Green News

Yet another mix of risky undersea robot maneuvers, containment devices and longshot odds is being prepared to fight the uncontrolled gusher feeding the worst oil spill in U.S. history.

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Despite golf balls, tires, 30,000 horsepower of pumps and 30,000 barrels of dense drilling mud chock full of barite, BP's so-called " top kill " operation failed to stop the disastrous oil leak in the Gulf of Mexico and was abandoned on the afternoon of May 29. The idea was to muscle the oil back into the well with a steady stream of mud--a technique that has worked on land. [More]



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BP Chief Operating Officer Doug Suttles said the company is preparing for the next attempt to stop the leak. The method involves cutting off the damaged riser from which the oil is leaking and capping it with a containment valve that's already on the seafloor.

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Oil giant BP says it won't know for another day or two whether its effort to stop the flow of oil in the Gulf of Mexico has succeeded. While the company works on a plan referred to as the “Top Kill,” oil continues to spread across the water and into fragile coastal areas. On Friday, President Obama got a first-hand look at the damage and said his administration will do whatever it takes to end the disaster. But an aerial view of the contaminated water shows what a challenge that is.

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Rep. Ed Markey, who chairs House committees on energy, says BP is vastly understating the amount of oil flowing into the Gulf in order to decrease fines, which are based on the number of barrels leaked per day. Host Scott Simon talks with Markey about his criticism of the oil company and its efforts to contain the oil spreading in the Gulf of Mexico.

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President Barack Obama visited Louisiana Friday for a first-hand look at the oil-soaked Gulf of Mexico waters. He toured the command center and met with Gulf state governors and a number of local officials.

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Venice, Louisiana, proudly calls itself the world’s “Fishing Capital” but as the Memorial Day holiday weekend gets under way, there are times when it seems journalists outnumber anglers in this steamy bayou town. There are also lots of fishing and charter guides with no or few clients.

Venice caters to recreational anglers in pursuit of legendary game such as redfish and it is suffering as the spill spreads from the ruptured well out in the Gulf of Mexico.

I have spoken to several fishing guides over the past couple of days and they all complain about BP — held squarely responsible for the mess — the situation, and the numerous clients who keep canceling their trips.

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration announced on Friday that it was extending the closed fishing area to about 25 percent of the Gulf from around 19 percent before, dealing a further blow to both commercial fishermen and sport angling guides.

But what surprises me as someone who just arrived here a couple of days ago is the trickle of boats still leaving the Venice Marina with angling clients. They seem to be going either close inshore or very far because of the closures.

Several of the guides I spoke to said there were still inshore areas open to fishing though one said, “We have to work harder for the fish because the good areas we normally go to are closed.” Some grumbled that the media coverage was obscuring this fact.

Guide Jeff Fuscia , while loading his 24-foot (7-1/2 meter) boat onto a trailer, told me on Friday his clients that morning had taken their limit of five redfish each and had released several more. But another guide told me while fueling up his large boat that he was going out 130 miles (215 kms) to get well beyond the restrictions.

This is all very frustrating especially as this is the start of the peak sport fishing season, which runs until early September.

Even more worrying perhaps is the uncertainty over the spill and the impact it could have on Gulf fish stocks in the long run, not least because it has been unleashed just as many species start to spawn.

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Many Louisiana restaurants are worried that oil gushing into the Gulf of Mexico will drive customers away -- even though the seafood is safe. Restaurant owners have sued oil giant BP, and they're spreading the word that they won't put unsafe food on their tables. Ewell Smith of the Louisiana seafood board says they're facing a "perception challenge."

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Back in the 60’s, in efforts to help heal a skin condition, my family doctor advocated a high level of sun exposure and UV treatments. Thinking that the sun could only help improve my condition – there were many intentional sun exposures, skin burnings/peelings, convertible top-down rides and sun lamp exposures. Fast forward about 25 years! The sun/UV exposure therapy started to reap negative benefits in my late 40’s – the generation of keratoses started and continued well into my 50’s. By my late 50’s – the crown jewel of skin cancer manifested itself. When I had my skin checked by my dermatologist, he urged me to have a biopsy of a suspicious darkened skin patch on the side of my forehead. Three days later I remember getting the call at work from my dermatologist – “It’s a melanoma and you have to get it out – fast!” My life immediately was placed on hold for three weeks until the surgery. With support and guidance from my wife Marisa, who was an oncology nurse, along with my dermatologist and cosmetic surgeon – the melanoma was removed successfully.

Since that time, I have become an advocate for what I call “sun sense” – especially for young children and adults. Our schools need to take sun safety seriously and run programs designed to make students aware of the damaging effects of the sun – encouraging “sun sense.”

To help foster this action, I have written several safety columns in cooperation with my dermatologist for science teachers on how to help students understand the causes, risks and preventative actions needed to help prevent skin cancer – especially at their young age. EPA programs like SunWise and the public health campaign of Don’t Fry Day also help spread the word about this ever increasing problem.

My own lifestyle has changed dramatically as a result of dodging this bullet. I am always searching the Internet for mainstream and alternative health actions to try and help rectify the damage done to my skin. With semiannual skin inspections by my dermatologist, juicing key fruits and vegetables, supplementing with Vitamin D, smart UV clothing, sunscreen and more, I attempt in earnest to reduce and repair damage done as much as possible. In addition, I remain vigilant and missionary in helping to get the word out there – covering up is good sun sense!

Learn how to do full body scans at: www.aad.org/public/exams/self.html

About the author: Dr. Ken Roy is a melanoma skin cancer survivor. He is known as the “safety marshal.” He is an environmental health and safety compliance officer for a public school district in Connecticut, safety consultant and author/columnist worldwide. He is a staunch advocate for what he calls “sun sense.” As part of his advocacy and protection, he wears wide brim western-style hats – thus the “safety marshal” persona was created!

BP says it could taken another day or two before engineers know whether their "top kill" approach to stopping the gusher in the Gulf has worked. NPR's Richard Harris talks with Michele Norris about the latest fix attempt.

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The University of Virginia announced Thursday it will fight a demand by state Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli to turn over e-mails and other records related to research done by climate scientist Michael Mann. Mann is the author of the famous "hockey stick" graph showing an abrupt increase in global temperatures in recent decades. Cuccinelli says he wants to know if Mann defrauded taxpayers when he applied for grants to conduct his research at the university.

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President Barack Obama traveled to the Gulf Coast on Friday to see firsthand the efforts to contain the oil spill. NPR's Don Gonyea speaks with Michele Norris about the president's tour.

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Back in the days when better living through chemistry was a promise, not a bitter irony, nylon stockings replaced silk, refrigerators edged out iceboxes, and Americans became increasingly dependent on man-made materials. Today nearly everything we touch--clothing, furniture, carpeting, cabinets, lightbulbs, paper, toothpaste, baby teethers, iPhones , you name it--is synthetic. The harmful side effects of industrialization--smoggy air, Superfund sites, mercury-tainted fish, and on and on--have often seemed a necessary trade-off.

Wondering what to do with that old PC case? You could turn it into a planter, and grow strawberries in winter. "Cheap vegetable gardener" Shawn Verrall describes how he gardens in his limited backyard space, in a less-than-ideal climate, without spending a lot of money.

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Thirty-one years ago, the Ixtoc I well blew out in the Gulf of Mexico after its blowout preventer failed. Cleanup crews responded with oil booms, skimmers and detergents. Ira Flatow and guests discuss why, three decades later, oil cleanup crews still rely on the same technology.

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Bernd Heinrich started collecting birds and eggs when he was a child. The Nesting Season is a collection of his observations of nests, eggs and the birds that make them, illustrated with his watercolors and photographs. Heinrich describes his life-long interest in nature.

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President Obama visits the Gulf Coast of Louisiana Friday for a first-hand view of the massive oil spill and its devastation. Polls show that more than half of Americans think the president has done a poor job of responding to the spill. Meanwhile, Obama is taking heat from leading Republicans for what they say is a lack of communication with GOP leaders. Guest host Tony Cox talks about President Obama’s political dilemma with NPR News Analyst Juan Williams and writers Mary Kate Cary, of US News and World Report, and Reihan Salam, of the New America Foundation.

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Sprawling blooms of cyanobacteria have swathed the surfaces of lakes and oceans around the world for billions of years. But the serene, blue-green algae may be leaching a neurotoxin into the aquatic food chain, according to a study published May 3 in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences ( PNAS ). The report revived a nearly 50-year-old debate over the role, if any, of the toxin in the process of neurodegeneration.

Hi! I’m Anne Keisman and I work on the Be Out There campaign at the National Wildlife Federation (NWF). Sometimes I can’t believe my luck – every day I am tasked with coming up with new ways to inspire people – especially parents and children — to go outside and play. I’m excited to partner with Don’t Fry Day to spread the word about sun safety. At NWF, we love to promote the positive side of the sun. It helps green things grow, keeps animals warm, and lets us see the world around us.

And children love the sun too. From the moment they can wield a crayon, plump yellow suns show up in their drawings – right next to the fluffy white clouds!

But — like many things in nature — the sun can be dangerous if we don’t take precautions. If you know the facts about protecting your family, you won’t have to be anxious when your family heads out to the beach or the park.  Once you’re protected from UV rays, pledge to spend more time outside with your family. Kids today spend twice as much time indoors as their parents did, missing out on the simple pleasures and lasting mental and physical health benefits of daily outdoor time.

NWF recommends that parents give their kids a “Green Hour” every day — time for unstructured play and interaction with the natural world. Be Out There’s practical tools for families, schools and communities make being outdoors a fun, healthy and automatic part of everyday life.

Stumped for ideas for outdoor fun? Check out National Wildlife Federation’s Summer Guide and our Green Hour activities for great tips for your family.

And on June 26, camp under the stars – in your own backyard! Join the Great American Backyard Campout.

Have fun in the sun!

About the author: Anne Keisman is Senior Associate Editor for the Be Out There Campaign at the National Wildlife Federation. Follow her at www.twitter.com/greenhour.

The president traveled to Louisiana for his second trip to the Gulf Coast since the Deepwater Horizon disaster, as Coast Guard officials said heavy mud injected into the blown-out Gulf wellhead has stopped the flow of oil and gas -- at least temporarily. BP said it could take 48 hours to know whether the top kill procedure worked.

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