Oil Gone

The lead article in today’s New York Times, “On the Surface, Oil Spill in Gulf is Vanishing Fast,” describes incredibly good news about the lack of surface oil in the Gulf of Mexico after an 86-day spill, capped on July 15.

Apparently, the warm waters and evaporation may have dissipated up to 40 percent of the surface sheen, and many oil-eating bacteria in the Gulf — due to natural seepage in this specific ecosystem — may have taken care of much of the rest.

And with 4,000 boats skimming the oil and executing controlled burns, the stoppage of the well means a constant reduction of the size of the spill.

The article does raise some concerns about the effect of the oil in the water column and along the sea bottom, but it also notes that the toxic percentage has been measured, and it is very low.

The most critical issue now, it seems, revolves around scaling back the response effort because it employs many fishermen who would otherwise remain jobless. However, even though a third of the Gulf is currently off limits to commercial fishing, it appears that problem will soon vanish as well.

The Food and Drug Administration is now planning to increase testing of the fish so the fishermen can resume their livelihood as well. Good news all around.