(No) Oil in the Keys

[Speargirl]

Morning paper Tar balls turn up in the Lower Keys
The oil and tar is here NOW how bad is it going to be who knows... But it is here.

 

[ONESPEED]

Morning paper Tar balls turn up in the Lower Keys

Also in the morning paper, and posted above, it's not related to the spill. Gulf oil spill: Key West tar balls not related to spill, Coast Guard said - South Florida Sun-Sentinel.com

 

[DennisS]

They were showing tar balls from Key West on the news and one of them had barnacles growing on it, probably not from the oil spill

 

[Speargirl]

These tar balls and they Are sticky, everything is sticking to them. All we can do now is see how bad this is going to be for us. Hope it does not hit your beaches in Miami.

 

[deepstops]

These tar balls and they Are sticky, everything is sticking to them. All we can do now is see how bad this is going to be for us. Hope it does not hit your beaches in Miami.

Comprehend this: they flew samples to lab in CT to see if they originated from the leak in the Gulf and the testing showed they are from a different source.

The mile long "pink" oil slick referenced on Spearboard is more likely red diesel fuel, not Gulf crude oil.

I have been going to the beaches in Dade, Broward, and points north since the 60's and tarballs have ALWAYS been there. As ONESPEED stated, anyone from here knows to keep some turpentine and rags handy because it's a fact of (beach) life.....

 

[ONESPEED]

These tar balls and they Are sticky, everything is sticking to them. All we can do now is see how bad this is going to be for us. Hope it does not hit your beaches in Miami.

 

[kjvander]

Tar balls are common on our beaches, as I stated in another thread everyone who lives on the beach keeps a bottle of turpentine and rags on their porch in case they step in tar.

Olive oil works just as well and is a little more environmentally friendly....coming from someone that used to work in a plant that manufactured tar..

Anyway....back to your regularly scheduled program...appologize for the hijack...

 

[ONESPEED]

Olive oil works just as well and is a little more environmentally friendly....coming from someone that used to work in a plant that manufactured tar..

Anyway....back to your regularly scheduled program...appologize for the hijack...

Good tip, I'll try it.

 

[porbeagle]

Deepstops is right of course about our needing oil,and I sense Onespeed agrees with him.
I might be careful about going out on a limb Deepstops,what with how hugh a screwup BP
has made. Depending on currents,wind direction and continued leakage,this may turn out to be
the worst spill the world has ever seen.Or not. But to even appear to lean to the side of the
"Drill Baby Drill" wingnuts may be regreted,especially since that crowd has been instrumental
in restricting safety devices on oil platforms. Acoustical shutoff valves cost $500,000 per
deep oil rig and are required by law in all countrys except the US.Having such a law would
have meant NO oil spill. Our oil companies,along with their Drill Baby Drill suporters got
off cheap with no oversight from above.But at what cost to us the taxpayers,the divers,
commercial fisheries, sport fishermen,resort and vacation business. wildlife,beachgoers,
yada yada yada.Try to mitagate the looming disaster if you will, But I'd keep my head
down on this one if I were you,because,depending on the wind & current you may regret
your position. Or not.

 

[deepstops]

Deepstops is right of course about our needing oil,and I sense Onespeed agrees with him. I might be careful about going out on a limb Deepstops,what with how hugh a screwup BP has made. Depending on currents,wind direction and continued leakage,this may turn out to be the worst spill the world has ever seen.Or not. But to even appear to lean to the side of the "Drill Baby Drill" wingnuts may be regreted,especially since that crowd has been instrumental in restricting safety devices on oil platforms. Acoustical shutoff valves cost $500,000 per
deep oil rig and are required by law in all countrys except the US.Having such a law would have meant NO oil spill. Our oil companies,along with their Drill Baby Drill suporters got off cheap with no oversight from above.But at what cost to us the taxpayers, the divers, commercial fisheries, sport fishermen,resort and vacation business. wildlife,beachgoers, yada yada yada. Try to mitagate the looming disaster if you will, But I'd keep my head down on this one if I were you,because,depending on the wind & current you may regret your position. Or not.

First, I think you're reading a LOT more into my post than what I wrote. All I'm saying at this point is this:

THE OIL FROM THE GULF IS NOT IN THE KEYS (YET)

I think every expert agrees it's not "if" the oil reaches the Florida Current, it's "when".

As far as BP goes, their safety record isn't stellar, they had a huge refinery blow-up about five years ago in TX City because they should have been flaring fumes from an evacuated ISOM tank they were bringing back online.

There will be lot's finger pointing in this tragedy but there's not a single rig in the Gulf operating with acoustic switches even though they (the oil companies) all know it adds another level of safety.

The villain here is the industry itself (not just BP).