O'Mara: Five years later, Gulf still waits for real restoration - Chron.com
Five years ago this week, the Deepwater Horizon drilling rig exploded in the Gulf of Mexico, killing 11 men and rupturing a well on the ocean floor that sent as much as 200 million gallons of crude oil into Gulf waters. It is no surprise that the image burned into many people's memories from the 2010 Gulf spill was that of a brown pelican desperately flapping oil-soaked wings, struggling to emerge from the oily surf. In many ways, the Gulf of Mexico is defined by the sheer diversity and abundance of its wildlife. Its blue waters are home to dolphins, tuna, sperm whales and sea turtles. The company is spending millions on cheerful "mission-accomplished" television ads and glossy reports declaring the Gulf to be on the mend, with no "significant long-term impact … to any Gulf species. Dolphins, sea turtles taking a hit. We know that bottlenose dolphins in the northern Gulf are dying at four times the normal rate, plagued by lung masses and adrenal problems, and that the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration has affirmatively linked that high mortality... The endangered Kemp's ridley sea turtle has also taken a hit: After decades of steady increases, the number of sea turtle nests on Gulf beaches has flat-lined or declined in the five years since the spill. Source: www.chron.com
