BP oil spill spill turns media swooning over Obama toxic

BP spill turns media swooning over Obama toxic
By Anthony L. Hall:


During his presidential campaign, Barack Obama always seemed indifferent to media pundits swooning over him. But instead of acting scorned, they made a virtue of this diss by propagating a narrative about him as a preternaturally cool, intellectual dude who never gets fazed by anything: remember “no drama Obama”?

Well, that was then. Because these same pundits are now lashing out at him with a vengeance that would make even a woman scorned cringe with embarrassment. No doubt you’ve heard the chorus of criticisms being hurled at this transformative president over his reaction to the BP oil spill off the Gulf Coast of the United States. And to be sure, some of it is warranted:

“[I]f there's any sense in which this BP spill can be fairly called Obama's Katrina, it would stem from his Bush-like failure to send in the cavalry long ago... to prevent the spillover effect it's having on the ocean and Gulf Coast.” (The oil has landed, The iPINIONS Journal, May 24, 2010)

But far too much of this criticism is fickle, hypocritical, and emotionally wrought. Nothing demonstrates this quite like the fact that those who once praised Obama for not feigning emotion for political gain are the very ones now damning him for not acting like a drama queen. Specifically, they want him to show (them) that he’s really “furious” about the environmental catastrophe this spill is causing. Maureen Dowd of the New York Times is the lead vocalist in this respect:

“It’s not a good narrative arc: The man who walked on water is now ensnared by a crisis under water... [U]nless he wants his story to be marred by a pattern of passivity, detachment, acquiescence and compromise, he’d better seize control of the story line of his White House years. Woe-is-me is not an attractive narrative.” (Dowd, New York Times, June 1, 2010)

The real narrative arc of course is that columnists (like Dowd) who once fawned over Obama’s style are now criticizing it. But I hoped Obama would show the same indifference towards their criticisms that he showed when they were swooning over him not so long ago. Because I knew it would be a travesty if he were to try now to emulate that emotional chameleon Bill Clinton — who these same media prima donnas ridiculed for continually feigning emotions to curry political favor.

This is why I thought Obama would do well to ignore the criticisms and just continue doing everything humanly possible to deal with the fallout from this spill. First and foremost, this includes mobilizing every resource at his disposal to limit the heartrending impact on the livelihoods of the people as well as the wildlife and ecosystem of the Gulf. And all indications are that he’s doing just that.

Still, in this respect, Obama recently conceded that he should have seized control for combating the spread of the slick from BP a lot sooner. And BP CEO Tony Hayward only reinforced this fact by making the patently misleading, if not delusional, assertion last weekend that BP is on top of everything — even as crude oil was beginning to defile the white sandy beaches of Florida.

More importantly, though, Obama had better seize every opportunity to be seen doing everything humanly possible to contain and cleanup this spill. Clearly this is why he made quite a show during two recent visits of reassuring people that his administration will still be addressing their concerns in the weeks and months to come when his media critics — who are posturing as their watchdogs today — will have moved on to their next pet peeve. He even canceled a planned state visit to Australia and Indonesia for a second time to avoid any appearance of not paying due attention to this still unfolding environmental tragedy.

“It’s brutally unfair. It’s wrong. And what I told these men and women — and what I have said since the beginning of this disaster — is that I’m going to stand with the people of the Gulf Coast until they are made whole… We will fight alongside them, until the awful damage that has been done is reversed, people are back on their feet, and the great natural bounty of the Gulf coast is restored.” (Obama, Huffington Post, June 5, 2010)

He quite sensibly continues to remind the American people that the only reason he has not seized control of operations to plug the gushing pipe from BP is that the federal government does not have the deep-water drilling resources or expertise to do any better. He’s also continues to stress the fact that BP will pay not only for the cleanup of this mess but also for all consequential damage to fishing, wildlife, tourism, etc.

“They say they want to make it right. That’s part of their advertising campaign. Well, we want them to make it right... What I don’t want to hear is, when they’re spending that kind of money on their shareholders and spending that kind of money on TV advertising, that they’re nickel and diming fishermen or small businesses here in the Gulf.” (Obama criticizing BP for announcing a $10 billion dividend payout and launching a $50 million ad campaign, Reuters, June 4, 2010)

Yet none of this has appeased his erstwhile media courtiers; no doubt because they just want him to do something that will demonstrate that they have the power to affect him. In this case, they apparently want him to shout obscenities at BP to prove he’s even capable of human emotion.

But I thought Obama was smart and unflappable enough to realize that pissing all over BP will just end up hurting the very people whose cause his critics claim to be championing. As it is, their toxic carping has already caused the company to lose over $80 billion (half of its market value), all of which could have been siphoned off instead in government fines, cleanup costs, and private lawsuits...

Imagine my dismay on Tuesday then, when — as if acting on cue from director Spike Lee to “go off” on BP — Obama used profane language and threatened bodily harm during an interview on NBC’s Today Show:

“I talk to these folks because they potentially have the best answers — so I know whose ass to kick.”

At least Clinton was man enough to emote on his own accord instead of doing so like a puppet on the strings of hysterical columnists, wingnut bloggers, and race-baiting filmmakers. This is not the kind of CHANGE we can believe in. What a damn shame...

Frankly, he’s even more naïve than Hillary Clinton once accused him of being if he thinks this puppetry will appease Democratic pundits like Dowd and James Carville. Because their disaffection has become so unhinged that they have now joined wingnut Republicans in trying to turn Obama into another Jimmy Carter.

They are doing this by tagging the label of “incompetent” to their spiteful narrative about his presidency. This is why it was probably ill-advised for Coast Guard Admiral Thad Allen, Obama’s point man in the Gulf, to lament all over TV on Sunday that this oil spill is “holding the Gulf hostage.” Never mind the undeniable truth of his statement.

The notion that Obama is incompetent, however, is belied by the fact that just months ago all of these critics, including begrudging Republicans, were hailing him for the unparalleled competence he displayed in passing historic healthcare reform. A feat they conceded was especially commendable in light of the fact that even his own advisers had bought into the media dirge about this being a lost cause...

Now comes the all too foreseeable irony of Britons complaining about Obama’s criticisms jeopardizing their pensions, which are heavily invested in BP stock. But to this I say get behind the Americans who have been complaining from day one about BP’s corporate greed and recklessness, which have led to eleven being killed, the livelihoods of hundreds of thousands being ruined, and the priceless ecosystem of the Gulf Coast of the United States being destroyed.

In any event, I hope for Obama’s sake that this gushing well, which is becoming a metaphor for his hemorrhaging popularity, is a distant memory by the time he launches his reelection campaign for 2012. Because, given the herd-like nature of political opinion (left and right), it’s very easy for this Dowd narrative to seep deep into public consciousness.

Then the fatuous notion that this oil spill is Obama’s Katrina (or worse) will become generally accepted wisdom. And that will surely doom his presidency. (Bear in mind that Katrina landed in 2005 — after Bush had already been reelected in 2004.)

NOTE: BP initially claimed that only 5,000 barrels of oil were gushing from this well each day. But in a BBC interview on Sunday, CEO Tony Hayward said that BP’s efforts to cap the well head have resulted in the capture of 10,000 barrels a day, which is clearly twice the amount BP initially claimed was the total flow. Now BP is claiming that it will soon be capturing up to 30,000 barrels...

In the meantime, we can all see from that riveting spill cam that there has been virtually no reduction in the flow of oil gushing out of that ruptured pipe despite BP’s notoriously feckless efforts. This means that we can believe either BP or our lying eyes. Is there any wonder nobody trusts BP...?

June 11, 2010

caribbeannetnews

Bahamas Blog International

...worry that the Gulf of Mexico oil spill may reach Caribbean pristine shores

Caribbean officials worry oil spill may reach pristine shores
caribbeannetnews:


BRIDGETOWN, Barabdos (AFP) -- Caribbean officials voiced worry Thursday at the prospect of the mammoth Gulf of Mexico oil spill reaching their islands' famously pristine beaches, in a meeting with US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.

Noting the "very sobering" analysis from Bahamian Foreign Minister T. Brent Symonette on what would happen if the oil reaches the powerful loop current -- which could sweep the spill past Florida to soil beaches of the Bahamas, Jamaica and beyond -- Clinton said: "We earnestly hope that does not happen."

Antigua's Prime Minister Baldwin Spencer noted the clear "anxiety in the region" about the spill smearing the island nations' idyllic, tourism-dependent shores.

Fresh US government figures released Thursday showed that between 20,000 and 40,000-plus barrels of oil were pouring from BP's ruptured Gulf well -- more than twice the government's previous estimate -- darkening the specter of what is already the worst oil spill in US history.

Clinton, here to meet her Caribbean counterparts and other regional leaders, admitted meanwhile that "our understanding of and preparation for dealing with a disaster like this is out of date."

Adding there were ways to deal with oil tanker accidents but not "catastrophic" blowouts in deep-water drilling, Clinton said there was a need "to start now to get better prepared to deal with something of this magnitude in the future."

BP is frantically trying to stop oil leaking from a fractured pipe a mile (1.6 kilometers) down on the sea floor and prevent the giant slick spoiling even more of the ecologically fragile marshlands and nature reserves along the US Gulf Coast.

Fears abound, however, that an intense hurricane season this year could spread the spill further afield and, if it reaches the loop current, carry millions of gallons of heavy crude directly toward the Caribbean islands.

June 11, 2010

caribbeannetnews

Bahamas Blog International

It's getting harder to find water fit to drink

By Vinod Thomas and Ronald S Parker:


The task of providing decent water where needed is becoming increasingly difficult all across the world. Countries have in recent decades been making investments in infrastructure designed to alleviate water shortages. But the response has for the most part overlooked the problem posed by the deteriorating state of aquatic resources. If the growing water crisis is to be effectively addressed, actions will need to link water use with environmental care.

In many places, even where water is still plentiful, environmental destruction has made water too expensive to use. In some others that enjoy a good supply of water, it is used inappropriately. Priorities can be so askew that while cities remain desperate for water, farmers are irrigating fruits or cotton in the desert. Even less acceptable, potable water is used to maintain gardens and golf courses while the urban poor are forced to pay dearly to buy drinking water by the bucket.

As a result, about 700 million people in over 40 countries are affected by water shortages. Human encroachment on water environments is also a growing problem. By 2030 the United Nations predicts that 75 percent of the world’s population will live in coastal areas, putting at risk wetlands that help clean the water environment as well as exposing hundreds of millions of people to the water-related hazards associated with climate change.

The World Bank is the largest official financier of water investments in developing countries. Loan commitments in the past decade were some $55 billion, with China and India topping the list of borrowers, followed by Brazil and Indonesia. Water projects, covering irrigation and hydropower to watershed management and inland waterways, have shown greater success in recent years than other sectors in meeting their objectives.

Yet the challenge remains of meeting today's water needs while putting in place innovative strategies to address future requirements. Areas for emphasis fall in five main areas along the axis of water development and environmental management.

First, the most water-stressed group consists of 45 countries, 35 of them in Africa, that are water poor. Water sustainability needs to become central to their development plans, with tailored measures to help meet their urgent needs. Even water-rich countries such as Brazil or Thailand can face deficiency as water levels in dams and from natural sources fall.

Second, groundwater is increasingly threatened by over-exploitation, inadequate environmental flows, and contamination. The most severe groundwater depletion is in the Middle East, North Africa, and South Asia. Needed efforts include monitoring groundwater quality, landfill site improvements, and the reduction of infiltration by contaminated surface water into groundwater.

Third, restoration of degraded environments can have big impacts. A Coastal Wetlands Protection project in Vietnam, for example, tried to balance environmental protection with the livelihood needs of people dependent on natural resources. The project helped to reduce the area of coastal erosion by as much as 40%.

Fourth, the United Nations estimates that 1.8 billion people will still not have access to basic sanitation in 2015. More emphasis is needed not only on low-cost solutions to basic sanitation but also on household connections to sanitation systems. East Asia has had the most progress among developing regions in sanitation.

Fifth, investments in water supply need to be coupled with management of demand. Agriculture is the largest user of water in most settings, where efficiency improving technologies are not enough to improve water use. Greater cost-recovery in water projects would be helpful. Fixing and enforcing quotas for water use, a relatively recent approach, deserves careful evaluation.

Even when these priorities are known, it has been difficult to translate them into action. When the key players sit down to bargain about the allocation of water, the environment gets short shrift. Seldom is there support for rescuing a falling aquifer if water can still be extracted, or for restoring protective wetlands, or for keeping enough water flowing through a river so that wildlife can survive and saline intrusion is prevented.

Political support for reform is often hindered by serious gaps in understanding a country’s water situation. Better data, systematic monitoring and disclosure of findings are crucial to resource mobilization and action. Knowledge sharing in turn supports the financial outlays and enables better results on the ground.

Vinod Thomas is Director General and Ronald S Parker is a Consultant, at the Independent Evaluation Group, The World Bank, Washington DC.

June 10, 2010

caribbeannetnews

Bahamas Blog International

Bahamas: A straw market filled with handmade crafts 'long gone'

A straw market filled with handmade crafts 'long gone'
By RUPERT MISSICK JR
Chief Reporter
rmissick@tribunemedia.net:



We are a modern culture fixated on immediate gratification, cheap fast food, drive through windows, and instant downloads. To keep up with the insatiable demand from consumers and ensure their bottom lines, some manufacturers throw away commitments to quality and hand crafting like relics of the past.

Complicit consumers, who want cheap goods without paying the true cost of materials and labour, fuel this practice.

This is the dilemma facing straw vendors who are set to take up residence in a new multi-million dollar market next year.

A fire destroyed the previous structure in September 2001 and a contract for the construction of a new market was signed between Cavalier Construction and the government in December of last year. The building carries a $11.2 million price tag and has a 78- week completion timeline.

The design of the 34,000-square foot straw market as "practical" and will include an enclosed mezzanine level of approximately 4,500 square feet. An elevator (to the south section only) will service the air-conditioned mezzanine, and there will be space to accommodate children's activities after school.

The structure will house 442 regular vendors with sale booths, 31 demonstration booths for the creation and sale of crafts, 14 carvers' booths in an outdoor market area and provision for food vendors along the waterfront.

The thing is though, the government may be constructing this impressive structure to house sellers offering illegal knock-offs of designer items at attractive prices -- rather than the traditional straw items for which the market initially became famous.

Cracking down on vendors who sell these knock-off items may put the government in a bit of a moral dilemma, however. Licensing fees are to this day collected from brick and mortar businesses that make their profits selling illegally duplicated DVDs and CDs.

The uncomfortable truth of the matter is, the days of a straw market filled with handmade items crafted by skilled artisans are long gone. The sale of mass manufactured goods and highly coveted "replica" designer products has for many years made the production and sale of straw work nearly obsolete.

Former Senator and President of the Straw Vendors Association Telator Strachan, in a recent interview with Tribune reporter Alesha Cadet said that there is not a high enough demand for authentic Bahamian souvenirs to support the production cost of straw market vendors.

This lack of demand for locally produced goods leads Bahamians to spend almost $300 million per year importing handicraft items to sell to tourists.

The majority of the items in the market are purchased wholesale from an international distributor like the American Gift Corporation -- their stamp "agiftcorp" can be found printed at the bottom of some souvenirs.

The company produces souvenirs with customizable names and locations, and boasts it is "America's leading source for souvenir giftware since 1925."

The company is very familiar with the Nassau Straw Market and a sales representative said the company gets "loads of clients" from there.

First-time orders to AGC have to be a minimum of $500 and re-order a minimum of $300 - there is a two dozen minimum on individual items.

Vendors generally remove all signs of foreign manufacture but sometimes they overlook some items and the sticker or tag can be plainly read "Made in China."

Overcrowding in the Straw Market has increased competition among vendors, leaving the entrepreneurs desperate to ensure their ability to make a profit. Changing tastes and the drastic increase in the number of visitors to New Providence over the past 50 years or so has also had its affect on the practicability of producing straw items.

"Up to now we've always done native straw work, but over the years it has evolved into selling other bags and other things. We must remember that there were not that many straw vendors and not that many tourists travelling into the Bahamas, so we were able to sell native items.

"As time went on we had to diverse to other items, the local native items were not sufficient for the tourist, they wanted other items. The tourist would complain that the straw hats were scratchy, that is why we had to cut back on selling straw hats," Ms Strachan said.

This doesn't mean that there are no persons in the market creating and selling locally manufactured items. As Mrs Strachan points out there are still a number of persons still selling straw bags, but like anything else when you overcrowd any space "you tend not to notice."

Same goes for solid wood statues - vendors purchase from the wood carvers that surround the outskirts of the market to put in their stalls. Most beaded jewellery is made locally as vendors purchase the materials (line, various beads, clasps) in bulk.

A few vendors also produce some jewellery and then sell over other vendors.

"People don't see the whole picture; they only see the knock off bags. The local straw bags that were made years ago are still being made, it's still straw, the straw is what makes it authentic," she said.

Cash remains king, however and Straw Market vendors are often challenged by the fact that quality straw bags are too costly to produce.

Mrs Strachan, who has represented the market's vendors association as president for 55 years, lamented "nothing remains the same, overtime everything changes."

"It is expensive to make the straw bags," Ms Strachan said, "I do not know how lucrative it is going to be for them because you have to spend so much and you don't make any profit.

"Once you could have harvested the straw at a reasonable price, then people would be able to make these items and sell them at a reasonable price," she said.

As the new market is being constructed, with a Spring 2011 opening anticipated, the rules of engagement between the vendors and their landlords may change.

The Bahamas Agricultural and Industrial Corporation's (BAIC) had introduced a one-month training programme to teach interested Bahamians how to produce the items locally for distribution to visitors.

The corporation's executive chairman Edison Key said that in light of the massive import bill, incurred by persons bringing in souvenirs the training was part of a bigger plan to empower Bahamians and create employment.

He added that more than 1,000 people have graduated from the programme so far, and there are many more interested individuals.

Mr Key said when the production side of handicraft manufacturing takes off in a "big way", the Government will have to make changes and policy supporting local manufacturers.

"If we can train 10,000, it would go a long way to stem some of the imports of souvenir items that amount to around $300 million," he said.

He added that even if the Government could reduce that import figure by 50 per cent it could create a lot of employment for Bahamians. "People could be self-employed right away," said Mr Key.

The Bahamas has vexed a number of international organizations over its seeming lack of interest in prosecuting or at least shutting down persons who violate the intellectual property rights (IPR) or copyright violators.

The office of the United States trade representative, which among other things reviews IPR practices as part of its bi-annual review of the operation of the Caribbean Basin Economic Recovery Act, is continuing to evaluate the IPR of beneficiaries, including The Bahamas, to assess compliance with the preference programme's eligibility criteria, which include the extent to which a country prohibits its nationals from broadcasting US copyrighted materials without permission.

And as mentioned before there are more stores selling bootleg DVDs than legitimate ones. The same goes for luxury goods like cigars. There is a proliferation of "fake" Cuban cigar vendors who outnumber sellers who peddle the legitimate products.

The legal issues surrounding knock-off designer items are a little complicated. Companies or individuals who produce the fake products circumvent IPR and copyright law by changing just enough not to be a direct copy. What makes it illegal is attempting to make an exact copy and passing it off as the item it is meant to be imitating.

For example an imitation Gucci purse that copies the shape and print of the original may not be illegal but one that also includes the Gucci trade mark is.

Knock-offs also sell for far below the price of the original.

An investigation conducted by Tribune Reporter Ava Turnquest revealed that most of the "replica" items sold in the Straw Market range from $30 up to $120 depending on their size.

It is rare for any bag, regardless of the brand, to be over $100 in the market and vendors often lower the price even further to bait sceptical customers.

She found that in nearly every stall that sold knock-offs the top four brands were: Coach, Louis Vuitton, Prada and Juicy Couture.

One can buy a large shoulder bags with the classic interlocking GG motif for $95 when the original sells on the company's website for $2,099. Totes or smaller bags with the same print average around $600.

The ironic thing about it a few blocks away John Bull sells the original product.

Juicy Couture's velour and terry handbags are the most popular by this brand in the straw Market featuring the brand's iconic crown emblem pink and brown print.

Mrs Strachan, who has spent 55 years in the market points out that things are in a constant state of flux and in order to make a good living the vendors have to keep up with the times. "Nothing remains the same, overtime everything changes," she said. "We have to sell what we can make a small profit on."

June 07, 2010

tribune242

Bahamas Blog International

Better educated citizenry builds prosperity and hope

Tribune242 Editorial Bahamas:


PRESIDENT Barack Obama, like College of the Bahamas president Janyne Hodder, stresses the need for a better educated work force to keep a country competitive.

Mrs Hodder, in an address to a women's luncheon earlier this year, underscored the threat to the Bahamas' economic future with fewer than "15 per cent of our young people enrolled in higher education when every prosperous nation around us is moving to increase higher education participation rates, as high as 50 per cent in some countries."

Paying a surprise visit to a school in Kalamazoo, Michigan Monday, President Obama told students that a better-educated workforce will help the U.S. stay competitive globally. Don't mimic Washington by making excuses, the Associated Press reported President Barack Obama as saying as he advised graduating high school students and encouraged them to take responsibility for failure as well as success.

In remarks delivered Monday evening at Kalamazoo Central High School, the President said it's easy to blame others when problems arise. "We see it every day out in Washington, with folks calling each other names and making all sorts of accusations on TV," the president said.

He said Kalamazoo high school students can and have done better than that.

The 1,700-student school in southwest Michigan landed President Obama as its commencement speaker after winning the national Race to the Top High School Commencement Challenge. It was among three finalists picked through public voting on the schools' videos and essays. The White House made the final selection.

The administration cited Kalamazoo Central's 80 per cent-plus graduation rate, improvements in academic performance and a culturally rich curriculum. Would that one day the Bahamas could boast such an achievement for its government schools.

About an hour before the Kalamazoo ceremony, President Obama surprised the 280 graduates by dropping in on them in the recreation centre at Western Michigan University as they prepared for the big moment.

Walking around with a hand-held microphone, he told the students to work hard, keep their eyes on the prize and continue to carry with them a sense of excellence.

"There is nothing you can't accomplish," he said, suggesting they might consider public service. "I might be warming up the seat for you." Students rushed from the bleachers to shake the President's hand and take cell phone pictures after he spoke.

President Obama, who says a better-educated workforce will help the U.S. stay competitive globally, said in his prepared remarks that the school had set an example with its level of community and parental involvement and the high standards of its teachers.

"I think that America has a lot to learn from Kalamazoo Central about what makes for a successful school in this new century," he said. "This is the key to our future."

He advised the graduates to work hard and take responsibility for their successes and their failures.

"You could have made excuses -- our kids have fewer advantages, our schools have fewer resources, so how can we compete? You could have spent years pointing fingers -- blaming parents, blaming teachers, blaming the principal or the superintendent or the government," the president said.

"But instead, you came together. You were honest with yourselves about where you were falling short. And you resolved to do better."

Education is widely seen as one hope for Michigan's long-struggling economy. The state has had the nation's highest unemployment rate for four consecutive years, including a 14 per cent jobless rate in April. Thousands of manufacturing jobs have been lost, many connected to the auto industry, and the state is trying to diversify its economy with alternative energy, biomedical and other jobs -- most of which require education beyond high school.

The White House said more than 170,000 people voted in the contest.

Kalamazoo Central's valedictorian, Cindy Lee, said she was excited but jittery about sharing the stage with the president.

"The whole school is excited about it. The whole community is excited. It's on the news every single day," Lee, 18, said last week.

As for COB President Hodder "a high school diploma is no longer the end point. There is more learning to be done if we are to have an informed, critical citizenry and to have better control over the prosperity of the nation. An expanded elite of well educated people build prosperity and where such status is open to all who work hard and want to, it also builds hope."

June 08, 2010

tribune242 editorial

Caribbean Blog International

Bahamas Bracing for oil spill impact

Bracing for oil spill impact
By ERICA WELLS ~ NG Managing Editor ~ ewells@nasgaurd.com:


Ever since the Deepwater Horizon exploded in the Gulf of Mexico 47 days ago local officials and concerned environmentalists have been bracing for the likelihood that oil from the sunken rig owned by British Petroleum (BP) will eventually make its way to The Bahamas.

Oil entering what is known as the "loop current" in the Gulf of Mexico could make its way through the Florida Straits, potentially oiling the shorelines and marine resources along the western edge of Cay Sal Banks. Over time, there is the potential that oil could reach the Biminis and West End, Grand Bahama.

"It is a near certainty that we will see oil in the Gulf Stream at some point in the near future," said Dr. Will Macking, a seabird specialist who worked on an Oil Pre-Impact Assessment report submitted to the Bahamas Oil Response Team and NEMA.

The BP oil spill has been labeled the U.S.' biggest environmental catastrophe. It has also been described as the worst oil spill in U.S. history - nearly double the output of the infamous Exxon Valdez disaster in 1989.

Since the Deepwater Horizon explosion on April 20, that killed 11 people, official estimates have put the flow rate of the leak at 12,000 barrels to 19,000 barrels a day, although some scientists have said it could be substantially more, as much as 1 million-plus a day.

One only has to read the press reports coming out the U.S. to get an idea of just how damaging the impact from an oil spill can be.

On May 27, scientists from the University of South Florida returned from a six-day voyage into the Gulf of Mexico with evidence that huge plumes of oil - broken into bits and beads by the dispersants - were moving thousands of feet beneath the surface in a great toxic cloud, according to U.S. reports. That underwater mix of oil and dispersants could poison fish larvae, with cascading effects up the food chain, and damage the corals found in some parts of the Gulf.

Already oil has stained some the marshes of southern Louisiana, disrupting the habitats of shorebirds, sea turtles and other threatened species. Tourist areas in the Gulf are facing visitor cancellations, and there is growing concern over the impact the spill will have on the area's shrimp and oyster industries.


PREPARING FOR THE WORST

Here in The Bahamas, government officials emphasize that preparation measures have been mobilized. The Bahamas is also receiving assistance from the International Maritime Organization, taking advantage of its status as the third largest ship registry in the world.

"We are on top of this and we are getting first class advice," Ian Fair, chairman of the Bahamas Maritime Authority told The National Review.

Daily monitoring exercises for presence of oil on beaches in Cay Sal Banks will begin once oil is confirmed in the Florida Keys area or the north coast of Cuba, according to an Incident Action Plan (IAP) for the spill.

Booming will also begin in Bimini once oil is reported in the Keys or Cay Sal Banks, then Grand Bahama once oil is reported in Bimini, and then Andros (west). Beach clean-up will be conducted once tar balls are detected, the IAP notes.

Officials here are hoping for the best-case scenario, which is that oil entering the eddies could be carried in prevailing currents, bypassing the western Bahamas; however this would be difficult to precisely predict.

What is also difficult to predict is the full brunt of the damage that oil could wreak on our environment and marine resources, which include damage to beaches, fish, seabird, lobster and turtle populations and habitats.

One worrying potential impact noted in the pre-impact assessment report is the presence of Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons (PAHs), which occur in oil, or tar deposits and make up most of the toxicity in oil.

PAHs are the most common organic pollutant in the environment and can be extremely toxic as a carcinogen or mutagen, causing cancer or chromosomal damage in reproducing adults.

PAHs also accumulate in the tissues of marine organisms, potentially making those animals unsuitable for human consumption.

The report also points out that the areas most threatened by oiling events over the next year include near shore seagrass, hard-bar and reef environments that are critical to the fisheries production for the entire Bahamas.

The pre-impact report establishes the environmental conditions of Cay Sal Banks, which is one of the likeliest locations to experience oiling - including seabirds assessments, marine surveys, ocean samples, marine tissue samples and surface sediment samples - before any petroleum contamination. This also provides valuable evidence in any future claims The Bahamas government may make against BP.

Florida and other American states have already started exercising this option.

Against the backdrop of the severe economic environment, the government will no doubt move to seek compensation from BP if necessary, given the potential impact to our beaches and reefs, which power the country's bread and butter industry of tourism, already hard hit by the global recession.

The estimated cost of equipment for the potential clean-up effort has been pegged at over $70,000, according to the IAP.


'NO OIL NO SPOIL'

Concerned environmentalist Sam Duncombe of the group reEarth, wants more information disseminated about what the government is doing to prepare for the likelihood of the impact from the Deepwater Horizon oil spill.

She has also organized a petition "No Oil No Spoil" petition calling on The Bahamas government to stop all oil exploration and to never issue permits for drilling.

"The lack luster response of The Bahamas government has been shocking and we are wondering what is the plan?

"Minister (of the Environment Earl) Deveaux does little to impart confidence in our government's ability to contain a matter of this magnitude," Duncombe said in a statement released over the weekend.

Duncombe hit out at Deveaux for supporting oil exploration in The Bahamas - under oversight with the highest safeguards - in the face of the potential impact of the oil spill.

She said that neither BP nor the U.S. government was able to respond adequately to contain the Gulf spill at the source after 45 days of trying. However, by Sunday, reports indicated that a cap placed over a ruptured well spewing oil into the Gulf of Mexico was capturing about 10,000 barrels a day.

"Despite their vast resources and professional consultants, experts, and international support at their fingertips, BP was scrambling for almost two days to get the necessary equipment to the explosion site to try and put the fire out and now 45 days later are no closer to a solution to plug the well. Additionally, the improved track record of the US Government in preventing oil spills and containing them has not been proven in this instance and both parties are wavering in direction, on the brink of a global disaster.

"The response from the Bahamas Oil Response Team to the Gulf leak has been underwhelming. Although there is evidence of them having met, there have been no reports made to the terrified nation on how we will deal with the spill, not if, but when, it soils our beaches. Again, we have to wonder if there is a plan?"

Duncombe notes that the consequences of an oil spill persist for many years after the initial spill is "cleaned up", and that the cost of oil spills can quickly reach billions of dollars as a result of lost revenue for businesses, as well as continued poisoning of beaches, soil and water tables.

"Fumes from oil spills affect people living nearby. I have experienced that first hand at Clifton with the Bunker C fuel. Oil spills are one of the worst environmental disasters affecting fisheries, fishermen, wildlife, and tourism...expect tarred beaches and contaminated drinking water for many years after the spill," she said.

"Prince William Sound Alaska, the site of the Exxon Valdez oil spill of 11 million gallons has yet to recover, 20 years later."

Duncombe, like other observers in the U.S., is now urging officials to take a more serious look at reducing dependency on oil, and by extension reducing disasters like the Deepwater Horizon.

"We have a moral responsibility to protect the environment for present and future generations," said Duncombe.

"Continuing to power ourselves with oil will inevitably lead to more disasters. We have to think about the capacity of the Earth's ecosystems to continue to absorb the 'mistakes' we continue to make. Alternative energies exist and work, as the present generation we have an obligation to begin to make that switch in a meaningful way."

June 7, 2010

thenassauguardian

Bahamas Blog International

Jamaica: After Christopher “Dudas” Coke, soul-searching

After Dudus, soul-searching
Keith Noel, Contributor
jamaica-gleaner:


IT IS now time to speak the truth and apportion blame. I say speak the truth first because this requires thought, it demands guts, and it holds the answers. It will literally 'set us free'. Only after we speak the whole truth, and nothing but the truth, will we be in a position to apportion blame.

Let us all speak the truth, at least to ourselves. Those who were in politics in the days when we first began to exploit the poor for their votes must answer hard questions; moreso those politicians who, to ensure political success, extended this to the point of putting guns in the hands of disadvantaged youth. Those politicians who lied to the country, telling us that it was 'the other side' who was responsible for the gun violence, must converse with their conscience, along with those who, when in power, built high-rise housing communities and ensured they were peopled with his/her political supporters only.

And most of all, those politicians who, after realising that the garrison communities they had created had spawned a type of criminal who grew increasingly powerful, continued to give excuses for hugging them up, attending their funerals and repeating euphemisms about them 'protecting' their communities. And I include those who lamely gave 'lists' of the names of these men to the police, in a facile attempt to lessen their power.

Hard-pressed

We now hear business leaders speak of the efforts they made to battle extortion. Unless they come forward and speak about how easily they gave in to the criminals - admit their fear, confess their actual complicity at times - we will be in for another round of lies and will so easily slip back into the mode we are trying to escape. And this includes all - the man with the emporium to the corner shopowner, the man with the fleet of buses, to the one running a single taxi.

Most hard-pressed will be the police. I am not speaking only about the crooked cop who extorts money from a speeding driver or from a bar owner operating outside the scope of his licence. More in need of this internal review will be the policeman who has been in the payroll of the don. The cop who has passed on information about police activity, turned a blind eye, or helped him in other ways and, in so doing, has increased the level of public mistrust of the police! So too, the honest cop who shrugs when his colleague does wrong!

Then, our entertainers. In order to gain popularity among criminal elements, or to get their financial support, some have become spokespersons and proselytizers of the doctrine of the don. It is they who have spread the 'informer fi dead' message and have encouraged youth to report offences to the big man and not the police. It can NOT be 'money talk, an everything else park', his/her mind can not only be on the financial bottom line. The bottom line must be the youth! The media also must soul-search because, in an effort to gain popularity by being 'liberal' and 'of the people', some media persons have encouraged the anarchy that these entertainers have propounded.

But most of all, the general public has to accept blame. Every man or woman who has had their purse stolen, their son beaten up, their daughter raped, and who reported it to the 'big man' instead of the police, has helped to establish this new order. Every citizen who claims that the young 'shotta' in the lane is a 'defender' of the community and protected him when the police came to investigate a crime, is part of the problem. So, too, is the church leader who, in his effort to maintain peace in the community, has turned a blind eye to any illegal activity of those he or she is trying to help.

Every person, public official or private citizen, must examine himself. All of us, the church leaders, the school principals, the librarians who, in accepting that their institutions belong to the community, might have unwittingly or tacitly accepted the unrequested protection of the 'area leader', must now search for ways to let them and the community know that it is the ordinary folk on whom they depend, not any 'big man'.

Send feedback to columns@gleanerjm.com

June 7, 2010

jamaica-gleaner

Bahamas Blog International