Shell Oil Spill Spews More than 88,000 Gallons into the Gulf of Mexico

Photo by Ron Wooten of oil slick on water surface in the Gulf of Mexico. This image was from a previous spill.

Joanna Nasar,Director of Communications,joanna@seaturtles.org 5/13/16



Yet another oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico.

This time Royal Dutch Shell spewed 88,200 gallons into the sensitive marine habitat of the Gulf of Mexico and caused a visible 2 x 13 mile “sheen” to be seen off the coast of Louisiana.

The exact cause of the incident is unknown at this time, but it appears that it was a leak in a deep sea pipe near the companies Brutus platform.

Shell was forced to shut down all wells that flow to its deep sea well known as the Brutus platform. According to Shell, the wells are now under control and the leak has been isolated and production shut down. Authorities are looking into the cause of incident.

This large oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico is yet another reason why President Obama should issue an executive order to halt new oil and gas lease auctions in federally controlled oceans — including the Arctic, Atlantic, and Gulf of Mexico. This spring, Turtle Island Restoration Network joined the Center for Biological Diversity and 43 other organizations in backing a legal petition to end new ocean-drilling. The petition calls on President Obama to stop risking more disastrous spills, putting wildlife and communities in harm’s way and deepening U.S. dependence on the fossil fuels that are driving the global climate crisis. You can read more about it by clicking here.

In addition to calling for strong policy changes, Turtle Island Restoration Network is also working on the ground in the Gulf of Mexico to help sea turtle populations recover by advocating for a Gulf-of-Mexico-wide sea turtle stranding and nesting network, protected sea turtle swimways, and continued government funding to critical sea turtle programs.

This week’s oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico highlights the need for greater protections and regulations to be in place to protect marine wildlife, the ocean and our shores from incidents like these.

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