Pathfinder
Editor, Senior Moderator
<TABLE cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 width="100%" border=0><TBODY><TR><TD vAlign=top>Pinellas County prepares to wait <STYLE>.vp_headline { font-size: 10pt;} .headline { font-size: 10pt;};</STYLE><TABLE cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 width="100%" border=0><TBODY><TR><TD>
</TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>By SUZETTE PORTER
<TABLE cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 width="100%" border=0><TBODY><TR><TD>Article published on Monday, June 14, 2010</TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>
</TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>
Excerpt:
"The county's emergency management department and the environmental management department keep in touch with the U.S. Coast Guard incident command center (in St. Petersburg) to keep track of where the oil is and projected to be so we stay in the best position to protect the local environment," Levy said.
She said NOAA was aggressively tracking the different areas of oil and releasing trajectories of its movements on a daily basis.
"Thus far there have been no signs (of oil), nothing," she said. "It's all hundreds of miles away from here."
She confirmed that researchers at the University of Florida believe that Pinellas County and much of the west coast of Florida will be protected from any major impact due to the loop current, which should take the oil south of the keys.
According to NOAA, the loop current is an area of warm water that travels up from the Caribbean, past the Yucatan Peninsula, and into the Gulf of Mexico. The current is also known as the Florida current as it flows through the Florida Strait, into the Gulf Stream, and heads north up the eastern coast of the U.S.
Experts with the Cooperative Institute for Marine and Atmospheric Studies report that the loop current is variable in position and can occasionally reach as high as the Mississippi river delta or the Florida continental shelf.
Levy said any oil that makes it to Pinellas County would be heavily weathered.
"Sun breaks it (oil) down and weathers it," she said. "If any comes here, we can expect it in the form of tar balls or tar mats."
As of June 11, Levy said the closest oil was 150 miles away.
Levy's department is in charge of the county's water quality in its lakes and streams, as well as the health of its seagrasses. She said if any impact from the Deepwater Horizon oil spill came to Pinellas County, everything possible would be done to protect the most environmentally sensitive areas.
"We're staying up-to-date on the situation and will act if necessary," she said.
Evans cautioned people against taking action to protect the beaches or waterways. She said nothing could be done without first getting a state and federal permits. She said working outside the system could result in fines.
She also said to receive reimbursement from BP, any response plan and expenditures must be approved in advance.
"It's more efficient if we work together and work with the Unified Command," she said. "
<TABLE cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 border=0><TBODY><TR><TD>
</TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>
Article published on Monday, June 14, 2010
Full text:
http://www.tbnweekly.com/content_articles/061410_fpg-01.txt
<TABLE cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 width="100%" border=0><TBODY><TR><TD>Article published on Monday, June 14, 2010</TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>
</TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>
Excerpt:
"The county's emergency management department and the environmental management department keep in touch with the U.S. Coast Guard incident command center (in St. Petersburg) to keep track of where the oil is and projected to be so we stay in the best position to protect the local environment," Levy said.
She said NOAA was aggressively tracking the different areas of oil and releasing trajectories of its movements on a daily basis.
"Thus far there have been no signs (of oil), nothing," she said. "It's all hundreds of miles away from here."
She confirmed that researchers at the University of Florida believe that Pinellas County and much of the west coast of Florida will be protected from any major impact due to the loop current, which should take the oil south of the keys.
According to NOAA, the loop current is an area of warm water that travels up from the Caribbean, past the Yucatan Peninsula, and into the Gulf of Mexico. The current is also known as the Florida current as it flows through the Florida Strait, into the Gulf Stream, and heads north up the eastern coast of the U.S.
Experts with the Cooperative Institute for Marine and Atmospheric Studies report that the loop current is variable in position and can occasionally reach as high as the Mississippi river delta or the Florida continental shelf.
Levy said any oil that makes it to Pinellas County would be heavily weathered.
"Sun breaks it (oil) down and weathers it," she said. "If any comes here, we can expect it in the form of tar balls or tar mats."
As of June 11, Levy said the closest oil was 150 miles away.
Levy's department is in charge of the county's water quality in its lakes and streams, as well as the health of its seagrasses. She said if any impact from the Deepwater Horizon oil spill came to Pinellas County, everything possible would be done to protect the most environmentally sensitive areas.
"We're staying up-to-date on the situation and will act if necessary," she said.
Evans cautioned people against taking action to protect the beaches or waterways. She said nothing could be done without first getting a state and federal permits. She said working outside the system could result in fines.
She also said to receive reimbursement from BP, any response plan and expenditures must be approved in advance.
"It's more efficient if we work together and work with the Unified Command," she said. "
<TABLE cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 border=0><TBODY><TR><TD>
Article published on Monday, June 14, 2010
Full text:
http://www.tbnweekly.com/content_articles/061410_fpg-01.txt