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NOAA: Keys appear clear from oil threat
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By KeysNet Staff
Posted - Friday, July 30, 2010 06:06 PM EDT
In its first definitive statement since it said on July 2 that the Keys would likely see some oil from the Deepwater Horizon oil spill, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration said on Friday that a new analysis shows the Florida Keys and the rest of South Florida are unlikely to experience any effects from the remaining surface oil.
No oil has leaked from the Deepwater Horizon well in 15 days, and the surface oil that remains is hundreds of miles away from the Loop Current that runs down Florida's west coast, wraps around the Keys and then heads up the east coast. The oil is in the process of degrading.
"This announcement further confirms what Florida's reconnaissance efforts have long suggested -- that oil is not likely to reach the Loop Current," said state Department of Environmental Protection Secretary Michael Sole. "Our focus remains on response and recovery; however, the threat of oil reaching Florida's shores is dramatically reduced with each day the well is capped."
According to NOAA, a large Loop Current eddy, called Eddy Franklin, has pinched off and detached from the Loop Current. As of Sunday, Eddy Franklin was more than 100 miles from the nearest surface oil associated with the Deepwater Horizon well.
Until the Loop Current fully reforms -- which is not projected to occur for several months -- there is no clear way for oil to be transported to South Florida. At that point, it's expected that the majority of remaining surface oil will have dissipated.
E-Mail this story
Print this story
tool nameclose tool goes here
By KeysNet Staff
Posted - Friday, July 30, 2010 06:06 PM EDT
In its first definitive statement since it said on July 2 that the Keys would likely see some oil from the Deepwater Horizon oil spill, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration said on Friday that a new analysis shows the Florida Keys and the rest of South Florida are unlikely to experience any effects from the remaining surface oil.
No oil has leaked from the Deepwater Horizon well in 15 days, and the surface oil that remains is hundreds of miles away from the Loop Current that runs down Florida's west coast, wraps around the Keys and then heads up the east coast. The oil is in the process of degrading.
"This announcement further confirms what Florida's reconnaissance efforts have long suggested -- that oil is not likely to reach the Loop Current," said state Department of Environmental Protection Secretary Michael Sole. "Our focus remains on response and recovery; however, the threat of oil reaching Florida's shores is dramatically reduced with each day the well is capped."
According to NOAA, a large Loop Current eddy, called Eddy Franklin, has pinched off and detached from the Loop Current. As of Sunday, Eddy Franklin was more than 100 miles from the nearest surface oil associated with the Deepwater Horizon well.
Until the Loop Current fully reforms -- which is not projected to occur for several months -- there is no clear way for oil to be transported to South Florida. At that point, it's expected that the majority of remaining surface oil will have dissipated.
