This Gulf of Mexico oil spill may make Exxon Valdez seem like child’s play. Image via MNN
The massive oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico, is already being referred to by many as “President Obama’s Katrina.” The ongoing spill, a direct result of an explosion on an offshore oil drilling platform has resulted in millions of gallons of crude oil moving toward the American Gulf Coast in an ever widening oil slick that is “threatening to surpass the 1989 Alaskan Exxon Valdez oil spill disaster that occurred 20 years ago,” according to CNN.
President Obama himself went on nation-wide TV to say “although British Petroleum is responsible for the damage being done (since the well was in a field being explored by BP) we all share responsibility for the consequences of the environmental and economic damage being caused by this tragedy”.
Already, fishing grounds off the Louisiana coast, as well as waterfowl nesting and breeding grounds, are threatened by the spill. Certain fish species such as bluefin tuna, which breed in the Gulf of Mexico, may be especially in danger.
The plight of bluefin tunas from over-fishing was already noted in my article on March 26, this year.
Why this current environmental nightmare may have implications for other parts of world, including the Middle East, is evident due to current offshore exploration for natural gas now going on in the Eastern Mediterranean. The environmental ramifications of offshore drilling for natural gas in this region was also noted in another article on Green Prophet. Oil and gas spills make us mad and worried.
The present oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico is still to early to come to a final conclusion as to the magnitude of the damage that will be caused. But critics to the current US Administration say that like the Katrina hurricane disaster in August, 2006, the response by the Obama Administration is “too little – too late.”
Due to this, and the implications this disaster will have on offshore drilling in other areas (including the eastern Mediterranean), more will be said about this subject in future articles. Meanwhile you can follow updates on the Gulf of Mexico spill on the US Environment Protection Agency, via Mother Nature Network.
Author: Maurice Picow
Maurice Picow grew up in Oklahoma City, U.S.A., where he received a B.S. Degree in Business Administration. Following graduation, Maurice embarked on a career as a real estate broker before making the decision to move to Israel. After arriving in Israel, he came involved in the insurance agency business and later in the moving and international relocation fields. Maurice became interested in writing news and commentary articles in the late 1990’s, and now writes feature articles for the The Jerusalem Post as well as being a regular contributor to Green Prophet. He has also written a non-fiction study on Islam, a two volume adventure novel, and is completing a romance novel about a forbidden love affair. Writing topics of particular interest for Green Prophet are those dealing with global warming and climate change, as well as clean technology - particularly electric cars.
Why is the URL stating “blame the British”?Do you actually mean blame the British people for the oil slick, or BP (a company)?
I would like to add that we can't put all the blame on the Brits just because they bought Gulf Oil Company a number of years ago. Gulf was a big oil and natural explorer and producer in the Gulf of Mexico; and along with other American oil companies (Texaco in particular)have been in involved in these offshore wells there for years. But no matter who is considered to be responsible, the damage has been done; and the question now is whether the Gulf Coast can be saved. This well continues to spew oil into the water and could take 3 months to cap!