http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2012/mar/31/dolphins-sick-deepwater-oil-spill

New studies show impact of BP’s Deepwater Horizon disaster on dolphins and other marine wildlife may be far worse than feared

Peter Beaumont
guardian.co.uk, Saturday 31 March 2012 12.15 BST

A new study of dolphins living close to the site of North America’s worst ever oil spill – the BP Deepwater Horizon catastrophe two years ago – has established serious health problems afflicting the marine mammals.

The report, commissioned by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration [NOAA], found that many of the 32 dolphins studied were underweight, anaemic and suffering from lung and liver disease, while nearly half had low levels of a hormone that helps the mammals deal with stress as well as regulating their metabolism and immune systems.

More than 200m gallons of crude oil flowed from the well after a series of explosions on 20 April 2010, which killed 11 workers. The spill contaminated the Gulf of Mexico and its coastline in what President Barack Obama called America’s worst environmental disaster.

The research follows the publication of several scientific studies into insect populations on the nearby Gulf coastline and into the health of deepwater coral populations, which all suggest that the environmental impact of the five-month long spill may have been far worse than previously appreciated.

Another study confirmed that zooplankton – the microscopic organisms at the bottom of the ocean food chain – had also been contaminated with oil. Indeed, photographs issued last month of wetland coastal areas show continued contamination, with some areas still devoid of vegetation.

The study of the dolphins in Barataria Bay, off the coast of Louisiana, followed two years in which the number of dead dolphins
found stranded on the coast close to the spill had dramatically increased. Although all but one of the 32 dolphins were still alive when the study ended, lead researcher Lori Schwacke said survival prospects for many were grim, adding that the hormone deficiency – while not definitively linked to the oil spill – was “consistent with oil exposure to other mammals”.

Schwacke told a Colorado based-publication last week: “This was truly an unprecedented event – there was little existing data that would indicate what effects might be seen specifically in dolphins – or other cetaceans – exposed to oil for a prolonged period of time.”

The NOAA study has been reported at the same time as two other studies suggesting that the long-term environmental effects of the Deepwater Horizon spill may have been far more profound than previously thought.

A study of deep ocean corals seven miles from the spill source jointly funded by the NOAA and BP has found dead and dying corals coated “in brown gunk”. Deepwater corals are not usually affected in oil spills, but the depth and temperatures involved in the spill appear to have been responsible for creating plumes of oil particles deep under the ocean surface, which are blamed for the unprecedented damage.

Charles Fisher, one of the scientists who jointly described the impact as unprecedented, said he believed the colony had been contaminated by a plume from the ruptured well which would have affected other organisms. “The corals are long-living and don’t move. That is why we were able to identify the damage but you would have expected it to have had an impact on other larger animals that were exposed to it.”

Chemical analysis of oil found on the dying coral showed that it came from the Deepwater Horizon spill.

The latest surveys of the damage to the marine environment come amid continued legal wrangling between the US and BP over the bill for the clean-up. BP said the US government was withholding evidence that would show the oil spill from the well in the Gulf of Mexico was smaller than claimed. Last week BP, which has set aside $37bn (£23bn) to pay for costs associated with the disaster, went to court in Louisiana to demand access to thousands of documents that it says the Obama administration is suppressing.

The US government is still pursuing a case against BP despite a deal the company reached at the beginning of March with the largest group of private claimants. That $7.8bn deal, however, does not address “significant damages” to the environment after the spill for which BP has not admitted liability. And it has not only been the immediate marine environment that has been affected. A study of insect populations in the coastal marshes affected by the catastrophe has also identified significant impact.

Linda Hooper-Bui of Louisiana State University found that some kinds of insect and spider were far less numerous than before. “Every single time we go out there, the Pollyanna part of me thinks, ‘Now we’re going to measure recovery’,” she said. “Then I get out there and say: ‘Whaaat?'” She had expected that one group of arthropods might be hit hard while others recovered, but her work, still incomplete, shows a large downturn among many kinds. “We never thought it would be this big, this widespread,” she said.

For its part BP has claimed in a recent statement that it has worked hard to fulfil its responsibility to clean up after the spill. “From the beginning, BP stepped up to meet our obligations to the communities in the Gulf Coast region, and we’ve worked hard to deliver on that commitment for nearly two years,” BP chief executive Bob Dudley declared recently.

Special thanks to Richard Charter

http://www.japantoday.com/category/world/view/u-s-agency-stops-seismic-tests-in-gulf-of-mexico-worries-about-dolphins

WORLD APR. 03, 2012 – 06:07AM JST ( 0 )

NEW ORLEANS –
With sick and dead dolphins turning up along Louisiana’s coast, federal regulators are curbing an oil and natural gas exploration company from using seismic equipment that sends out underwater pulses known to disturb marine mammals.

The Bureau of Ocean Energy Management has told Global Geophysical Services Inc to not conduct deep-penetration seismic surveys until May, when the bottlenose dolphin calving season ends. The agency says the surveys are done with air-guns that the emit sounds that could disrupt mother and calf bonding and mask “important acoustic cues.”

The company said it laid off about 30 workers because of the restriction, which it called unnecessary.

But environmental groups suing BOEM over the use of underwater seismic equipment say restrictions should be extended to surveyors across the Gulf of Mexico.

The new limit on exploration highlights the friction over oil drilling in the Gulf since the April 20, 2010 blowout of a BP PLC well that resulted in the death of 11 workers and the nation’s largest offshore oil spill in the nation’s history.

After the 2010 spill, the Natural Resources Defense Council and the Center for Biological Diversity sued to get curbs placed on underwater seismic surveys. The environmental groups argued they harm marine mammals and that the federal government violated animal protection laws after it declared in 2004 that the surveys were safe.

The government is in settlement talks with those environmental groups, according to court documents.

“Imagine dynamite going off in your neighborhood for days, months on end,” said Michael Jasny, a senior policy analyst at the NRDC. “That’s the situation these animals are facing.”

Jasny said the restriction placed on Global Geophysical was a good sign, but far from enough.

In its ruling, the federal agency said it was concerned that seismic surveys could affect marine mammals, and even cause them to lose their hearing.

Amy Scholik, a fisheries biologist with NOAA, said it was unknown what kind of effects air-guns have on bottlenose dolphins, but she said there was concern about possible effects on dolphin calves because they are vulnerable to stresses. She added that whales in Alaska have been shown to change migration routes because of seismic surveys.

George Ioup, a physics professor at the University of New Orleans studying the effects of air-guns on marine mammals, said the verdict was out on the effects of air-guns on mammals. He said BOEM seemed to be ruling “on the side of caution.”

“Proving there is an effect, I don’t know if that has been done,” he said. “I don’t think the answer is overwhelmingly simple.”

The air-guns are towed at low speeds behind a survey ship and emit high-intensity, low-frequency sound waves to find geological layers. Seismic surveying is essential to drillers because they tell them where to drill and not drill.

The government also relies on the seismic data to know where it’s safe to drill and to determine how much it should charge for leasing offshore blocks to oil and gas companies.

Marc Lawrence, Global Geophysical’s vice president in the Gulf region, said the seismic surveys do not pose a danger to marine mammals.

“We see no hazard to them whatsoever,” Lawrence said. As proof, he said dolphins routinely ride along with ships when they are conducting surveys.

He said the restriction covers an area that ranges out to about 20 miles (32 kilometers) off the Louisiana coast. He called BOEM’s restriction unprecedented. His company is searching for overlooked reservoirs in areas along the central Louisiana coast: Grand Isle, Timbalier island, the West Delta and south Pelto.

This is the same area where government scientists say they have found sick and dead dolphins.

From February 2010, NOAA has reported 180 dolphin strandings in the three parishes that surround Barataria Bay-Jefferson, Plaquemines and Lafourche-or about 18% of the 1,000 estimated dolphins in the bay.

Last month, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration said it had found 32 dolphins in the bay underweight, anemic and showing signs of liver and lung disease. Nearly half had low levels of stress hormones that help with stress response, metabolism and immune function.

Lori Schwacke, a NOAA scientist, said the dolphins’ hormone problems could not definitely be tied to the oil spill but were “consistent with oil exposure.”

Over the same period of time, NOAA says 714 dolphins and whales have been found stranded from the Florida Panhandle to the Texas state line, with 95% of those mammals found dead. Normally, the region sees 74 reported dolphin deaths a year.

Special thanks to Richard Charter

http://www.chron.com/business/article/Bromwich-Offshore-drilling-regulators-need-to-3448986.php

By Jennifer A. Dlouhy
Updated 06:57 a.m., Sunday, April 1, 2012

Michael Bromwich testifies in 2010 about overhauling the federal agencies that oversee offshore drilling. Now he urges more aggressive enforcement action. Photo: Jay Westcott / Bloomberg News

WASHINGTON – The former prosecutor who overhauled the federal agencies that oversee offshore drilling in the wake of the Gulf of Mexico oil spill wants to see regulators do more to publicly advance new safety rules and enforce the ones already on the books.

“There has been a decline in the amount of public activity,” said Michael Bromwich, who left his post as interim head of the Interior Department’s Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement late last year. “I haven’t seen a lot of evidence of activity.”

As the two-year anniversary of the Deepwater Horizon disaster approaches on April 20, a long-planned major drilling safety rule shows no signs of being proposed soon. There also haven’t been big public crackdowns on offshore drilling violations recently, following the safety bureau’s high-profile move last year to pursue penalties against BP and other companies associated with the Gulf spill.

In 2011, the federal government issued 2,690 “incidents of noncompliance” to companies that work offshore, the first step in penalizing the firms for violating rules governing the outer continental shelf. That included the high-profile notices issued for alleged violations tied to the Gulf spill to BP as well as Halliburton and Transocean – which was then an unprecedented move against offshore contractors.

So far this year, 390 have been issued, but none have drawn the public attention of last year’s BP spill infractions.

“If you’re going to be a credible regulator, you’ve got to be aggressive in your enforcement,” Bromwich said in an interview. “We all need to see evidence of aggressive enforcement.”

Bromwich’s comments come nearly four months after he stepped down as the safety bureau director and as he launches the Bromwich Group, a Washington-based consultancy aimed at advising companies on revamping their operations and combating systemic problems in law enforcement agencies.

‘Fix-it guy’

Known as a “fix-it guy” with a history of cleaning up troubled organizations – including two years focused on the Houston Police Department crime lab amid allegations of bad management – Brom- wich also is looking to help oil and gas companies work with foreign regulators and help other countries set up programs to regulate offshore drilling.
Although Bromwich expects to focus on foreign oil and gas issues and has pledged not to actively lobby the federal bureaus that oversee offshore drilling, he said he will also work for energy companies looking for guidance on complying with new U.S. safety and environmental rules.

Rule change in works

At the Interior Department, Bromwich drew criticism for pushing major changes in offshore drilling rules too quickly for companies to keep up. One promised change – a broad new offshore drilling safety rule – has yet to materialize.

Regulators have spent more than a year working on that measure, which would set new standards for the design of subsea wells and blowout preventers used as emergency safeguards against unchecked oil and gas.

The safety bureau was close to proposing those mandates late last year. Bromwich said he hopes they materialize soon.

“It is important to make it clear that this is a continuing process and the rules have to reflect technological developments that are going on in the industry,” he said. “You can’t sit back and do nothing.”

“There has to be a continuous and very public involvement in pushing the regulatory frontier forward. Regulations have to change, they have to evolve and there has to be continuous improvement.”

Under Bromwich’s 14-month tenure at the Interior Department, regulators were planning to propose a single safety rule, with the contents guided by several technical reports on the Deepwater Horizon disaster.

“My notion all along was that you wanted to wrap as much as you could into the one proposal,” he said.

But his successor, retired Coast Guard Rear Adm. James Watson, plans a different approach. The safety bureau is now preparing “a small number of focused rules that can more quickly address the most pressing safety issues,” said bureau spokesman Nicholas Pardi. The bureau “expects to be able to issue proposals this year for new rules to improve blowout preventer and production system safety, while we continue to fully evaluate the recommendations from the many Deepwater Horizon investigations and assess the need for additional rule-makings.”

One major change after the 2010 spill was a requirement that companies be able to contain and capture crude from damaged underwater wells. The Marine Well Containment Co. and Helix Well Containment Group are now providing that equipment in the Gulf.

But critics, including some environmental groups, say existing tests of the systems don’t guarantee they will work in an emergency. And they insist there is no assurance the offshore drilling industry is prepared for a wide variety of possible emergency scenarios that don’t look like what happened to BP’s Macondo well two years ago.

Industry readiness drills match Interior Department requirements, Helix spokesman Cameron Wallace stressed.

“As the scope of future drilling operations might evolve, the methods of testing response readiness to contain a potential spill will evolve with them,” Wallace said.

Industry leads the way?

Bromwich stressed the importance of testing emergency equipment in a range of realistic scenarios, but said the oil and gas industry might have to lead the way.

One candidate to do such emergency planning and testing could be the industry’s new Center for Offshore Safety, created by the American Petroleum Institute and headed by Shell Oil Co.’s former chief well engineering scientist, Charlie Williams.

The government doesn’t have sufficient resources to prepare for a full range of worst-case scenarios, Bromwich said. “Because the government is always going to be constrained Š inevitably it’s going to be industry that needs to carry a lot of the weight on that,” he added.
jennifer.dlouhy@chron.com Twitter: jendlouhyhc

Special thanks to Richard Charter

http://articles.cnn.com/2012-03-26/us/us_gulf-oil-coral_1_deepwater-horizon-oil-spill-coral-communities?_s=PM:US

OIL SPILL

March 26, 2012|By Matt Smith, CNN

*
Researchers found coral at the bottom of the Gulf of Mexico covered with “black scum” and gooey brown mixture of materials.

The Deepwater Horizon oil spill damaged coral formations deep beneath the surface of the Gulf of Mexico and miles from the ruptured well at the heart of the disaster, researchers reported Monday.

Scientists using remote-controlled probes and the venerable research submersible Alvin spotted a coral colony covered in “black scum” about 7 miles (11 kilometers) southwest of the undersea gusher, Penn State University biologist Charles Fisher said. Another nearby formation was covered in a gooey brown and white mix of oil and organic materials from the coral, he said.

“What this does tell us is there was acute damage to a reef 7 miles away,” Fisher said. “It tells us it’s likely this oil hit a lot of other areas of the seafloor.”

Fisher was the chief scientist for an expedition that surveyed the area in November and December 2010 with funding from the National Science Foundation. Some of the findings are being published this week in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

Samples taken from the coral beds, located at a depth of about 4,300 feet, matched the chemical fingerprint of the oil from the Macondo well, said Helen White, the lead author of the paper documenting the results.

An estimated 4.9 million barrels (206 million gallons) of crude poured into the Gulf after the April 2010 explosion that sank the drill rig Deepwater Horizon and killed 11 men aboard. Oil spewed into the sea for nearly three months before a cap was placed on the BP-owned Macondo well, nearly a mile beneath the surface.

Scientists have previously confirmed that a plume of hydrocarbons from the well settled in the deep Gulf. White, a geochemist at Haverford College in Pennsylvania, said other data is still being analyzed.

“I think it’s going to take a while before we understand the long-term impacts of the spill,” she said.

Fisher said coral is a good bellwether because it is stationary, draws sustenance from the surrounding water and provides a refuge and breeding ground for other marine life.

“When a coral gets insulted, if you will, what it does is it produces a lot of mucus to try to get rid of that insult, kind of like we do reacting to dust or hay fever,” he said. The coral would normally shed that material, but in this case, it started to die, and the oil and other residues stuck to it.

What scientists saw wasn’t a “big puddle” of oil, “but there was enough in it that we could vacuum it off and fingerprint it,” he said.

“It certainly told us that we need to look around for more coral communities in the area and try to define the full footprint of the impact,” he said.

Special thanks to Richard Charter