BP (NYSE:BP) has dispersed a minimum of 655,000 chemicals in the Gulf that are now banned. According to the Environmental Protection Agency, this is the largest application of dispersant's every used in the history of oil spills.
The two dispersant's being used are from a line called Corexit, both these dispersant's were banned from use on oil spills in the U.K. over 10 years ago due to the failure of their toxicity tests. What's actually used is kept secret by manufactures, the EPA said they are required by law to protect this information.
Corexit had been on the approved list of dispersant's put out by the EPA despite them being more toxic and less effective. A version of Corexit was used on the Exxon Valdez spill in 1989, it was linked later to human health problems. Nervous system, kidney, liver, blood, and respiratory problems are just some of the related health problems due to Corexit.
BP has been asked to switch to less toxic dispersant's within 72 hours.
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So who screwed up? BP for using 655,000 gallons of an approved dispersant or the EPA for not banning it? Them banning it now is a huge bungle, why didn't they recognize the dangers 10 years ago when the UK did? BP has to work within government laws and regulations. Don't make the mistake of blaming BP for everything. The government needs to be proactive to identify risks and protect us, the public.
ReplyDeleteYour article has a good provocative title, but I disagree with it completely. How old are you? Have you ever bought and appliance with CFCs in it? How would you like an article written about you stating "John Smith" has used 10 cubic feet of now banned CFCs and released them to the atmosphere? Sheesh