Where Did All the Oil Go?
I’ve found the disparity of opinions concerning where the oil form the BP spill has gone quite fascinating and at least a little troubling. BP and even some federal agencies suggest that the oil that didn’t surface has disbursed and will likely cause no further significant environmental risk. Others say, “Not so fast. The oil didn’t simply disappear.”
The daughter of a good friend is a recent Ph.D. in marine toxicology, and she assures me that a vast amount of the oil remains at some depth below the surface (likely below the thermocline), moving around in plumes and wreaking havoc. BP’s efforts to pump dispersants into the oil plume at the breach deep in the ocean probably prevented a significant amount of oil from surfacing (which is probably a good thing), but we must fear the “out of sight, out of mind” mindset, that would tell us to ignore it since we can’t see it.
Damage to the vast ecosystems of the gulf have been and will likely be affected for many years due to this catastrophe. Engineers and scientists must together be diligent in investigating and trying to understand just what happened to all that oil, what impact it will have down the road, and what we can do about it. Society should demand no less from our professions.
