Coast Guard successfully completes new burn against oil spill

[babylonsister]

Coast Guard completes new burn against oil spill
Updated 11m ago

By Brian Winter and Rick Jervis, USA TODAY


HOPEDALE, La. — The Coast Guard successfully completed a controlled burn of a portion of the oil slick off the Gulf Coast Wednesday, Rep. Charlie Melancon, D-La., said.

Melancon, the congressman for most of Louisiana's southeast coast, said officials "were very encouraged" by the effort to corral the oil with fireproof barriers and then burn it before it reaches the shoreline. It was the first such burn since last week because of rough seas and strong winds in recent days.

"We're going to continue to skim and pull more oil, burn as much as we can while weather permits," Melancon told USA TODAY.

A test burn last week succeeded in burning off some of the oil that has been floating on the surface of the water since the Deepwater Horizon oil rig exploded April 20.

more...

http://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/2010-05-04-oil-spill_N.htm

[villager]

1. well -- so this just puts it in the air, instead of keeping it in the sea?

n/t

[TransitJohn]

2. Yes

and that's bad how? Would you rather it continue to kill marine life?

[villager]

3. You infer that it's "good." It may be "less bad," true...

...but I can't imagine it's doing the world much good in our atmosphere...

[Xithras]

5. No worse than it would have done spewing from our tailpipes.

Compared to the amount of crap we dump into our atmosphere every day, this smoke is a drop in the bucket.

[villager]

8. that's a point there, Xithras..

As a species, we haven't done quite as much overt damage to the oceans.. directly... yet...

[backscatter712]

12. That's the thing. It's less bad.

The smoke & pollution from burning oil causes less damage than letting it wash about in the ocean unburned.

[ConcernedCanuk]

4. well yeah - what we don't see won't hurt us - right?

.
.
.

do NOT worry about all the life that has and will be destroyed in what is UNDERNEATH the water . . .

3 months for a "relief" well

I'm sure that Momma nature is impressed with our "human" efforts

If Momma Nature or "god(s)" wanted to protect the Earth by eliminating ONE species . .

I wonder which one it would be . . .

:freak:

[TK421]

6. I was questioning this method when I first heard of it, myself

[FSogol]

7. Yes, but it would have been burned one day anyway. Burning it off

will save a lot of wildlife and maybe the region's fishing/tourism industries.

[babylonsister]

9. What do you suggest gets done that's actually doable? nt

[villager]

10. I'm suggesting this may simply be one of the "less bad" alternatives

... we're faced with. Not too many out-and-out "good" ones at this point...

[babylonsister]

11. There sure aren't any good alternatives, agreed. I'm just hoping

the combined efforts being made have an impact. And, of course, that BP is made to pay dearly for screwing up so many things through their negligence. Oh, and add cheney to that wish list.