[Coral-List] Fwd: Gulf Oil Spill, dispersants

[Ed Blume]

Thanks for the references, Bill.

As of this morning, NOAA reports that over 590,000 gallons of dispersants
have been spread in the gulf.

Ed Blume
Madison, WI


On Tue, May 18, 2010 at 6:26 PM, Bill Allison <allison.billiam at gmail.com>wrote:

> This newsletter just arrived a few minutes ago. It cites a number of
> publications relevant to your inquiry.
>
> http://www.seaweb.org/news/oceanupdate.php
>
>
> On Mon, May 17, 2010 at 2:47 PM, Ed Blume <eblume2702 at gmail.com> wrote:
>
>> Several posters described experiments to determine the impact of oil on
>> coral.  Has one done (or does anyone know of) research on the ingredients
>> to
>> Corexit, as described by BIll Allison?
>>
>> *Although the formula of Corexit, the main dispersant being used is
>> proprietary, an online search identified some important ingredients as:*
>>
>> *- 2-butoxyethanol: organic solvent, toxic, said to kill most arthropods,
>> biodegradable*.*
>>
>> *- sulfonic acid esters: common in many household products such as
>> detergents
>> & in sulfa drugs (anti-biologics) - toxic (add detergent to an aquarium &
>> watch).*
>> *- propylene glycol: an alcohol used in many household products, readily
>> biodegradable*.*
>> Ed Blume
>> Madison, WI
>> On Sun, May 16, 2010 at 9:52 AM, Bill Allison <allison.billiam at gmail.com
>> >wrote:
>>
>> > A number of list members have suggested that the dispersants could be
>> > problematic and should be investigated. It is ironic and alarming that
>> oil
>> > dispersants inimical to life are being used in unprecedented quantities
>> to
>> > make the problem “go away”, that is, to make it invisible &
>> > coincidentally(?), to make the largely unknown causal chain of
>> > environmental
>> > harm much harder to trace. We now have visible oil + invisible oil +
>> > ~2,000,000 liters of toxic dispersants in the Gulf, and the meter is
>> still
>> > running - apparently an order of magnitude faster than announced some
>> days
>> > ago.
>> >
>> > Although the formula of Corexit, the main dispersant being used is
>> > proprietary, an online search identified some important ingredients as:
>> >
>> > - 2-butoxyethanol: organic solvent, toxic, said to kill most arthropods,
>> > biodegradable*.
>> >
>> > - sulfonic acid esters: common in many household products such as
>> > detergents
>> > & in sulfa drugs (anti-biologics) - toxic (add detergent to an aquarium
>> &
>> > watch).
>> >
>> > - propylene glycol: an alcohol used in many household products, readily
>> > biodegradable*.
>> >
>> > *BIODEGRADABLE - sounds good BUT: it means that microrganisms break it
>> > down,
>> > consuming oxygen in the process. Propylene glycol which I suppose is the
>> > carrier and main component, is said to have a very high BOD. Add to this
>> > the
>> > BOD created by the decomposition of creatures large & small killed by
>> oil &
>> > dispersants, and that of microbes feeding on the oil itself. There is
>> > speculation about whether the resultant emulsion will sink or float and
>> an
>> > expectation that the whole mess will disperse and be diluted, so
>> becoming
>> > even more invisible. Recall that many species of marine larvae travel in
>> > the
>> > near-surface few millimeters of the sea. Depending on the timing of
>> > spawning
>> > events and dispersal, might this have a negative impact on larval
>> > recruitment across a spectrum of marine life?
>> >
>> > On the positive side (I’m kidding), Corexit is made in USA, the stock of
>> > the
>> > producer has appreciated, & the costs the whole clean-up bundle will be
>> > added to GNP (I’m not kidding). Is that an insane system or what?
>> >
>> >
>> >
>> >
>> >
>> > --
>> > ________________________________
>> > Say what some poets will, Nature is not so much her own ever-sweet
>> > interpreter as the mere supplier of that cunning alphabet, whereby
>> > selecting
>> > and combining as he pleases, each man reads his own peculiar lesson
>> > according to his own peculiar mind and mood. (Herman Melville, 1852)
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>> >
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>
>
>
> --
> ________________________________
> "reality leaves a lot to the imagination..."  John Lennon
>