In another example, Feinberg said the fund was not meant to pay out to all home owners whose properties had declined in value.It seems very unlikely BP will be paying out $20B in claims.
"There's no question that the property value has diminished as a result of the spill. That doesn't mean that every property is entitled to compensation," he said, adding: "There's not enough money in the world to pay everybody who'd like to have money."
The annual summer "dead zone" in the Gulf is fueled by farm chemicals carried by the Mississippi and Atchafalaya rivers. Nitrogen and phosphorus in agricultural runoff stimulates algae growth in the Gulf.posted by saulgoodman at 7:58 AM on August 4, 2010 [1 favorite]
When these tiny plants or fecal matter from animals that eat them settles to the bottom waters, decomposition of this organic material by bacteria consumes oxygen in the water, the consortium said.
The result, the researchers said, is oxygen depletion that forces many types of fish, shrimp and crabs to leave the area or suffocate. Animals that live in the sediments that can survive with little oxygen will die if the oxygen level falls toward zero.
The latest estimate makes the Gulf spill the world's biggest accidental oil leak, the Financial Times reported. It is much more substantial than the estimated 3.3 million barrels spilled into the Bay of Campeche in 1979, the FT said.posted by saulgoodman at 8:01 AM on August 4, 2010
In another example, Feinberg said the fund was not meant to pay out to all home owners whose properties had declined in value."
"'There's no question that the property value has diminished as a result of the spill. That doesn't mean that every property is entitled to compensation,' he said, adding: 'There's not enough money in the world to pay everybody who'd like to have money.'
The oil spews from rusted and aging pipes, unchecked by what analysts say is ineffectual or collusive regulation, and abetted by deficient maintenance and sabotage. In the face of this black tide is an infrequent protest — soldiers guarding an Exxon Mobil site beat women who were demonstrating last month, according to witnesses — but mostly resentful resignation.posted by seanyboy at 8:52 AM on August 4, 2010
Small children swim in the polluted estuary here, fishermen take their skiffs out ever farther — “There’s nothing we can catch here,” said Pius Doron, perched anxiously over his boat — and market women trudge through oily streams. “There is Shell oil on my body,” said Hannah Baage, emerging from Gio Creek with a machete to cut the cassava stalks balanced on her head.
Another potential problem is that when microbes eat oil, a byproduct is carbon dioxide — a greenhouse gas. In an area as large as the Gulf, could it be enough to hurt the ozone layer?So while I agree with the obvious fact that, we don't know what the full scale of the long-term impacts from this event will be, I still feel obliged to stress it is far from clear that "mother nature" has already taken care of the bulk of the problem. And it strikes me as incredibly stupid that anyone would want to help promote that deception.
"We don't have that answer,'' Grimes said.
"There's a lot of . . . smoke and mirrors in this report," said Ian MacDonald, a professor of biological oceanography at Florida State University. "It seems very reassuring, but the data aren't there to actually bear out the assurances that were made."posted by saulgoodman at 6:35 AM on August 5, 2010
. . .
Those facts [in the report] did not seem to support a statement that White House climate and energy czar Carol M. Browner made Wednesday on NBC's "Today" show. An initial assessment showed that "more than three-quarters of the oil is gone. The vast majority of the oil is gone," she said. At best, the report shows that three-quarters of the oil could be on its way out: It does not say that it has vanished.
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posted by IvoShandor at 1:03 AM on August 4, 2010