Four Green Steps

The nation has watched closely as BP was able to successfully cap the leak and stop the oil from spilling into the Gulf of Mexico at an exponentially dangerous rate, creating excessive pressure and potentially causing an even worse problem.

This event, coined the “Disaster in the Gulf,” is accurately being described as one of the worst ecological disasters in history. According to government estimations, the leak released up to 184 million gallons of oil in the nearly three months it continued to leak. 

As of July 18, the coast was clear. Pressure had not built up and the newly-placed cap seemed to be working. Originally, the government had planned on opening the cap and connecting the leak to tankers that could redirect the oil through pipes. However, this would involve spilling millions more gallons of oil into the gulf, not a risk that anybody was willing to take. 

Thus far, the media has successfully covered the event, keeping it as a top story every day on the evening news and searching for the causes of the catastrophe with investigative reporting programs such as 60 Minutes. 

But in the coming month, the main leak and any other small leaks that appear will be filled with cement. And, when the problem is “fixed” the attention of the media, as well as the attention of U.S. citizens, will turn away from this disaster. 

It will no longer be a top story as it has been over the last three months. The newsworthy aspects of the event will have come to an end and attention will be focused elsewhere. 

But what many people fail to see is that this “accident” will have far-reaching effects for months, even years, to come. 

Scientists have many theories about what horrible things will happen when these 184 million gallons have been dispersed. 

For one, if the oil reaches the coasts of Florida or Louisiana, the ever-popular tourism industry will be irreversibly damaged. The possibility of going to Florida to enjoy the pristine white-sand beaches along the Panhandle will be gone. 

If the oil reaches the coast, the coastal marine life will also suffer. In addition to infecting the already-existing gulf marine population, fish larvae and invertebrate embryos will likely die over the next couple of years, causing extreme population problems for many years to come. This will affect both the marine ecosystem and the seafood industry.

As a comparison, the Exxon Valdez spill which took place more than 20 years ago in 1989, is still affecting the 1,300 square miles of ocean it consumed. It caused reverberating problems in commercial fishing, the tourism industry and many other coastal industries. 

And all of those problems stemmed from 10.8 million gallons of oil. The BP oil spill has already released 16 times that much. 

Though I cannot complain about coverage of the BP oil spill so far, I fear for what will happen when the cameras turn away and the aid money stops flowing in.

We’ve seen it happen with Haiti. The catastrophic earthquake that hit the small, poverty-stricken country seven months ago received attention from the media and from aid groups around the world. 

But let me ask you a question: what, if anything, have you heard from Haiti in this last month? There are still countless people living in tents, with little or no food, and no means to rebuild their lives. 

We watch the catastrophe, we watch the aftermath for a couple of weeks, but then we move on. Only the people directly affected by the Exxon Valdez spill continued to worry about its ramifications long after the reporters were gone. 

The truth is, the BP oil spill disaster is just beginning. Within the next few months, especially with hurricane season and marine life mating season quickly approaching, the oil will disperse, causing harm in areas even outside of the Gulf. 

Both the ecological and economic ramifications of this tragic event will quickly unfold. Billions of animals will need to be treated and the fishermen who rely on the Gulf seafood will be out of work. 

As a society, what we must do is not simply move on to the “next big thing” in the news. We must give the Gulf the attention it needs during the cleanup process and beyond. 

If we call ourselves a nation with humanitarian ideals, we cannot afford to ignore the well-being of our own citizens as soon as the “cause” of the problem is solved. We need to see it through the restoration.

To reach staff reporter Rebecca Buddingh, click here.