noaa
Deploying 'Baseball-Bat Science' To Grasp Sub-Surface Oil
The Gulf oil disaster reminds me of that old Donald Rumsfeld chestnut, the one about known-knowns and known-unknowns. With a massive, ongoing gushing oil spill, and an enormous ecosystem at risk, we're in the realm of the "known unknown" – we know that there is a huge amount of oil moving through the Gulf, but no one’s quite sure exactly where it is or where it’s going.
A group of federal agencies, including NOAA, Fish and Wildlife Service, Bureau of Land Management and the National Park Service are trying to push us into the "known known" category with teams sent out on what are essentially reconnaissance missions. Two months into the oil disaster, they’re still grappling to understand the impacts on shorelines, turtles, mammals and more.
Last Thursday, for the first time, NOAA allowed a small group of ocean conservation activists to shadow a crew working on discovering the location and severity of subsurface oil. I joined our senior campaign director, Jackie Savitz, along with scientists and campaigners from Ocean Conservancy and the Gulf Restoration Network in a couple of skiffs that tailed the NOAA crew for a few hours on the water just east of Grand Isle, La.
Before we embarked, NOAA restoration specialist Sean Meehan gave us the rundown as we stood on the dock in Jean Lafitte, about 25 miles south of New Orleans. A jovial guy, Meehan is an experienced marine researcher, but even he acknowledged the unique difficulty of locating subsurface oil.
Where Are They Now?: Chanel Gemini, Nika Kashyap & Sabina Van Tilburg
This is the fourth in a series of posts about the 2009 Ocean Heroes finalists.
Today we’re catching up with 2009 ocean hero finalists Sabina van Tilburg, Chanel Gemini and Nika Kashyapone, the three girl scouts who were instrumental in convincing the state of Hawaii to become the first state in the U.S. to officially recognize World Oceans Day. They obtained over 650 signatures on their petition and received the support of many non-profits and government agencies such as the Nature Conservancy and NOAA.
Here’s Sabina's update:
“As a Girl Scout troop, we are currently working on our Gold Award, the highest award for Girl Scouts and selling lots and lots of cookies! We have recently been focusing on recycling, gardening, buying local, and learning more about our community. Along with that we have been participating in a lot of beach clean ups, fishpond clean ups and restorations, working in the lo'i which are Hawaiian taro patches, and counting whales with NOAA, which you can learn more about at http://hawaiihumpbackwhale.noaa.gov/involved/ocwelcome.html "
Inspired? Nominate someone you know -- young or old -- to be this year's ocean hero.
