BP Oil Spill Damage Assessment Wildlife Death and Injury Report

Gulf of Mexico (Jul 3) – Field-level staff of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service along with the National Oceanic Atmosphere Administration have been documenting dead and injured wildlife and marine life as a result of the Deepwater Horizon Disaster. BP will never be able to recover the loss of this life.

Part of the responsibilities of the collection and rescue efforts are to determine the exact cause of death or injury. Some of the wildlife and fish recovered may have died from natural causes. The increased numbers of recovered wildlife is due to the numbers of well trained members of the rescue team.

Once team members locate, collect, or capture fish and wildlife the injured and dead are labeled with indentifying numbers to aid in the evaluation process. The rescued are given an initial examination to determine the extent of their injuries. The collected are checked for broken bones, external oil, or other injuries. Once returned to the shelters, the collected are given a thorough examination to determine whether they have ingested any of the oil from the Deepwater Horizon gusher. The eyes, throat, and mouth are checked for oil damage as well.

In case of the deceased, a full or partial necropsy is ordered to help determine the exact cause of death. A necropsy is an autopsy performed on animals.

To date a total of 2,239 birds have been collected, 922 oiled and 1317 found dead. Of those found dead 392 were found covered with oil. Those that have been collected alive, 408 have been released back into the wild in the marshes around Titusville, Florida.

Five hundred ninety-four sea turtles have been located, 441 of those found dead. Of the remaining sea turtles, only three have been released back into safe sanctuary.

Of the total mammals collected, 52 found dead, five found alive and only one has been released back to safe sanctuary.

Other reptiles located, only one captured alive and remains at the rescue facility for further evaluation and treatment.

Although, rehabilitation centers have been established in and around the Gulf States, BP will never be able to compensate for those that have lost their lives due to the carelessness and unsafe practices of deepwater oil drilling and exploration.

The environmental impact of this disaster is here to stay for decades. It is time to put an end to this type of oil drilling and begin a serious effort to turn to alternative energy resources for the sake of this planets future.

Currently, congressional committees have been examining the cause and effect of this disaster and the future of offshore oil exploration to which, for the sake of those that live in harmony with nature, an end to this dangerous method of energy collection will be halted, at least here in the United States.

Posted by public on July 4, 2010. Filed under Environment,News,Science and Tech. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. Both comments and pings are currently closed.