Let's Disperse Those Gulf Dispersants -- With Oil!

“Studies show that dispersants, which break down oil into tiny droplets and can also break down cell membranes, make oil more toxic for some animals, like baby birds. And the solvents they contain can break down red blood cells, causing hemorrhaging. At least one fresh dolphin carcass found in the Gulf was bleeding from the mouth and blowhole, according to Lori Deangelis, a dolphin tour operator in Perdido Bay.”
–Scientists have done autopsies on the 1,866 birds, 463 turtles, 59 dolphins and one sperm whale who have turned up dead in the Gulf of Mexico this summer.

The cause of death is often a mystery-most of the carcasses are not, as one might think, soaked in oil. Suspicion is falling on shrimpers, who it seems, faced with the destruction of their livelihood, may be flouting rules designed to protect other types of wildlife, and on the two million gallons of chemical dispersants poured into the water-a solution which many environmentalist experts have been warning against for a long time.

Perhaps faced with the evidence of bleeding dolphins, BP will reverse course. What counteracts oil dispersant? More oil! More oil! We need to pump more oil into the Gulf! Luckily, a hydraulic leak on a line attached to the latest cap halted progress on efforts to stop the spill yesterday. Phew!