Gulf oil spill: Hair boom effort is cut short

After a technical evaluation, BP announced Friday that it would not use hair booms in oil spill cleanup efforts.

Matter of Trust, an environmental nonprofit, was leading the effort to collect hair from dog groomers and salons across the nation.

Two weeks ago, more than 450,000 pounds of hair were en route to more than 15 locations in the South including warehouses, extra mall spaces and garages. Dog groomers and hair salons have continuously joined the effort.

The suggestion was submitted as an alternative method for containing the oil spill, but it was not feasible, according to the command center for the spill.

In a February side-by-side field test conducted during an oil spill in Texas, commercial sorbent booms absorbed more oil and less water than hair booms.

“Our priority when cleaning up an oil spill is to find the most efficient and expedient way to remove the oil from the affected area while causing no additional damage. One problem with the hair boom is that it became water-logged and sank within a short period of time,” Charlie Henry, scientific support coordinator for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration in Robert, La., said in a statement. He called on individuals and organizations to discontinue the collection of hair for hair booms. 

It is not known what will become of the hair. Matter of Trust did not return requests for comment Friday evening.

---Nicole Santa Cruz, reporting from Los Angeles

Comments

[jt]

Hey Gordon from Santa Monica,( doesn't that just figure), as an environmentalist you would also oppose nuclear energy, so I really don't give a damn what you think!

[Chris Cano]

Did anyone happen to notice the cited scientific "authority" in this article is the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, which is a division of the Department of Commerce... advocating for Commercial booms. Hmm...

In Florida, we are going to continue the hair collection because we have found a sustainable and proven way to fight this oil spill. Why should we trust that BP and the government are doing what is in our best interests with this cleanup? We are taking this into our own hands, and we are going to continue collecting hair so that we can be prepared when oil reaches our shores.

[Article Comment]

Depending on how wide the Hair Boom is, maybe they could put the hair boom in the broken riser pipe at 5000 ft. to clog it up. At 13000 ft., BP would need to figure out how they got the oil rig equipment to that location, that would be the way to remove it--possibly via pneumatic lift in which water will help raise the broken drilling equipment. Then remove the components with a giant tanker tow (From the USS Cole situation, the Norwegian semi-submersible heavy lift salvage ship MV Blue Marlin help towed away the large transport.) Simultaneously, they need to fill the gas/oil opening at 13000 ft. at the seafloor with matching strength oil-sand/asphalt/sheetrock material so they can seal up the oil opening or openings.

[GordonSantaMonica]

Why the Oil Spills could have been prevented. Any idiot could have projected the effects on the States touching the Gulf. They would have said "oh .... yes ... any spills could destroy the Gulf Coast lines of the States residing on the Gulf. The politicians turned their heads and their eyes saw huge amounts of dollars. The people saw huge amounts of dollars ... jobs. Greed wins out again.
Congratulations America. By the way I am an environmentalist. I believe that whatever we take from Mother Earth we must do so respectfully. In the Gulf we were Greedy and Mother Earth slapped us.

Don’t worry citizens of the United States ... The Republicans will fight against the EPA, FDA, and any other regulatory agency that protects "We The People of the United States of America".

In fact if the Republicans and the Neo-Cons put their heads any further into the sand they will come up somewhere around China. :LOL LOL LOL.

By the way have you checked out Fox and the spinners? They are beginning to pull their heads out of the sand. They finally admit this is a “Disaster”. They do have some disclaimers however ... if the government regulates the oil industry the costs of gasoline and other oil related products will go “WAY” up. Fox and the Neo-Cons are also blaming the PRESIDENT and his administration for not reacting fast enough … you know they were sitting on their hands.

According to a news article there was a closed door meeting where most of the handful of congressional Democrats and Republicans who met with representatives from BP, Transocean Ltd. and Halliburton in a closed-door briefing on Capitol Hill walked away unimpressed. A source who attended the meeting said that the companies' representatives had a "deer in headlights" look and that the tenor of the conversation was that the firms "are attempting to solve a problem which they have never had to solve before at this depth…at this scope of disaster. They essentially said as much."

Give me a break Fox. Give me a break BP Transocean Ltd. and Halliburton. The Ocean environment is being destroyed. Ocean related industries are being destroyed. That is ok for Fox spinner and the rest of these fools. They are still working and making enough money to go hide from environmental destruction ... so they hope.

******“ gaptidbits@yahoo.com”*************

[Liberty]

Santa Barbara dealt with a smaller version of this in 1969 by using HAY BALES. http://rense.com/general90/barb.htm

See this video of what hay does when added to oily water--AMAZING.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M0sRN5nA3Lc

[Bushwhacked]

Please see the video. Somehow, I don't trust BP to know anything about oil booms, hair or otherwise.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vx8kMXufu3w

[Mohawk Matt]

Bolt Barbers DTLA, which is currently leading collection efforts of hair clippings in DTLA, will continue to monitor developments over the effectiveness of hair booms for cleanup with Matter of Trust.

These past weeks, BP has not exactly been the most accurate source of information or disclosure. If environmentalists not affiliated with BP support BP's conclusions, Bolt Barbers will discontinue our packing and shipping of hair clippings. Meanwhile we will continue to save and pack hair clippings.