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Environment
Date 24.02.2013
Author Fabian Schmidt / za / db
Deepwater Horizon: Where has the oil gone?
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These droplets combined with suspended matter such as plankton and minerals at a depth of up to 2,000 meters. They clumped, then sank to the ocean bed, where they formed a fluffy carpet of oil.
Much of the oil did not rise to the Gulf's surface
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"One part of the oil consists of a highly poisonous compound, which decomposes very slowly," he told DW. "When this interacts with the bacteria, it's even harder to evaluate its toxicity. But both the toxicity - and the compound's complexity - probably increases."
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However, it has also become clear that the recovery workers may have made a mistake in using the solvent Corexit to stop the oil reaching the coast on the water's surface. The oil and the Corexit both dissolved into the water and poisoned bacteria, fish larvae and micro-organisms.
Schulz-Bull said it makes more sense not to use solvents when dealing with oil catastrophes.
"You can't see the oil, but it's still there," Schulz-Bull said. "All you're doing is pouring chemicals into the ecosystem that are highly toxic. You're not helping anything."
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Full text:
Date 24.02.2013
Author Fabian Schmidt / za / db
Deepwater Horizon: Where has the oil gone?
...
These droplets combined with suspended matter such as plankton and minerals at a depth of up to 2,000 meters. They clumped, then sank to the ocean bed, where they formed a fluffy carpet of oil.
Much of the oil did not rise to the Gulf's surface
...
"One part of the oil consists of a highly poisonous compound, which decomposes very slowly," he told DW. "When this interacts with the bacteria, it's even harder to evaluate its toxicity. But both the toxicity - and the compound's complexity - probably increases."
...
However, it has also become clear that the recovery workers may have made a mistake in using the solvent Corexit to stop the oil reaching the coast on the water's surface. The oil and the Corexit both dissolved into the water and poisoned bacteria, fish larvae and micro-organisms.
Schulz-Bull said it makes more sense not to use solvents when dealing with oil catastrophes.
"You can't see the oil, but it's still there," Schulz-Bull said. "All you're doing is pouring chemicals into the ecosystem that are highly toxic. You're not helping anything."
...
Full text:
