Environmentalists Urge Drilling Ban In Virginia

RICHMOND, Va. (AP) - Virginia cannot risk the kind of economic calamity the Gulf Coast is experiencing as a result of the BP oil spill, the leaders of two environmental groups in the state said Thursday.

President Barack Obama suspended planned exploratory gas and oil drilling off Virginia's coast shortly after the April spill in the Gulf of Mexico, but Mike Tidwell of the Chesapeake Climate Action Network and J.R. Tolbert of the Virginia Sierra Club said that doesn't go far enough. They favor a permanent ban.

Tidwell and Tolbert were joined on a news teleconference by former Navy Capt. Joe Bouchard of Virginia Beach, who said drilling platforms off the state's coast also would interfere with military training exercises.

"The industry claims 'we have a great working relationship with the military and we don't interfere with their activities.' You can't believe that for a minute," said Bouchard, a former member of the Virginia House of Delegates.

The push to make Virginia the first East Coast state to explore offshore oil and gas resources has been led by Gov. Bob McDonnell. That hasn't changed.

"The governor supports a comprehensive approach to Virginia's energy needs," McDonnell spokesman Tucker Martin said in an e-mail Thursday. "He is a proponent of offshore energy exploration and development that is environmentally responsible and economically viable. That includes oil, natural gas and wind."

Tidwell and Tolbert touted wind as a viable alternative to drilling in the Atlantic. Tidwell said enough offshore wind could be harvested to power 3.6 million electric cars and 750,000 homes.

Tolbert said that beats risking an oil spill like the one in the Gulf, which he said has put 300,000 jobs in jeopardy and wrecked the region's tourism industry. BP's Deepwater Horizon oil well spewed more than 200 million gallons of oil into the Gulf before it was successfully capped last month.

Bouchard said the spill reached three of the four Navy training areas in the Gulf, but exercises in two of those areas have been limited to aviation since the 2005 base realignment process. The spill did make a portion of the Panama City operations area unavailable for surface and underwater vessel exercises, he said.

"That should stand as a very clear warning to those of us here in Virginia," Bouchard said.

He said sailing through oil spills also can ruin expensive and sensitive equipment on Navy ships.

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Saints To Raffle Super Bowl Ring to Support Gulf Coast

During a trip to Plaquemines Parish to support the area's fight against the oil spill, Saints quarterback Drew Brees announced today that the team is raffling off an authentic Super Bowl ring to raise funds to help support those impacted by the oil spill.

Brees made the announcement to coastal Who Dat Nation weary from the worst-ever U.S. oil spill.


Raffle tickets are $2, with a minimum ticket order being $10, according to Brees.

The winner will be announced prior to the team’s Sept. 9 home opener against Minnesota

At the event in Buras, lLocals were able to aside their misery for a few hours to schmooze with the Super Bowl-champion Saints today.

Saints owner Tom Benson, coach Sean Payton and players greeted a crowd Tuesday at Fort Jackson in Plaquemines Parish.

The fort has been a staging area for cleaning birds rescued from the oil flowing from BP's well in the Gulf of Mexico.

In oppressive heat, a jazz band played while Payton and star quarterback Drew Brees signed autographs.

Benson and others were to have lunch with Gov. Bobby Jindal and area fishermen. A news conference was planned later.

www.wwl.com

BP Disaster Reaches Florida's Panhandle Beaches

............ smell of oil hangs heavy in the sea air....... children with plastic shovels scoop up clumps of goo in the waves......... beachcombers collect tarballs as if they were seashells.......watermen can no longer work the waters............ resort towns are almost empty...... and wildlife dies...................

Think about all this when another country in need comes calling..............

Local Hair Salons Collect Hair To Send To Gulf

Here's a way we all can help................


Four area hair salons are joining the nationwide effort to help clean up the Gulf Coast oil spill by donating hair clippings and pantyhose to make booms used to sop up the petroleum. While the salons have a ready supply of hair, they are accepting donations of clean, used nylon stockings its OK if they have runs.

Participating salons are Hair Art Hair and Tanning Salon in Chesapeake Square, Onley; Hair Country in Belle Haven; Visual Changes in Parksley; and Danas Corner Cut in Bloxom. Donations can be brought to any of the salons.
Barbara Adkins, Hair Arts owner, said the idea to participate in the project came from Kelly Scott, a stylist at the salon and since the local salons began collecting hair a week ago each has collected a large trash bag of hair. They plan to ship the hair and hose once a week.

Other than the occasional request from someone wanting to spread hair around his yard to keep deer away, the clippings usually end up in the local landfill. But for now, they will be recycled into booms that will help protect the Gulf Coast in what appears will be a long-running crisis.

www.shoredailynews.com

Oil Spill Unlikely To Reach The Eastern Shore??

With the oil spill occurring in the Gulf of Mexico a few weeks ago, several people have been warning the oil spillage could make its way to Virginias Eastern Shore. The oil could stray north from the spill site and catch the Loop Current, which goes all the way around the tip of Florida and bumps into the Gulf Stream, which goes as far north as the Eastern Shore.

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) says the odds of the oil catching the Loop Current, being carried to the Gulf Stream and then making landfall off the shores of Cape Fear, NC are 1 in 500. Cape Fear is about 300 miles south of the Eastern Shore, which substantially lowers the odds the oil will reach our shores.

According to the Hampton Roads Coast Guard, if the oil was to reach the Eastern Shore, it would be in the form of small balls of tar. The tar balls would be small enough to fit in between someones toes.

www.shoredailynews.com


Well, I don't know about anyone else out there that loves the water and enjoys being around it and in it like I do but I don't find it very acceptable to be fishing, crabbing, swimming, walking, bike riding, etc. and find small tar balls between my toes!
In fact, I have my doubts about the whole truth being told. You can believe someone out there knows but in order to keep all of us from going into a panic we are being told the story one bit at a time. I think alot of questions aren't being answered properly. Time will tell.

Seafood Costs Could Be Affected

CHESAPEAKE, Va. (WAVY) - It's far to early to know whether or not oil from the Gulf of Mexico could reach our coast, but that's something officials are watching very closely. The spill could affect the area in other ways.

A gorgeous day in Norfolk's Ocean View seems far removed from the nightmare on the water in the Gulf Coast. High winds, heavy seas and rain are making it tough on crews trying to contain the oil and stop the leak.

"For everyone who has been affected by this spill know this, your government will do everything it takes, for as long as it takes, to stop this crisis," said President Barack Obama.

The situation could become far more grave if the oil gets into the gulf stream. The oil could potentially drift around Florida and up the coast.

"There would be concerns all the way up the East Coast if that happened," said Norfolk's Alicia Bauers. "I would hope that it would be stopped before it got up this far."

Sunday, officials announced a ban on fishing for at least 10 days from Louisiana to parts of the Florida panhandle.

"It's going to be a huge economic impact on the Gulf," said Chesapeake's Ron Lucas. "It's more than what a lot of people are even thinking about right now."

Local seafood markets like Family Seafood in South Norfolk could soon be feeling the affects.

"We've already been told that shrimp and oyster prices will be going up," Lucas added. "We are going to be relying more on local industry for the oysters."

It's dire a situation for fishermen in the Gulf.

"Some of these cats, this is all they know," said shrimper Leroy Meaux. "They don't know how to do nothing, but catching shrimp."

"It's going to be very devastating for them," Lucas said.

Local crabbers are getting calls from people in Mississippi, Louisiana and Texas asking how much it would cost to ship blue crabs from Hampton Roads.

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