there is an unknown amount of oil beneath the ocean surface from the still-leaking well." http://snsimages.tribune.com/media/a...812-400225.jpg Continued at: http://www.sun-sentinel.com/news/bro...,6559446.story ... and where's Waldo the AUV? http://www.gizmodo.es/wp-content/upl...9/09/waldo.jpg "What will 'Waldo' find: Mote Marine releases robot into Gulf to search for oil By KATY BISHOP KEY WEST — This time, we know where Waldo is — it’s his turn to look for something. Researchers hope that a robot named Waldo will help them track oil in the Loop Current in waters off Key West. Scientists and engineers with Mote Marine Laboratories released the yellow, torpedo-shaped autonomous underwater vehicle into the waters about 25 miles northwest of the island Tuesday afternoon. The robot, programmed by researchers, will swim along a designated course, diving deep and rising again and again, looking for oil in the water. If it finds oil, it will record the geographic position and depth, as well as the concentration — and then send that information by satellite to researchers who are monitoring it." "The robot detects pure oil, oil with dispersants and weathered oil. Two similar robots are already deployed in the waters closer to the spill. Mote put another one in the Gulf last week off Venice and plans to put another one in the waters off the Keys. “The biggest value that this thing has is it’s 24/7 data,” said Alan Hails, an oceanographic instrument engineer with Mote. Over a period of about three weeks, Waldo will travel almost due west to a point about 50 miles north and 30 miles west of Dry Tortugas, sending information each time it surfaces." "Experts predict by the time the oil reaches the Keys it will be weathered into tar balls, which float on the surface, said David Vaughan, director of Mote’s center for coral reef research, who is captaining the boat. Tar balls probably wouldn’t affect the coral reefs as much, since the reefs are on the bottom, but they could get stuck in sensitive mangrove shorelines or sea grass beds. More concerning for corals is the chemical dispersant used by British Petroleum, he said. It’s been shown to be highly toxic to both hard and soft corals, with a 85 to 100 percent mortality rate." "When it’s time to dive, Waldo takes on water, making itself heavier, and when it wants to rise to the surface, it pushes that water out, Hails explains. At the surface, a bladder inflates with air, popping the tail out of the water so the antenna can communicate with the satellite. The scientific instruments are clustered in the center of the robot’s torpedo-shaped body, where there are four windows for Waldo to send out LED light beams. Sensors read the light reflected back from the water, calculating if there’s oil in the water by the amount reflected back. And that’s just the start — there are also other sensors that make sure that organic matter isn’t misidentified as oil, and devices that log temperature and depth and more." http://media.naplesnews.com/media/im...BOT05_t607.jpg http://www.naplesnews.com/news/2010/...ase-robot-gul/ |
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Fishery Closure area is almost over the Florida Keys. This area represents "the area the oil is projected to cover two days out." Not much commentary about this in the media yet. I wonder how accurate this is? HOW MUCH or how little does it take for NOAA to close an area to fishing anyway? NOAA animation of plume. Arrival at the Dry Tortugas forecast by June 4, 2010. "NOAA has extended the northern and southern boundaries of the closed fishing area in the Gulf of Mexico to capture portions of the slick moving into waters off eastern Alabama and the western tip of the Florida panhandle, as well as some large patches of sheen moving onto the west Florida shelf and southward to Cuban waters. This federal closure does not apply to any state waters. Closing fishing in these areas is a precautionary measure to ensure that seafood from the Gulf will remain safe for consumers." Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill: Federal Fishery Closure Frequently Asked Questions June 2010 Why is NOAA Fisheries Service prohibiting fishing in certain areas? NOAA Fisheries Service prohibited fishing in the area as a precautionary measure to ensure public safety and assure consumer confidence in Gulf of Mexico seafood. The goal of the closure is to encompass the area the spill has actually covered (based on a combination of satellite and overflight data) as well as the area the oil is projected to cover two days out. NOAA Fisheries Service strongly advises fishermen not to fish in areas where oil or oil sheens (very thin layers of floating oil) are present, even if those areas are not currently closed to fishing. A process to expedite modifications to the fishing closed area in the Gulf of Mexico has been established. Boundaries of the fishing closed area can be modified daily, based on dynamic oil spill conditions. The current Roff's chart of oil spill distribution: http://www.roffs.com/DeepwaterHorizo...E2010OilSM.jpg http://www.roffs.com/deepwaterhorizon.html ... Barbie posted an interesting discussion of the physical and biological interaction of the spill in Gulf waters from RSMAS. It is well worth reading, could provide some insight on things to come. http://www.rsmas.miami.edu/oil-spill...rspective.html . |
Spill Meeting on Monday at the IGFA in Dania, FL to discuss impacts on Diving, fishing, tourism, marine properties on the SE Coast. Listed as for captains, crew, property owners, hotel and restaurant owners. Two marine scientists, various captains will be presenting. Oh, there is an attorney sponsor who will be presenting as well likely discussing law suit opportunities. This was on a link that Barbie put up.
http://external.ak.fbcdn.net/safe_im...minarFlyer.jpg CLICK FOR FULL SIZED IMAGE ... "Oil sheen closes in on Tortugas Fishing is banned in parts of the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary west of the Dry Tortugas, where an oil sheen was 100 miles away and closing in on the area, federal officials declared Wednesday. Nearly 38 percent of the Gulf of Mexico, or 88,502 square miles, is now closed to fishing because of the Deepwater Horizon oil spill, said Roy Crabtree, the National Marine Fisheries Service's southeast regional director. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) expanded its fishing ban in federal waters effective at 6 p.m. after projecting the sheen would be within 50 or 60 miles of the Tortugas by Friday, Crabtree said. A spawning area for grouper and snapper that includes the Tortugas Ecological Reserve South and Riley's Hump is now in the closed area, according to a satellite overlay of the closure coordinates. While fishing already was banned in the reserve because it is an environmentally protected area, Florida Keys-based commercial and recreational fishermen often fish just outside the reserve. The closure comes at the height of the dolphin fishing season and as mutton snapper are congregating on the reef to spawn. "This is a very grave situation," said Florida Keys Commercial Fishermen's Association Executive Director Bill Kelly. Crabtree called for more sampling of water, fish and shellfish to see if they are being contaminated by oil, he said. "We need first-hand knowledge of what's going on," Crabtree said. A Mote Marine Laboratory underwater drone has not uncovered any traces of oil in the Tortugas, spokeswoman Nadine Slimak said Wednesday. The drone, called Waldo, was brought back to Mote and substituted with a new one this week after it had problems navigating the currents. Florida Gov. Charlie Crist requested the U.S. Department of Commerce declare a federal fishery disaster for Florida on Wednesday, as an oil sheen and tar balls were within 10 miles of Pensacola beaches. Crist cited the impact on the state's fishing industry in his letter to Commerce Secretary Gary Locke." More at: http://keysnews.com/node/23778 |
Some tar balls arrive at Pensacola in Panhandle of Florida. Just heard on NBC that the oil sheen is about nine miles offshore currently.
"Cap collects some Gulf oil; crude washes into Fla. By MELISSA NELSON and JAY REEVES (AP) – 35 minutes ago PENSACOLA BEACH, Fla. — Waves of gooey tar balls crashed into the white sands of the Florida Panhandle on Friday as BP engineers adjusted a sophisticated cap over the Gulf oil gusher, trying to collect the crude now fouling four states. Even though the inverted funnel-like device was set over the leak late Thursday, crude continued to spew into the sea in the nation's worst oil spill. Engineers hoped to close several open vents on the cap throughout the day in the latest attempt to contain the oil. As they worked on the system underwater, the effect of the BP spill was widely seen. Swimmers at Pensacola Beach rushed out of the water after wading into the mess while children played with it on the shore and others inspected the clumps with fascination, some taking pictures. Brown pelicans coated in chocolate syrup-like oil flailed and struggled in the surf on a Louisiana island, where the beached was stained in hues of rust and crimson, much like the color of drying blood. "In Revelations, it says the water will turn to blood. That's what it looks like out here — like the Gulf is bleeding," said P.J. Hahn, director of coastal zone management for Plaquemines Parish as he kneeled down to take a picture of an oil-coated feather. "This is going to choke the life out of everything."" http://www.sun-sentinel.com/media/ph...6/54114105.jpg http://www.sun-sentinel.com ... Jeff Masters speculates on where to from here with regard to the spill: "Onshore winds out of the south, southwest, or west are expected to blow over the northern Gulf of Mexico over through Tuesday, resulting in a continued threat of landfalling oil to Alabama, Mississippi, and the Florida Panhandle, according to the latest trajectory forecasts from NOAA and the State of Louisiana. The latest ocean current forecasts from the NOAA HYCOM model show that these winds will generate a 0.5 mph current flowing from west to east along the Florida Panhandle coast Sunday through Tuesday. If this current develops as predicted, it will be capable of bringing light amounts of oil as far east as Panama City, Florida, by Wednesday. Long range surface wind forecasts from the GFS model for the period 8 - 14 days from now predict a return to a southeasterly wind regime, which would bring the oil back over Louisiana by mid-June. If you spot oil, send in your report to http://www.gulfcoastspill.com/, whose mission is to help the Gulf Coast recovery by creating a daily record of the oil spill. Long range oil spill outlook The National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR) issued a press release yesterday showing 4-month model runs (Figure 1) of where the Deepwater Horizon oil spill might go. The model runs show that given typical ocean currents in the Gulf of Mexico, we can expect the oil to eventually affect most of the Florida Panhandle, Keys, and Florida East Coast, as well as coastal areas of South Carolina and North Carolina. Very little oil makes it to the West Florida "Forbidden Zone", where offshore-moving surface currents dominate. The oil may eventually affect three foreign countries: Mexico along the northern tip of the Yucatan Peninsula, Cuba near Havana, and the Bahamas in the Bimini Islands and along the western side of Grand Bahama Island. Once oil does get into the Loop Current, it will probably reach the coasts of France, Spain, and Portugal in about a year. The oil will be too dilute by then to be noticeable, though." Continued at: http://www.wunderground.com/blog/JeffMasters/show.html ... It has to go somewhere, here is what one model shows. This mistake could go a very long way impacting a tremendous area. "Ocean currents likely to carry oil along Atlantic coast June 03, 2010 BOULDER—A detailed computer modeling study released today indicates that oil from the massive spill in the Gulf of Mexico might soon extend along thousands of miles of the Atlantic coast and open ocean as early as this summer. The modeling results are captured in a series of dramatic animations produced by the National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR) and collaborators. "Oil has been pouring into the Gulf of Mexico since April 20 from a blown-out undersea well, the result of an explosion and fire on an oil rig. The spill is located in a relatively stagnant area of the Gulf, and the oil so far has remained relatively confined near the Louisiana and Alabama coastlines, although there have been reports of small amounts in the Loop Current. The model simulations show that a liquid released in the surface ocean at the spill site is likely to slowly spread as it is mixed by the ocean currents until it is entrained in the Loop Current. At that point, speeds pick up to about 40 miles per day, and when the liquid enters the Atlantic’s Gulf Stream it can travel at speeds up to about 100 miles per day, or 3,000 miles per month."" Continued at: http://www2.ucar.edu/news/ocean-curr...atlantic-coast . |
NOAA pulls Fishery Closure zone back westward into the Gulf away from the Dry Tortugas and the Florida Keys while moving it eastward into Florida's Panhandle.
http://www.fksa.org/albums/album509/...Map_060510.png Details: "NOAA Opens 16,000 Square Miles of Fishing Closed Area in Gulf of Mexico Closes 2,200-square mile stretch June 4, 2010 NOAA has opened more than 16,000 square miles of previously closed fishing area off the Florida coast. The most significant opening is a 13,653-square mile area just west of the Florida Keys and Dry Tortugas. It was initially closed on June 2 as a precaution because oil was projected to be within the area over the next 48 hours. However, the review of satellite imagery, radar and aerial data indicated that oil had not moved into the area. Additionally, the agency closed a 2,275-square mile area off the Florida panhandle federal-state waterline, extending the northern boundary just east of the western edge of Choctawhatchee Bay. For what it is worth, not much at this point, I was out a couple of miles offshore between Hillsboro Inlet and Hallandale Beach Blvd. yesterday. Fair quantity of sargassum mats but no overt evidence of tar balls or unusual oil slicks. Hope it stays that way." http://www.noaanews.noaa.gov/stories...4_opening.html ... http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/.a/6...0dbd970b-800wi "Efforts to contain the flood of oil into the Gulf of Mexico showed the first signs of progress as 6,000 barrels of oil were pumped to the surface after the fitting of a containment cap over the blown well, officials said Saturday, but it was an incremental step that offered no guarantees of long-term success. At a morning news briefing, Coast Guard Adm. Thad Allen, commander of the national response to the disaster, said BP officials still had not closed the four vents of the containment cap, which would allow the well to begin pumping oil to the surface at far greater capacity. In the meantime, thousands of gallons of oil are flowing into the sea as the massive slick hits shorelines and marshalnd in areas including Louisiana’s fishing towns and Florida’s white-sand beaches, where rust-colored globs are began washing ashore. Allen said it was crucial to close the vents slowly to avoid putting too much pressure on the cap, which is being held in place with the help of a rubber gasket. “They’re easing the pressure up to the vessel … so they can maintain control of the oil,” said Allen. As the vents are closed, officials must also ensure that water is not filtering in to mix with the oil and create hydrates, which led to the failure of an initial capping effort last month. That requires the pumping downward of methanol, meaning officials must maintain a delicate balance at depths of 5,000 feet in conditions that could be disrupted in the event a major storm or hurricane forms. Hurricane season began Tuesday. Allen said the full closure of the vents and the ramping up of oil production would depend on various conditions. “They’re making sure they don’t increase the production rate until it is safe to do so,” said Allen. He also noted that the containment cap was only an interim, partial solution that was never guaranteed to fully plug the leak. A cap can only go so far – the only real solution is the completion of two relief wells currently being drilled. When they are finished, it will enable BP to plug the blown well and stop the spill, the worst in U.S. history. One of the relief wells has been drilled to about 7,000 feet beneath the sea floor, less than half the distance it needs to go. The wells are not expected to be finished until early August." http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/gree...-cautious.html ... "Containment cap on spewing Gulf oil well offers hope even as slick spreads to new shores RAY HENRY, 12:38 p.m. EDT, June 6, 2010 NEW ORLEANS (AP) — A device sucking some of the oil from a blown-out well in the Gulf of Mexico offered a bright spot Sunday for a region that has seen its wildlife coated in a lethal muck, its fishermen idled and its beaches tarnished by the nation's worst oil spill. The containment cap placed on the gusher near the sea floor trapped about 441,000 gallons of oil Saturday, BP spokesman Mark Proegler said Sunday, up from around 250,000 gallons of oil Friday. It's not clear how much is still escaping; an estimated 500,000 to 1 million gallons of crude is believed to be leaking daily. While BP officials registered optimism, government officials monitoring the response to the spill were more cautious, wary of drumming up promises they couldn't deliver on. BP chief executive Tony Hayward told the BBC on Sunday that he believed the cap was likely to capture "the majority, probably the vast majority" of the oil gushing from the well. The gradual increase in the amount being captured is deliberate, in an effort to prevent water from getting inside and forming a frozen slush that foiled a previous containment attempt." http://www.sun-sentinel.com/news/flo...,7641682.story |
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"In Florida Keys, Residents Plan Their Own Spill Cleanup By Nathan Thornburgh / Key West Monday, Jun. 14, 2010 A small island in the middle of a big ocean, Key West has always made a virtue of its isolation. In 1982, for example, an onerous Border Patrol checkpoint on U.S. Route 1, which links the Keys to mainland Florida, resulted in the island's declaring itself the autonomous Conch Republic. This was, of course, mostly a joke ("We Seceded Where Others Failed" was its e pluribus unum), but the mayor's declaration of independence did include a twinge of real anger and a vow that "we have no intention of suffering in the future at the hands of fools and bureaucrats." Now, facing the possibility that oil from the Deepwater Horizon spill could arrive on its reefs and beaches in the coming weeks, many in the Florida Keys are once again angry about perceived fools and bureaucrats. In particular, they've watched how BP has monopolized and, in the eyes of many, mismanaged the oil cleanup in the northern Gulf of Mexico and are frantically trying to organize an independent local response.(See pictures of the oil spill.) "We cannot wait. We have to be prepared," says Dan Robey, whose website KeysSpill.com has gathered 4,000 volunteers, including 300 boat captains, who have offered to help before and after any potential arrival of oil. As Patrick Rice, dean of marine science and technology at Florida Keys Community College, puts it, "We will not allow the inept responses that have been happening up north to happen here." But there's a problem with their plans for grass-roots activism: BP (and the Deepwater Horizon's Unified Command, which BP runs with the Coast Guard and other agencies) has so far insisted on complete control of the cleanup operations. A BP spokesman told TIME that the only appropriate way for interested boat captains to become involved would be to register with the Unified Command's Vessels of Opportunity program. Never mind that according to BP's numbers, only a third of the 7,200 boats "under contract" through the program are in active service. Robey says captains in the Keys haven't even been able to register. "It's a joke, a total joke," he says. "Our people have called them for over a month. They don't return phone calls." Read more: http://www.time.com/time/nation/arti...996441,00.html http://www.keysspill.com/images/mast2.jpg . |
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http://www.fksa.org/albums/album501/...hflorida_2.jpg You can download the original pdf files at: http://response.restoration.noaa.gov...uthflorida.pdf and regarding reefs: What Happens When Oil Collides with Coral? As Researchers Struggle to Bring Dying Reefs Back to Life, They Worry about Threat of Approaching Oil By Kelly Cobiella June 15, 2010 http://wwwimage.cbsnews.com/images/2...ge6585992g.jpg Click image for CBS video (CBS) Marine scientist Meaghan Johnson is fighting a battle few ever see - she's slowly bringing Florida's coral reefs back to life, reports CBS News correspondent Kelly Cobiella. Thirty feet below the surface Johnson showed Cobiella row after row of coral alive and growing after decades of being battered by disease and warmer water. All of it was planted here by scientists and each fragment started out as only a couple of inches tall. It all started in Ken Niedemeyer's backyard in the Florida Keys. His daughter needed a 4-H project so they decided to try growing coral. "Good thing I never read about it because everyone said it couldn’t be done," Neidermeyer said. Their technique worked. They took it to researchers and nine years later it has blossomed to this - the largest man-made nursery project with 5,000 coral colonies growing underwater from Fort Lauderdale to the Virgin Islands. Scientist clip and plant new coral just like pruning a tree, and anchor it with underwater glue. When the coral is big enough, it's moved to a reef to replace dead or dying coral. "It's just amazing what happens," Neidermeyer said. "A lot more habitat for fish, for juvenile fish, for large fish, for invertebrates." But they're now facing a new threat - BP oil. Every day, Johnson anxiously checks the forecast for the Gulf "loop current," the system that seasonally carries water, and anything in the water, eastward through the Florida Keys. "It's definitely devastating to watch what's happening in the gulf and know that it could come here," Johnson said. "I think we are all worried about what's going to happen in this project." There's little they can do to protect the nurseries. If the oil is weathered and weakened enough, Johnson thinks the young coral just might pull through. "Those are our little babies, you know," Johnson said. "We put those guys out there. And it's nice to come back in a month or two and see them actually growing. And feel like, 'Wow, I did that. You know, I'm helping. I'm doing something good.'" With oil coming a little closer every day, she's hopeful at least some of that "good" will survive. " http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2010/...n6585811.shtml More about the Florida Reef Resilience Program at: http://frrp.org/ and warmer waters at: http://www.npr.org/templates/story/s...oryId=14212267 |
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