Studying The Effects Of The Leak

A group of scientists is proposing a detailed study of the effects of the leak including how oil breaks down in the water, how it effects the plant life, and how it effects the various animal species. Some animals may be more vulnerable to oil's toxicity than others. The idea is to create a more nuanced and detailed response when the next leak occurs, and make no mistake about it, there are more oil leaks coming.

One problem is the general inertia that prevents learning from the tragedies of the past.

McClatchy: Scientists urge U.S. to move quickly to study Gulf oil spill

They propose using what's probably the world's worst oil accident to learn how crude oil and natural gas move through water when they're released at high volumes from the deep sea.


The scientists also want to see how the oil breaks down into toxic and safer components in different ocean conditions, information that would help predict which ocean species are most at risk. The experiment also could provide data that would help in dealing with any future spills.