BP Oil Spill
Eli Folger
What is the BP Oil Spill?
The BP Oil Spill is a huge spill of oil that happened on the Gulf of Mexico in 2010. There was a total discharge at 4.9 million barrels into the ocean. The oil continued to spill out till July 15, 2010. It killed many sea creatures. People to this day are still going out onto the beaches and cleaning up extra oil that they find.
Facts
- 16,000 total miles of coastline have been affected, including the coasts of Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, and Florida.
- The initial oil rig explosion killed 11 people and injured 17 others.
- Responders used 5.5 million feet of boom, a barrier placed in water, to collect and absorb oil.
- A method of treating the oil spill is "in-situ burning" or burning oil in a contained area on the surface of the water, which has negative effects on the environment.
- Over 8,000 animals (birds, turtles, mammals) were reported dead just 6 months after the spill, including many that were already on the endangered species list.