Welcome back to GreenDish, I’m Terri Bennett and I’m so glad you’re joining us.  Now that the Gulf Oil Spill appears to be capped, new estimates about just how much oil leaked are being released. Federal scientists now say that the BP-managed well released 205.8 million gallons of oil which is about 4.9 million barrels. This is far more than initial estimates and makes the BP spill the worlds largest unintentional spill. The only other larger spill occurred in 1991 when oil was intentionally spilled during the Persian Gulf War.

Now, the talk about the Gulf of Mexico is shifting to what’s called the Dead Zone.  It’s an area of water that is basically void of all marine life but in this case, it’s not the oil spill that’s to blame.  Every year fertilizers, pesticides, vehicle fluids, animal waste and other pollutants are washed into the Mississippi River by stormwater runoff and carried downstream. They are dumped into the Gulf of Mexico creating a polluted zone of water where marine life cannot exist. This year the Dead Zone already covers nearly 8000 square miles, about the size of NJ!  So it’s not just BP doing harm to the Gulf, we are all playing a role in polluting our coastal waters.  To learn how you can prevent sending pollutants into our coastal waters, check out our video on Filthy Beaches or The annual beach pollution report in our eco-news section.

Remember we are all part of the problem and we are all part of the solution. So Do Your Part and we’ll see you right back here next time for more GreenDish