BP’s Deepwater Horizon America’s Haunting Catastrophe by Daniel Beltrá, April 20, 2010

Oil covers the surface of the Gulf of Mexico on the vicinity of BP's Deepwater Horizon spill source, June, 17, 2010. Photograph © Daniel Beltrá for Greenpeace.

BP’s Deepwater Horizon America’s Haunting Catastrophe
by Daniel Beltrá, Fellow, International League of Conservation Photographers (iLCP), April 20, 2010

On April 20, 2010, the Deepwater Horizon drilling rig exploded in the Gulf of Mexico and became the world’s largest marine oil spill in the history of the petroleum industry. Methane gas, under extreme pressure, escaped from the well and shot up the drill column causing an explosion that engulfed the platform in fire. Despite multiple efforts to douse the flames, the platform, weighing 58,000 tons, sank one mile to the ocean floor on April 22, 2010. Eleven crewmen died, and 17 others were injured.

Robert Glenn Ketchum honored by Secretary of the Interior

Secretary of the Interior, Ken Salazar and the Department of the Interior have given Robert Glenn Ketchum the 'Partners in Conservation Award' for his participation in the Southwest Alaska Salmon Habitat Partnership.

Ketchum's Aperture book "Rivers of Life: Southwest Alaska, The Last Great Salmon Fishery" published in 2001 began to define this little-known but spectacular, undisturbed habitat to the public as part of a now decade long campaign to protect the fishery and the land-based ecosystem that supports it. Ketchum followed with a 2nd book, "Wood-Tichik: Alaska's Largest State Park" in 2004, and a national traveling exhibit in 2005. During that same period a grassroots coalition has grown to considerable proportion and formed the more-than-70 individuals and companies recognized by this award.

The Obama administration has just recently taken Bristol Bay out of consideration for oil and gas development, and so the first of two threats has now been defused.

Thank you President Obama and Secretary Salazar for recognizing the value of this astounding natural resource. Now I hope you will consider placing the entire fishery into a permanent reserve.

Onshore another threat to the habitat looms ever greater, though. The Pebble mine proposal is a disaster in the waiting for fish, animals and parks alike, so it is now time to turn our total attention to this fiasco, and see that is stopped once and for all.