Simple Method For Gathering Oil Slick

YouTube ^ | May 13, 2010 | CWRoberts

[TexasCajun]

The simple method is usually the most effective.

K.I.S.S. -- Keep It Simple Stupic

Simple Oil Gathering Just Might Work

[bog trotter]

I’ll bet that just the “hay” that’s mowed alongside the highways and left there amounts to thousands of tons, Not to mention hay that might not be perfect, rained on or such. Hey, here’s a chance to make lemonade out of some very sour lemons. Didn’t you hear the guy say that what is picked up could be incinerated in one of those woodchip burning outfits after being raked up by beach-cleaning equipment.
Beats anything else I’ve heard of. Looks like bibs trump suits.
Those who work the earth are far more attuned to how it works and how to heal it.

[RFEngineer]

It’s much easier just to use ducks and otters. The oil seems to stick to them just fine and you can recycle them into bio-diesel.

[Flag_This]

"Completely unworkable."

"According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Economic Research Service, about 78.5 million tons of wheat and rice were produced on average during 1990 to 1996. During that same period, about 123 million tons of straw were produced annually. It is estimated that between 125 and 177 million tons of straw are available each year from all grain crops"

I would think the idea could be incorporated into a larger strategy. It's got to beat having volunteers wander around the beach with sponges and Dawn dish washing liquid.

What is the current strategy anyway?

[numberonepal]

they say hair works good.

There are efforts all over the Southeast for gathering hair. People are getting more hair cuts and some salons and shops are giving free hair cuts. The hair makes excellent absorbing booms.

Mark my words - the private sector is going to save the day on this one folks. In doing so and protecting the interests of TX, LA, MS, AL, and FL they will make The One look like a hero.

CRISIS AVERTED!
Obama Administration Drives Successful Efforts

[numberonepal]

LOL!

[TexasCajun]

I give up!

[giotto]

I'm not talking about the logistics of getting the hay to the spill, or whether that much hay is obtainable. I'm concerned with the gigantic mess that would be washed ashore. Assuming my calculations are even remotely accurate, the debris would be gargantuan. One bale of hay, uncompressed and tossed about like salad by the waves, then glued together with sticky black oil tar, would take up four times more volume than the original 10 cubic feet per bale. That amounts to 71 million cubic feet of matted hay, which is a wall of debris 20 feet high, 20 feet wide, and 34 MILES long on the shores of Galveston Bay. Mixed in with the sticky mess would be the rotting corpses of marine life that has been trapped.

And that's just one day's worth of hay. Even if the proportion of hay was far less than what was used in the video, the sheer volume needed to absorb so much oil makes the idea absurd.

[Flag_This]

the sheer volume needed to absorb so much oil makes the idea absurd.

I don't think anyone is suggesting we cover the entire Gulf of Mexico in six inches of straw. How 'bout we focus on specific critical areas that need to be protected (spawning grounds, vulnerable beaches, etc.). Right now we have a gigantic mess and right now there don't seem to be any real good ideas on how to protect anything. I think the current strategy is to hope it just goes someplace else.