And The Leak Goes On...

It’s been 60 days since the British Petroleum rig sprung a monumental leak in the Gulf of Mexico, and yet we continue to see photographs of oil covered wildlife and satellite images of growing oil patches. But maybe there is hope that it could all end soon. It was mid June when a former professor of marine science at Louisiana State University and current Vice President of the National Audubon Society, G. Paul Kemp, concocted an idea that might be the missing link.

In a memo sent to the Environmental Protection Agency, Kemp proposed that Mississippi River dams be used to increase the volume of water flow downstream. This would aid in keeping the oil spill away from Louisiana wetlands, the River delta and an already severely damaged economy. Kemp’s idea was forwarded to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers who control a dam complex called the Old River Control Structure 315 miles upstream. This dam directs 70% of water flow down the Mississippi and the remaining 30% to a smaller western tributary, the Atchafalaya. Kemp suggests that the 70% be increased gradually to 81% over the span of 10 days. The process, referred to as gentle flushing, will help remove oil from already contaminated wetlands, while maintaining the integrity of delicate ecosystems. The idea has not encountered any opposition; however concerns about dam capacity are being discussed.

In his interview with Popular Mechanics, Kemp stresses, “Time is of the essence. Every day we are losing another 40,000 to 50,000 cubic feet per second out of the river. I’m very concerned that all we need is a shift in the winds offshore, and when the oil comes in this time there won’t be enough to keep it from coming into the marshes.”

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