FWC EMERGENCY MEETING MAY 19!
At 10 AM on Wednesday, May 19 the Commissioners of the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, (FWC), will meet at the Tradewinds Island Resorts on St. Pete Beach to discuss the agency’s ongoing response to the Deepwater horizon oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico.
Chairman Rodney Barreto called the meeting nearly a month after the oil spill occurred to, “make sure the FWC is fully prepared to handle any potential impacts on Florida,s fish and wildlife resources.” According to Barreto, “Since the oil spill incident occurred in late April, the FWC has worked closely with county, state and federal agencies to help prepare a coordinated response.”
“The FWC will do everything possible to protect Florida’s fish and wildlife,” Barretto said. “We’ve called this meeting because this is an unprecedented situation. Not only could the oil spill affect our natural resources, it’s already affecting the livelihoods of our commercial fishermen, guides and charter boats and other tourism related businesses.”
While the situation is perhaps, “unprecedented,” it should not have been unexpected by a state agency responsible for the safety of fish and wildlife in waters where oil drilling is taking place. One would have expected that a plan for a similar emergency would already be in place. But then, one would have expected that the federal agency responsible for permitting oil drilling operations would have insisted on receiving the usual environmental impact statement and emergency oil spill remediation plan before drilling could commence as was reportedly not done in this case.
It is encouraging to note that the FWC has contributed to the response through a variety of activities. FWC scientists are mapping high-priority fish and wildlife habitats to help focus protective measures. They are also conducting biological assessments to establish a baseline for measuring the severity of potential impacts on fish and wildlife. Nick Willey, the FWC,s Executive Director stated, “This is truly a well coordinated team effort in Florida. We are grateful for the leadership and cooperation coming from the Department of Environmental Protection and the Division of Emergency Management through our State Emergency Operations Center.”
We encourage everyone who has an interest in preserving our fish and wildlife and is cognizant of the importance of preserving our tourist industry to attend this important emergency meeting. Citizens need to keep close tabs on government agencies to which we have given the responsibility of protecting us in order to assure their diligence. In other words we need to hold the responsible public servants’ feet to the fire in every situation given the federal governments laxity in allowing this spill to happen in the first place.
Please go to the meeting if you can. Ask questions. Demand specific answers. If you have knowledge, share it with them. These are your rights and responsibilities.
I’m encouraged by the proactive position of FWC but the more I familiarize myself with what they call Dispersants my optimism fades.
The Oil spill is being smothered with a Surfactant called Corexit
http://www.iosc.org/papers/00020.pdf The use was stopped by NOAA and resumed by the EPA http://www.epa.gov/bpspill/water.html There’s controversy over the use of this product, especially from Marine toxicologists as Elaine Shannon explains
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/elaine-shannon/why-are-dispersant-chemic_b_575741.html
Corexit and Oil have been discovered in the Loop Current and the Coast guard have been dispatched to the Keys to investigate. This may not affect our area immediately, as the winds now blow from the Southeast. But shifting winds or a spring storm with it’s counter-clock-wise circular motion could very well drive both the oil and the Surfactant into Bay. So far I’ve not found any rational way of protecting the wildlife from the harmful affects of Corexit mixed with oil. Your Mileage may vary.
It may be of use to Watch Dog readers to read the Gulfport papers submitted by Mr Worthington which describe the risks and concerns presented to elected and appointed officials and agencies back in November of 2009. A review of those papers and a copy of the City oil DVD ($2 ?) would help get one up to speed for the meeting.
“The day we have all been fearing is upon us.”
Bobby Jindal, Governor of Louisiana