Okay, today's update on the Cosco Busan Oil Spill:
We went to the volunteer training this morning for this specific spill that happened 10 days ago and received very thorough professional, community information from the National Park Society, Human Resources of the City of San Francisco, and an Industrial Toxicologist... Let's just say this morning brought out and signed up 1,400 new volunteers, which literally brought tears to my eyes. What would California be without its miraculous beaches, marshlands, habitats, and the people that really care about them? (Similiarly, I watched this town meeting in Seattle on KQED outraged at the Federal government loosening it's restrictions on monopolies for newspapers to buy television, radio in similiar markets, that's another story). We learned that as of today, the beaches specifically, OB, will be reopened soon. Maybe even tomorrow they will be deemed, "Clean". I myself, suggest that you take your surf down to Pacifica or Santa Cruz, because remnants of this sticky bunker oil can still be around in the water due to tides and a few surfers who ignored or were unaware of warnings were hospitalized this past week.
What's in the water?
Bunker oil- sticky dense oil that has trace carcinogens, most fumes have flown off into the atmosphere (yikes). Some who were exposed to the oil on their skin developed rashes. If you get any on you, they suggest soap and warm water to get it off or an alcohol based cleanser like those anti-bacterial nonwash gels.
What to do?
Don't go near it if you see any globules left somewhere. And don't come near or try to rescue wildlife that have oil on them. They've been traumatized enough. There's all these numbers to call on a new site for San Francisco www.www.sfgov.org/sf311
Bay clean up:
Apparently, it didnt affect the South East sector of the Bay marshlands but when they deployed hundreds of volunteers in that area, they cleaned up over 8,000 lbs. of debris, so the animals have a clean, safe place to migrate to if necessary, and they've never been cleaner.
My friend Charlie, used to ask us to accompany him down to the beach to collect those plastic flip lids for his art installations and I'd always come back w. two bags filled w. trash because I couldnt help but pick it up. If you go down there daytime, would be cool to at the end of your laxation to just bust out yr trash bag w. friends or your kids for like a few minutes and pick up some stuff. It gets kind of addicting actually once you start. You'd be surprised how many cups, plastic knives, cig butts, and styrofoam things you find blown up near the heathers.
You can also donate funds to the different organisations cleaning the wildlife, etc. on that site. Ps. the Trees look really good today, the fog or something just crazy LUSH. Just imagine if they were spotted in gross oil, how sad that would be or littered in the trees. Don't neglect our Bay.... FPXBN
