Posted on 11/27/2010 8:42:11 PM PST by neverdem
An early government assessment of the fate of the oil from the BP spill in the Gulf of Mexico that was criticized as overly optimistic by some independent scientists was largely accurate, according to a revised report by federal scientists released Tuesday.
The preliminary analysis, announced in August, estimated that roughly three-quarters of the oil had been eliminated — captured at the wellhead, skimmed from the surface, chemically dispersed or burned, or evaporating or breaking down through natural processes.
About one-quarter of the oil had either washed up on shore or remained in the gulf as sheen, tar balls or weathered oil. An estimated 4.9 million barrels of oil escaped from BP’s blown-out well.
The new report revises some of those initial findings, but reaches broadly similar conclusions over all, said Jane Lubchenco, the administrator of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
“Today’s report, now that we’ve had time to reflect, is a validation of the original numbers,” Ms. Lubchenco said at a news briefing.
But she also cautioned that the new figures were simply a refined estimate of where the oil went in the early months of the spill and did not reflect where the residual oil was now, or the ultimate environmental impact of the spill.
“It does not tell us where the oil is today or its final fate,” she said. “This report does not address impact at all.”
Unlike the initial report from August, the latest assessment was peer-reviewed by independent scientists and accompanied by extensive technical documentation. Most notably, it concludes that chemical dispersants were about twice as effective as had been initially thought and were responsible for breaking down about 16 percent of the oil from the spill, rather than 8 percent.
The report also concludes that by early August, about 36 percent of...
(Excerpt) Read more at nytimes.com ...
The Feds do a study and find that the Feds did a grand job all along. Well, then it's settled I guess.
Hi, I am a Scientist who works for the Government. They pay me!
But, I am completley impartial.
I have studied the Gulf SPill, and the Goverment is right, the damage was not that severe, and the cleanup has been good. 75% of its all clean now. Just like the Government says.
You can Trust me, I’m a Scientists, so it doens’t matter where my Paycheck comes from. Not at all.
Must be the “consensus”...
Sorry, NYT - I'm not buying what you're selling...
There may be long term effects, but only to our economy through the ‘policy’ of our President. The OCEAN , the EARTH, and LIFE are very resilient entities, and since OIL is part of the FLUIDS of the very Earth itself, the mechanisms to abate excess oil are already in place.
The NYT is focusing on how well the Obama Admin and BP did AFTER the Rig exploded and released millions of gallons of oil into the GOM. The short term effects were largely mitigated by dumping a bunch of dispersant. The long term effects of the dispersant are questionable.
THE REAL ISSUE , however, not being REPORTED ON by the NYT is why did this happen in the first place?
Why were safety rules flagrantly violated, and waivers handed out like candy? Why did 12 men die, and no one even mentions it anymore?
An early government assessment of the fate of the oil from the BP spill in the Gulf of Mexico that was criticized as overly optimistic by some independent scientists was largely accurate, according to a revised report by federal scientists released Tuesday... An estimated 4.9 million barrels of oil escaped from BP’s blown-out well.Hey, everyone knows that one well spewed more pollutants into the oceans than all other such spills in the history of the world, and that it was Bush's fault! ;') Thanks neverdem.
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