The comparisons to the Exxon Valdez are really over wrought, there really isn't a lot in common
- The Exxon Valdez was a static amount of oil, we knew how much there was immediately. We can only estimate the amount of oil leaking here and nobody can accurately predict the date when it will finally be shut off. The whole "we have to stop the leak" part was missing in the Exxon Valdez, frankly that is the pressing crisis now.
- The Prince William Sound is very enclosed compared to the Gulf of Mexico. The concentration in the Gulf is much lower, we won't be seeing anything as bad as the 2" thick crude oil goo covering everything in sight because the oil is spread out relatively thinly across a huge surface. On one hand that is good because it will break down faster naturally, on the other hand it makes corralling really hard to do, the area is massive. June and July are very timid months for weather in the Gulf because the water and land are very similar temperatures, what happens in the fall when hurricanes start rolling through the oil patch? It is going to be hitting everywhere. We lucked out that for the first few days the prevailing wind was from the northwest, but as soon as it turned around all hell broke loose.
- There are marshes in the Gulf. Suffice to say cleaning the oil out from between blades of grass is a lot harder than off of rocky beaches.
- Exxon got a lot of blame in 1989, BP has been lucky enough to have this widely labeled the "Gulf of Mexico oil spill" or the "Spill in the Gulf", the gulf of mexico did not spill the oil, BP did. Make a point to correct people who incorrectly label the spill.
- The Exxon Valdez was a static amount of oil, we knew how much there was immediately. We can only estimate the amount of oil leaking here and nobody can accurately predict the date when it will finally be shut off. The whole "we have to stop the leak" part was missing in the Exxon Valdez, frankly that is the pressing crisis now.
- The Prince William Sound is very enclosed compared to the Gulf of Mexico. The concentration in the Gulf is much lower, we won't be seeing anything as bad as the 2" thick crude oil goo covering everything in sight because the oil is spread out relatively thinly across a huge surface. On one hand that is good because it will break down faster naturally, on the other hand it makes corralling really hard to do, the area is massive. June and July are very timid months for weather in the Gulf because the water and land are very similar temperatures, what happens in the fall when hurricanes start rolling through the oil patch? It is going to be hitting everywhere. We lucked out that for the first few days the prevailing wind was from the northwest, but as soon as it turned around all hell broke loose.
- There are marshes in the Gulf. Suffice to say cleaning the oil out from between blades of grass is a lot harder than off of rocky beaches.
- Exxon got a lot of blame in 1989, BP has been lucky enough to have this widely labeled the "Gulf of Mexico oil spill" or the "Spill in the Gulf", the gulf of mexico did not spill the oil, BP did. Make a point to correct people who incorrectly label the spill.