The Deepwater Horrizon oil spill
After being down to New Orleans and the area around for almost a week, I am beginning to see the picture of my project I think.
Talking with the people living down here make you understand that this Deepwater Horizon oil spill, it’s not about the money, of course it’s also about people loosing their jobs and income, but it is mainly about other matters than the dollars.
It’s about loosing a way of life.
People are not only loosing their money and their income, but are also loosing their possibility of catching their own food, they are loosing the nature around them, the beaches and the wildlife.
I got no problem understanding why people are getting sick after the spill.
It’s not only as a result of the intoxication because of the oil and use of toxic dispersants, but it’s also because what people are loosing from their life, from their soul and spirit, in the moment when everything they have had, what they have loved, is lost in a few days.
And why? Why is it lost? we can ask.
Well, one reason why it’s lost is that a huge oil company, among the greatest, the BP (British Petroleum) was drilling for oil, and not paying enough care to the security.
And when it comes to cleanup as well…
The use of the dispersants, way more toxic than the oil itself, really make me understand that this was not handled as it should have been.
It seems to me that the mindset behind the cleanup was «out of sight, out of mind». As long as there is no oil visual on the surface of the beaches, and no oil slick floating on the oceans surface, no-one will really care.
And the worst thing is that it is partially the truth. Cause if you are following the medias coverage of the spill, it’s like all the other things they are covering. When it’s not hot anymore, it’s no need to cover (they think), cause it won’t sell that much any longer.
Well that doesn’t fix the problem.
The oil is not necessarily cleaned up just because you can’t see any more pictures in the newspapers.
Okay, the well is shut down, and it’s not leaking any more oil into the gulf. That’s true, and it’s a good thing.
But the toxins are getting into the food-chains, people are still out of their jobs, and have still lost their way of life.
I think that in many ways, there is no amount of money that is able to fix this in some years.
Take a look at Alaska. 20 years since the Exxon Valdez oil spill, and the dirt is still there. Visual in the soil.
And the Exxon Valdez was just a small spill compared to the BP’s Deepwater Horizon oil spill.
So therefor, being down here make me realize how important my work here really is.
Fighting for the Norwegian government to keep the waters outside of Lofoten, Vesterålen and Senja free from the oil industry.
Making them understand what we are putting at risk if we let the oil companies into those areas.
– We are talking about land areas of which the UNESCO is considering a world heritage.
– We are talking about the spawning area for the world’s last great population of cod.
– We are talking about areas that make millions out of tourism.
– We are talking about the homes of peoples.
– We are talking of the production of a fossil fuel.
– And its in Norway
We don’t need the money that bad. A poor country considering to jeopardy with such a value, I can understand.
But that Norway is even considering putting this vulnerable areas at risk for some decades of oil drilling, for me it’s not understandable.