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The largest oil spill in US history the

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tanker Exxon Valdez. And now we turn to

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that oil rig that sank after it exploded

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in the Gulf of Mexico. We're following

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this evening that oil spill stretching

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for miles along a picturesque Southern

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California coastline.

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The US Department of Commerce estimates

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that as many as over 105 thousand birds

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167,000 sea turtles and 51 percent of

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the area's dolphin population died due

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to the Deepwater Horizon oil spill but

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the effects of an oil spill don't stop

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with just one generation. Studies have

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shown that the toxins in petroleum

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impact an ecosystem for decades. In fact

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in 2008 organisms such as crabs, mussels

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and marsh grass in Wild Harbor

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Massachusetts were still found to have

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lower biomass and slower growth rates

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from an oil spill that happened in 1969

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almost 40 years prior. The main toxins in

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petroleum are polycyclic aromatic

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hydrocarbons known as PAHs. PAHs are not

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only carcinogenic but also have been

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shown to affect the DNA and development

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of embryos causing organisms to be born

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with cranial, spinal, and heart

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abnormalities. PAHs do not easily

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dissolve into water. The toxins can

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travel long distances to the bottoms of

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rivers and lakes as they stick to solid

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particles allowing PAHs to contaminate

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soil. Because PAHs can bio accumulate in

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plant tissue the PAH content of plants

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can be many times higher than the

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content of PAHs in the soil or water

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Furthermore the impact of an oil spill

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spreads thousands of miles beyond the

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disaster. Pelicans migrate over 1,000

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miles to Minnesota during the winter and

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PAHs were found in about 80% of the eggs

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laid there due to the Deepwater Horizon

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spill. The spill also caused enough

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bleaching and tissue loss in deep water

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coral reefs to cover an area three times

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larger than Manhattan. People living in

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communities contaminated by PAHs can be

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exposed through contact with polluted

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air, water, and soil. The 50,000 people

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involved in spill cleanup suffered from

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severely damaged lung tissue and

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irritated skin. Furthermore the economic

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fallout surrounding an oil spill is

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massive to say the least

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Like many other fishermen in the area

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Luis Mccain Spees family business fell

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apart due to the loss of fish in the

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Louisiana coast after the Deepwater

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Horizon oil spill. His own sons, also

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fishermen, are now unemployed. He

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estimates that he has 300,000 dollars

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invested in his company. You know in two

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years I could I could recap some of this

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money but it is all gets on air I mean

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everything we got invested is we just

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gonna go down. While many different

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methods have been used to clean up oil

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spills none of them can fully reverse

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the environmental effects of the spill

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For example chemical dispersants are

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often used to target large oil slicks in

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order to break them up into smaller less

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impactful oil sites. This method is

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effective in preventing coastline oil

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buildup and proceeding effects on

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wildlife but often results in the bio

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accumulation of other just as harmful

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chemicals in the water. Skimmers and

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booms have also been used in place of

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dispersants to try to contain the oil

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and prevent it from spreading but they

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do not actually remove the oil from the

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water therefore only providing a

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temporary fix. In situ burning is also

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used to remove the oil from the surface

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of the water but this method causes air

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pollution from the resulting smoke. The

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only way to truly combat the effects of

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an oil spill is to prevent them from

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happening in the first place. After the

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1989 Exxon Valdez oil spill that rocked

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the Alaskan coast the Oil Spill

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Prevention Act of 1990 was passed. This

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law created the Cook Inlet Regional

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Citizens Advisory Council, a third party

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between government and industry

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representatives to keep both groups

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accountable as the government failed to

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keep industry members liable for the

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impact of oil spills. The Oil Spill

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Prevention Act also makes the owner of

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the vessel economically liable for the

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spill if the oil was being transported

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in a single-hull ship. This type of

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transportation is cheaper, though at

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higher risk for a spill. Though the Oil

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Spill Prevention Act increases the

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incentive for companies to use safe

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methods it is not perfect. A new bill was

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introduced to Congress on January 9th

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2017 called the Marine Oil Spill

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Prevention Act

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It improves the Oil Spill Prevention Act

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by creating a Gulf Coast Regional

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Citizens Council that gives a voice to

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those living in the coastal communities

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around the Gulf Coast. This new law would

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also make any owner of oil responsible

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for their spills regardless of what type

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vessel the oil is being transported in

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If this law is passed the occurrence of

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oil spills would be greatly reduced

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it would also hold those responsible for

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the spill accountable for their actions

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and would encourage a community that

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works together for the greater

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environmental good. If we can keep oil

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drilling and transportation practices

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safe the use of oil would be much more

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sustainable

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