Gulf oil spill

NEW ORLEANS — The gooey oil washing into the maze of marshes along the U.S. Gulf Coast could prove impossible to remove, leaving a toxic stew lethal to fish and wildlife, government officials and independent scientists said.

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Barack Obama directed the government Friday to set the first-ever mileage and pollution limits for big trucks and to tighten rules for future cars and SUVs, setting the nation’s sights on vehicles that run on half the fuel they now use and give off half the pollution.

From HuffingtonPost.com: Yesterday in Venice, Louisiana, fishermen and local residents called a press conference to talk about the air. People complained of the oily smells when the wind is blowing off the water, and listed symptoms including headaches, nosebleeds, asthma attacks, cough, nausea, and vomiting. Those who had been out on the water said it […]

From the New York Times: MIAMI — Off Florida’s Gulf Coast, the seas are calm and the king mackerel are running. Captain Joe Meadows’s telephone should be ringing with bookings for his 42-foot sport fishing boat for the summer season. Instead, the calls are from reservation holders wondering if they should cancel.

From BlackEngineer.com: Tony Watson, a 31-year U.S. Navy veteran and 1988 winner of the Black Engineer of the Year Government Award says that stopping the flow of oil can be fixed immediately by new technology ready for immediate deployment.

WASHINGTON – Scientists are anxiously awaiting signals about where a massive oil slick in the Gulf of Mexico may be heading, while containment of the looming environmental catastrophe proves elusive.

WASHINGTON – Last week, it was oil executives who faced the wrath of lawmakers eager to find blame for the massive oil spill spreading in the Gulf of Mexico.

From the NY Times: Scientists are finding enormous oil plumes in the deep waters of the Gulf of Mexico, including one as large as 10 miles long, 3 miles wide and 300 feet thick in spots. The discovery is fresh evidence that the leak from the broken undersea well could be substantially worse than estimates […]

WASHINGTON — Declaring himself as angry as the rest of America, President Barack Obama assailed oil drillers and his own administration as he ordered extra scrutiny of drilling permits to head off any repeat of the sickening oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico. Engineers worked desperately to stop the leak that’s belching out at […]

From NYTimes.com: NEW ORLEANS — At almost 300 years old, somewhat moldy from the remnants of Hurricane Katrina and surrounded by muddy water and swamps, this city is not exactly known for being lemony fresh. But from the French Quarter to New Orleans East, people here have been complaining about a tinge to the air […]

From the NY Times: Two weeks ago, the government put out a round estimate of the size of the oil leak in the Gulf of Mexico: 5,000 barrels a day. Repeated endlessly in news reports, it has become conventional wisdom.

From CNN: NEW YORK — BP knew of problems with an offshore well hours before it exploded last month, spilling millions of gallons of oil into the Gulf of Mexico, a House committee chairman said Wednesday. Rep. Henry Waxman, D-Calif., said the oil company told the Energy and Commerce subcommittee on oversight privately that the […]