Health Concerns Rise Over Use of Oil Dispersant Corexit
Seven Louisiana fishermen reported getting sick after exposure to the oil dispersant that is being used to thin the oil slick on the Gulf of Mexico.
Nalco, the company that makes Corexit, the dispersant used after the April 20 Horizon Deepwater oil spill, says it has faith in its product. It insists that the product is biodegradable and that when it breaks down into tiny droplets, microscopic organisms then eat the oil and dispersant, cleaning the ocean in the process.
“The use of COREXIT dispersants to break up the oil in the Gulf of Mexico has been widely acknowledged by government officials as a safe, effective and proven response. Its ingredients rapidly biodegrade, do not bio-accumulate and are commonly found in popular household products. And because the dispersant works by spreading oil particles evenly through the water column, it is extremely unlikely that individuals along the Gulf Coast would come into contact with it.” — Nalco Chief Technology Officer, Dr. Manian Ramesh
But after health concerns began emerging the EPA is trying to curb the use of Corexit. To date, BP has sprayed more than one million gallons of the dispersant to prevent a massive oil slick from reaching the shorelines of the gulf states.
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