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2010-08-01 Home Front: Politix

Oil Spill not as Bad as O Hoped For - Coast Guard Change to Blame

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Posted by Bobby 2010-08-01 07:40|| || Front Page|| [11131 views ] Top

#1 "You establish general rules and guidelines, but knowing that the people on scene have the information" means trusting them to make decisions, he said.

aka ROE. Notice how much trouble keeps bubbling up with control freaks who need to have a mother-may-I empire rather than pushing responsibility down to the lowest level to address the immediate situation at hand? It's a fatal flaw in bureaucracies and institutions that become inflexible and eventually ineffective. If you don't trust your people to execute the job, then fire them and get new ones. When you can't find anyone willing to take the job anymore, it's time to fire yourself.

Posted by Procopius2k 2010-08-01 10:46|| 2010-08-01 10:46|| Front Page Top

#2 Well said, P2K.

Posted by WolfDog 2010-08-01 10:59|| 2010-08-01 10:59|| Front Page Top

#3 In a related turf/oil war, the oil spill in Michigan resulted in a tussle between the EPA, Fish and Wildlife and Battle Creek police over how to best save/treat animals caught in the oil.

No pun intnended, but feathers were severely ruffled when the BCPD took the lead in treating birds.

Posted by USN, Ret. 2010-08-01 11:33|| 2010-08-01 11:33|| Front Page Top

#4 Looks like the Coast Guard takes seriously the part of the oath that says the will protect us from all enemies, foreign and domestic.

Posted by gorb 2010-08-01 13:31|| 2010-08-01 13:31|| Front Page Top

#5 The leak has been stopped as predicted. The giant, killer, methane bubble did not surface and destroy all life on the planet. Birds are still flying, gators are still gatering. I predict a near record season catch for gulf fishermen. Let's get back to producing those wells.

Posted by Besoeker 2010-08-01 13:51|| 2010-08-01 13:51|| Front Page Top

#6 Let's get back to producing those wells. Only the productive class will do that. The parasite class will continue to predict Gloom 'N Doom unless we follow the Party Line.

Posted by Anguper Hupomosing9418 2010-08-01 14:55|| 2010-08-01 14:55|| Front Page Top

#7 Looks like the Coast Guard takes seriously the part of the oath that says the will protect us from all enemies, foreign and domestic.

If you are suggesting the Coast Guard run up the Potomac and lay siege to the White House... well, OK.

As a side note, I read somewhere that years after the Exxon Valdez spill, the untreated areas of shoreline were cleaner than the treated parts. I suspect whatever treatment chemicals and techniques used reduced the microbial populations.

Posted by SteveS 2010-08-01 15:08|| 2010-08-01 15:08|| Front Page Top

#8 If you are suggesting the Coast Guard run up the Potomac and lay siege to the White House... well, OK.

Couldn't happen. They probably have equipment violations like not enough of the proper types of fire extinguishers so they won't be allowed off the dock.

Posted by gorb 2010-08-01 15:35|| 2010-08-01 15:35|| Front Page Top

#9 Lessons from Exxon Valdez
Bioremediation protocols employed during cleanup of the Exxon Valdez oil spill effectively demonstrated that application of nutrients in the form of fertilizer (nitrogen and phosphorus) could increase oil biodegradation rates.

Ten days after treatment, the surfaces of the oil-blackened rocks on the shoreline turned white and appeared to be free of surface oil. The striking visual results strongly supported fertilizer application, which sustained higher numbers of oil-degrading microorganisms in oiled shorelines, according to EPAs 1990 interim report. Additionally, the EPA noted, biodegradation rates were enhanced as evidenced by the chemical changes detected in recovered oil from treated and untreated reference sites.

The Exxon Valdez oil spill contaminated more than 1300 miles of coastline. Bioremediation was used only as an experiment on 78 miles of coastline. Two weeks after the fertilizer application, areas that had received bioremediation were easily distinguishable using satellite imagery. Bioremediation is far more advanced today than it was in 1989. It should be no surprise if it is even far more effective in the warmer waters of the Gulf.

Posted by junkiron 2010-08-01 20:33|| 2010-08-01 20:33|| Front Page Top

#10 What, you're going to use phosphorous fertilizer? Everyone knows that's bad stuff, causes algae, milfoil, and who knows what. And nitrogen fertilizer? Good heavens, mix it with oil, look what happened in Oklahoma. I mean, the whole coast could go up if someone lit off an M80. Get some gummint experts in here to study this up, pronto!

Posted by KBK 2010-08-01 22:03|| 2010-08-01 22:03|| Front Page Top

#11 That was the gummint experts!

Posted by junkiron 2010-08-01 23:39|| 2010-08-01 23:39|| Front Page Top

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21:58 Frank G
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