Sixty more barrels of oil were spilled into the Mississippi today. Now they are finding oil in the mud of the mouth of the river. How much damage to the ecosystem can our area take? How many people as well as wildlife are going to die due to this pollution? How many deaths makes this story relevant to Mississippians who are sitting back while their natural resources are destroyed in the name of big oil? How many?
The port of New Orleans is the number one grain port in the world and the number one port in the United States according to the U.S. Army Corp of Engineers. Integrated tows, a series of barges fixed together with a tow boat, have increased along the Mississippi River. These integrated tows can carry upwards of 200,000 barrels of oil (approximately 35,000 tons) of petroleum products. These same tows also support loads of steel, grain, sand, aggregate, sulfur and chemicals. Oil is not the only product that can cause severe environmental impacts along this heavily trafficked waterway.
ReplyDeleteThe problem here isn't specifically oil; it is that our internal transportation structure is in shambles. A concerted bipartisan effort to increase funding, maintenance, and inspection of our entire infrastructure is long overdue, or we will continue to read about accidents that will result in human fatality, ecosystem destruction, and long term environmental impacts.
Here's what else more oil gets you...well, not you specifically, but somebody.
ReplyDeleteGreat point mking. I agree 100%. I was being a little snarky with my post. This whole drilling misinformation thing has me about to blow. It so reminds me of the leadup to the Iraq War, where misinformation ruled the day.
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