Has oil reached Panama City?

[Hetland]

I've heard on a few occassions that 1 gallon of motor oil can contaminate 1,000,000 gallons of water - yikes. I know whats floating out there isn't refined motor oil, but still...

I can believe "contaminated" as far as using it for drinking water. I don't know what it would take to fork the food-suitability of fish, shrimp, etc, but I've heard some stuff locally from scientists that is pretty scary.

 

[jhayes75]

The following is quoted from GulfBase - General Facts about the Gulf of Mexico


The Gulf of Mexico basin resembles a large pit with a broad shallow rim. Approximately 38% of the Gulf is comprised by shallow and intertidal areas (< 20 m deep). The area of the continental shelf (< 180 m) and continental slope (180 - 3,000 m) represent 22% and 20% respectively, and abyssal areas deeper than 3,000 m comprise the final 20% (Gore, 1992). The Sigsbee Deep, located in the southwestern quadrant, is the deepest region of the Gulf of Mexico. Its exact maximum depth is controversial, and reports by different authors state maximum depths ranging from 3,750 m to 4,384 m. Mean (average) water depth of the Gulf is ~1,615 m (Turner, 1999) and the basin contains a volume of 2,434,000 cubic kilometers of water (6.43 * 1017 or 643 quadrillion gallons

Today, the Gulf of Mexico is a small oceanic basin surrounded by continental land masses. Due to their physical structure, the Gulf and the Caribbean Sea are sometimes combined and referred to as the 'American Mediterranean'. Uchupi (1975) divides the Gulf into two distinct geographical provinces (Terrigenous and Carbonate) while Antoine (1972) recognizes seven. The scheme proposed by Antoine is presented here, with additional information derived from other sources.
1) Gulf of Mexico Basin
This portion of the Gulf of Mexico contains the Sigsbee Deep and can be further divided into the continental rise, the Sigsbee Abyssal Plain, and the Mississippi Cone. Located between the Sigsbee escarpment and the Sigsbee Abyssal Plain, the continental rise is composed of sediments transported to the area from the north. The Sigsbee Abyssal Plain is a deep, flat portion of the Gulf bottom located northwest of Campeche Bank. In this relatively uniform area of the Gulf bottom, the Sigsbee Knolls and other small diapiric (salt) domes represent the only major topographical features. The Mississippi Cone is composed of soft sediment and extends southeast from the Mississippi Trough, eventually merging with other sediments of the central basin. The cone is bordered by the DeSoto Canyon to the east and the Mississippi Trough to the west, and has been described in detail by Ewing et al. (1958).


GULF FOOTNOTES

• The Gulf of Mexico yields more finfish, shrimp, and shellfish annually than the south and mid-Atlantic, Chesapeake, and New England areas combined.
• More than 400 species of shells can be found in the Gulf of Mexico. Gulf beaches are considered the best shelling beaches in North America.
• The world's longest man-made beach is located on the Mississippi Gulf Coast &#8211; 26 miles long.
• The Mississippi River deposits more than 3.3 million gallons of water into the Gulf every second.
• The Mississippi River contributes more than 90 percent of the fresh water entering the Gulf.
• Bottlenose dolphins are the most common dolphin species in the Gulf and are estimated to number up to 45,000.

 

[SuPrBuGmAn]

Now this seems way off to me. Being that water and oil do not mix, just the surface would be contaminated.

I'd guess it breaks down after a point - dunno, but a quick search online will just verify that information being generally accepted.

Point in fact, not all the oil gushing since this rig incident is on the surface.

I can believe "contaminated" as far as using it for drinking water. I don't know what it would take to fork the food-suitability of fish, shrimp, etc, but I've heard some stuff locally from scientists that is pretty scary.

Like I said, its not the same, but its just a bit of info to provide the extent of what a little can do to alot.





I don't think it does ANYONE any good to downplay exactly whats happening. Its bad news and its gonna make a difference.

 

[PatMyGreen]

When and if we get oil on the Beaches I will post post pics of the mess and of us cleaning it up until it is gone. I will add that I fear the wide spread use of the dispersant more than anything the oil will do to the beaches. While there is little good science to prove it beyond the shadow of a doubt, it has been implicated in the collapse of several otherwise healthy fish stocks in Alaska following the Valdez spill. Not exactly something I want to contemplate given the current science's view on grouper, AJ and snapper in the Gulf. Sea water will also slowly emulsify the oil so the stuff that comes ashore will not likely be the thick black oil we remember from the Valdez spill. Which pretty much was oil dumped pretty near shore by comparison.

 

[rambo]

For up dates on the oil spill trajectory, please check out the site listed below:

The Deepwater Horizon oil spill trajectory hindcast/forecast based on RTOFS (Atlantic)

Panama City, for now, STILL has great diving. Please do not let the media scare you into not taking your much needed vacation.

 

[mike_s]

Tar balls from oil spill appearing on Dauphin Island - WLBT 3 - Jackson, MS:


Tar balls from oil spill appearing on Dauphin Island
Posted: May 08, 2010 7:27 PM CDT Updated: May 08, 2010 7:27 PM CDT

MOBILE BAY (WLBT) - A coast guard official says tar balls from a massive oil leak have been washing up on Dauphin Island since about noon Saturday.

The Barrier Island is at the mouth of Mobile Bay and about three miles from the coast.

BP's Chief Operating Officer says attempts made Friday to use a containment box over the oil leak in the Gulf are not working. CEO Doug Suttles made the announcement in a press conference Saturday.

BP said ice crystals formed inside the box when it was placed over the massive oil leak. Suttles said the dome cap currently sits about 200 meters away from the leak source on the sea floor.

"I wouldn't say it's failed yet. What I would say is what we attempted to do last night didn't work because those hydrates plugged up the top of the dome. What we're currently doing is expecting that it could take 48 hours to see is there a way to overcome this problem," Suttles said.

According to interviews with rig workers in BP's internal investigation, a bubble of methane gas triggered the April 20th blast that killed 11 workers. On Tuesday and Wednesday, the coast guard and the minerals management service plan to hold public hearings on the investigation.

Congressional committees also plan to hold hearings. NOAA said Friday the oil will make landfall in Mississippi on the Barrier Islands and our coastline by Sunday.

 

[brianwhite]

ill be in biloxi tuesday, hoping theres not oil all over the place..

 

[Hetland]

Dove the Mass yesterday (5/8) at the mouth of Pensacola Bay. Zero oil, tar or sheen. No dead critters either. Pensacola is safe at the moment.

 

[Abaco24]

Good to hear about P-Cola

 

[teal24]

Quick question for some locals, was looking at the tide chart for PCB and wanted to dive the jetties at St Andrew Sunday afternoon. The low tide is around 3:30, and was wondering if it would decent enough to dive around 5-6 that afternoon. Thanks for any replies