Adelson reports: "About 565,000 pounds of oiled material from the Deepwater Horizon spill was brought to the surface by Hurricane Isaac."



Local workers without protective suits are doing the bulk of the gulf cleanup. (photo: Environmental Defense Fund)

Cleanup Workers Hospitalized After BP Oil Washes Ashore in Gulf

By Jeff Adelson, The Times-Picayune

bout 565,000 pounds of oiled material from the Deepwater Horizon spill was brought to the surface by Hurricane Isaac, more than had been collected in eight months before the storm, the state's coastal protection agency said Wednesday. The post-storm figures were announced as members of the state's Coastal Protection and Restoration Authority sharply criticized continuing clean-up efforts by BP and the U.S. Coast Guard and called for more resources to deal with oil that is still below the surface of the gulf, an amount believed to be equal to about 1 million barrels.

The amount of oil churned up in the month after the storm served as a springboard for members of the authority to voice open frustration with on-going issues caused by the April 2010 spill, including reports of poor shrimp harvests near Grand Isle, health impacts from the cleanup and a slow response when oil is spotted.

"This is proof to our point that they're wrong and have been wrong for over a year now," Coastal Restoration and Protection Authority Chairman Garrett Graves said at a Wednesday meeting, referring to the way the long-term cleanup has been handled.

The amount of material, including tar mats and tar balls, that was collected in the month after the storm is about 120,000 pounds more than had been found since January, according to the authority. And in many cases, getting the new sightings taken care of has been slowed by the process put in place to clean them up.

Oil has showed up on at least 660 miles of Louisiana's shoreline but most of that is no longer under "active response." While BP is responsible for cleaning up in those active response zones, it is up to local governments or residents to report oil that shows up outside of them -- and that must be tested before the U.S. Coast Guard calls in BP.

"Just the fact that they're relying on us to find it is outrageous," said state Rep. Ray Garofalo, R-Meraux. "The Coast Guard should be siding with us and not with BP."

In the case of Bay La Mer and Comfort Island, where large tar mats were discovered over the past month, the lengthy process has still not resulted in the oil being cleaned up.

"It's been 25 days and 13 days and the oil is still out there on those two tar mats," said Drue Banta, an attorney with Gov. Bobby Jindal's office who has been handling issues related to the spill. "This underscores the need for proactive long-term reconnaissance and removal of oil from our coast."

Banta noted that officials had raised concerns about removing those two areas from active response before that decision was made.

BP officials said last month that they wanted to "deep clean" Louisiana beaches to remove oil and tar. The process, which would essentially involve sifting sand to separate it from the oily material, has been received with concern by Louisiana officials, who have worried it will increase erosion and kill off organisms that live in the sand.

The plan, which would need approval from state officials, federal agencies and the U.S. Coast Guard, did not come up during Wednesday's meeting.

Overall, about 4.9 million barrels of oil spilled into the gulf during the Deepwater Horizon disaster and 1 million barrels are still unaccounted for.

"They want it sunk," Plaquemines Parish President Billy Nungesser said. "It's out of sight, out of mind, and we continue to see that."

In addition to the tar washing ashore, a new sheen has also been confirmed at the Macondo well, the site of the Deepwater Horizon disaster. Tests have confirmed the oil came from the site and a remote submersible has been sent down to check the riser, well head and cofferdam, Banta said.

State officials have not yet received any reports on the submersible's findings, she said.

The issue of both uncovered and submerged tar has been particularly problematic on Grand Isle. Mayor David Camardelle said the city has not received the manpower needed to clean up oil that has washed ashore, including a tar mat he described as "big as a school bus." Some of those who have been sent to clean up have had to be hospitalized with breathing problems, he said.

While the uncovered tar has been a problem for the island's tourism industry, the spill and the remaining submerged oil has been a problem for shrimpers and crabbers in the community. Hauls near the island have been small or non-existent, a problem the mayor, a shrimper himself, blamed on the disaster.

Some shrimpers have to had to choose between making payments on their boat or keeping a roof over their head, Camardelle said. Others have said they've had to go to the waters off Mississippi to catch shrimp.

"Bring the people to clean up our mess so we can bring our people back," he said.

Had the oil remained submerged it would have continued to damage the underwater environment, Banta said.

Jefferson Parish President John Young suggested that by calling attention to problems with the clean-up, the newly surfaced oily material might spur action.

"Maybe Isaac was a blessing in disguise because it brought to fruition what we thought was going to happen," Young said. "It brought the oil up."