Category: oil spill
It was months before the EPA released the list of chemicals used in Corexit, BP's favorite dispersant, and that was just a list. There was no context or explanation of why this particular formulation was reportedly so much more poisonous than any of the others. Literally, people were begging for explanations via Twitter. Wouldn't it have made more sense for government toxicologist to have provided a solid analysis? Wouldn't that have built some good will?
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Posted by Deborah Blum at 4:23 PM • 14 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
Category: oil spill
So a moment to vent here: I'm disappointed in NOAA, which should be leading the way rather than footdragging along. It is an agency that houses some outstandingly good scientists and has history of doing excellent and independent work. I'm disappointed in NOAA head Jane Lubchenco, who until - well, until this oil spill - had a reputation for being a straightforward communicator. And I dislike, hate, really, the way such weaseling around makes our government appear afraid of offending the oil industry.
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Posted by Deborah Blum at 3:51 PM • 12 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
Category: methane
Just a reminder that this isn't just an "oil" spill. It isn't just about what we see. It's also about what we don't see. And the time to acknowledge that - and here's an idea, actually try to do something about it - happens to be now.
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Posted by Deborah Blum at 2:47 PM • 18 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
Category: oil spill
But also let's look past the Oil Spills For Dummies approach regarding those underwater plumes.
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Posted by Deborah Blum at 10:29 PM • 18 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
Category: oil spill
Is the use of chemical dispersants protecting the Gulf of Mexico or is it protecting BP?
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Posted by Deborah Blum at 1:53 PM • 10 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
Category: chemistry
But once the oil washes ashore, we have an environment awash in benzene, toluene, ethylbenzene and xylene. And that's why biologists worry when oil-soaked birds groom their feathers and swallow the oil. And that's why health officials worry about clean-up workers and Gulf coast residents breathing tainted air and touching oil-soaked materials.
And that's why there's still no one lining up at the BTEX bar for just a quick drink of even the sweetest crude on earth.
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Posted by Deborah Blum at 11:32 AM • 14 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
Category: oil spill
Tomorrow, I want to take up the chemistry of crude oil itself, which is actually poisonous enough without help from dispersants. But today, I just want to say thanks to those who wrote in on the subject. I wish the people in charge knew as much as you do.
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Posted by Deborah Blum at 1:20 PM • 7 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
Speakeasy Science is a blog about culture and chemistry.
