Oil Spill in the Gulf of Mexico

The Gulf of Mexico oil spill site, hosted by the four Gulf Sea Grant programs, provides visitors with current information about the Deepwater Horizon oil spill, as well as easy access to the archives of science-based and objective content gathered in the wake of the spill. Content will be continually updated, and visitors should check back often for new and revised information.

The spill was caused by an explosion and subsequent fire that damaged a deepwater drilling platform approximately 50 miles southeast of Venice, La. The rig capsized and sank on April 22, 2010, after burning for hours. The rig was owned by Transocean and was under contract to British Petroleum (BP).

NOAA has established a toll-free number for fishermen to call for the coordinates of areas closed due to the oil spill. The number is 1-800-627-NOAA (1-800-627-6622).

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Developments | Claims Information | Human Health | Seafood Safety | Dispersants | Economic Value | Response/Recovery | Educational Information | Exxon Valdez

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[ Info last updated: August 27, 2010 ]

Developments:

• The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) posts online situation updates daily.
• Restore the Gulf
• Deepwater Horizon Decision Support (NOAA)
• Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill: Fishing Closure in Federal Waters (Includes state water closures and claims Information)
• Federal Fisheries Closure FAQs
• Louisiana Waters Fishing Closures
• Alabama Waters Fishing/Boating Closures
• Mississippi Beach Closuresl

Claims Information:

• Gulf Coast Claims Facility
• Oil spill claims
• Gulf Oil Spill: Questions and Answers (IRS)
• Claims and Escrow (White House fact sheet)
• DisasterAssistance.gov
• SBA Disaster Loan Fact Sheet (Spanish) (Vietnamese) (Laotian)
• SBA Disaster Loan Electronic Application
• SBA Offers Disaster Loans to Oil Spill Impacted Businesses
• Damage Claims Diagram
• Mississippi Business Recovery Centers
• Florida Claim Office Locations

Human Health:

• Accepting Your Feelings
• Managing Stress
• Helping Others: A Community Peer Listener Training Program – This particular peer listener training program was offered to select individuals who serve coastal communities that have been impacted by the Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill. (recorded on Wednesday, July 28, 2010
• Coping with Technological Disasters
• What you should and should not do in areas affected by the oil spill (Spanish), (Vietnamese)
• Crude Oil Spills and Health (National Institutes of Health)
• Air Quality Along the Gulf Coast
• Chemical Emergencies (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention)

Seafood Safety:

• Seafood safety FAQs
• Oil and Seafood: Evaluating the Risks for People Who Eat Fish and Shellfish
• Evaluating Seafood for Petroleum Contamination
• Impact of crude oil on seafood
• Managing seafood safety after an oil spill
• Seafood Sourcing: Perspective on the Gulf
• Determining Seafood Safety in an Oil Spill
• Seafood Network Information Center
• Hazard Analysis Critical Control Point (HACCP) plan letter from FDA
• HACCP Plan Template
• Oil Contamination & Seafood Safety (video)
• Seafood Risk Assessment: What does safe seafood mean?
• Great American Seafood Cookoff Panel Discussions (As part of the Great American Seafood Cookoff, three panel discussions were held Aug. 8, 2010. Participants of the first panel included national chefs discussing the perception of Louisiana and Gulf Seafood.  The second panel was a safety panel with participants from state and federal agencies such as NOAA, FDA and EPA discussing how seafood is currently being tested. The final panel included marketing and tourism professionals as participants.)

Dispersants:

• Dispersants and Your Health (CDC)
• Oil Dispersants – An Overview
• Deepwater Horizon Blowout (Center for Spills in the Environment)
• Deepwater Horizon Dispersants Meeting Report (issued by Coastal Response Research Center)
• Oil Spill Dispersants: Efficacy and Effects
• Oil Spill Dispersant Effectiveness Testing in Large Tanks
• Information on dispersants from Prince William Sound Regional Citizens' Advisory Council
• A Review of Literature Related to Oil Spill Dispersants 1997-2008

Economic Value:

• Economic Impacts to Fisheries and Coastal Habitat
• Fish Stocks in the Gulf of Mexico
• Florida Ocean and Coastal Economies Report
• Distribution and Abundance of Fishes and Invertebrates in Gulf of Mexico Estuaries
• Perceptions of Oil Spill on Louisiana Tourism/Seafood

Response/Recovery:

• Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill and Hurricanes (NOAA factsheet)
• Oil Spill Related Jobs (Mississippi)
• Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill Research Needs Assessment
• Mississippi and Alabama Community Forums Transcripts
• Commercial Fishermen’s Oil Spill Meeting (Community forum held May 25 , 2010, in Abbeville, LA)
• A contingent from Alaska that worked the Exxon Valdez oil spill is meeting with local officials and Sea Grant extension personnel to share their experiences which pertain to the Deepwater Horizon spill. The recorded two-hour meeting was held May 10 in Metairie, La . Additional meetings are being held along the Gulf coast. (View the available transcript from this meeting.)

Educational Information:

• Oil Spill Educational Resource Guide
• Gulf Oil Spill: Teacher and Student Resources
• Marine Education Resources
• All That Sheens May Not Be Oil...or Tar Balls, Either
• Hurricanes and Oil Spills
• Basic information about oil spills
• General information about spill response
• Other oil well incidents
• Gulf of Mexico shorelines and coastal habitats
• Oil Spills and the Public (U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service)
• Oil and Nature (U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service)
• Deepwater Horizon Oil: Characteristics and Concern

Exxon Valdez:

• Prince William Sound Advisory Council
• Cook Inlet Regional Citizens Advisory Council
• Exxon Valdez Oil Spill Trustee Council
• Alaska Sea Grant Exxon Valdez Oil Spill 20th Anniversary
• Fishermen Fight the Spill of the Exxon Valdez
• After the Exxon Valdez Spill
• Recommendations for an Improved Oil Spill Prevention Regulatory System: Legal Research Report
• Assessing Natural Resource Damages from the BP Deepwater Horizon Gulf of Mexico Oil Spill: Lessons Learned from the Exxon Valdez Experience