OIL ADVISORY Q&A
KEYS TOURISM ADVISORY 26 News and Information From the Monroe County Tourist Development Council Q&A Regarding the Florida Keys and the Gulf Oil Spill Because developments regarding the Transocean/BP (British Petroleum) oil spill and its relationship to the Florida Keys continue to evolve, the Monroe County Tourist Development Council has updated this Question and Answer document originally published May 4 and revised several times since then. This should be helpful to answer questions from current or potential visitors. It is also published on the www.fla-keys.com website in a home page-linked spill-related section, or go directly to www.fla-keys.com/oilspill. I heard the Keys are in imminent danger of being affected by the oil spill. Is that true? According to officials at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, or NOAA, semitransparent, noncontiguous sheens of oil and tar balls from the Transocean/BP oil spill have been seen near the Loop Current, while others are being entrained into a counterclockwise current eddy northeast of the Loop Current. NOAA insists in the time it would take for any oil to travel to the vicinity of the Keys, it would be highly weathered and both the natural process of evaporation and application of dispersants would reduce the oil volume significantly. It is still unclear whether the weathered oil would actually arrive in the Keys region or bypass the area and remain either in the Loop Current or enter the Gulf Stream (see explanation of Loop Current below). The bulk of the spill should remain away from the Loop Current, NOAA said. What is the Loop Current? The Gulf Loop Current is a dynamic, clockwise warm-water current that carries water from the Yucatan Channel north to the Gulf of Mexico, then eastward and looping back down south off Florida’s west coast, past the Dry Tortugas and into the Gulf Stream, also known as the Florida Current. I have heard that oil will definitely hit the Keys and impacts will be devastating. Is that true? NOAA, Coast Guard and other officials say the kinds of impacts the Keys and areas on the east coast might experience would be much different than what is transpiring in the northern Gulf of Mexico. Most experts say any oil that is moving south would be more dispersed and highly weathered by the time it reaches the Keys, which is some 500 miles from the spill site. That means it is highly unlikely that large “rivers” of heavy, aqueous oil — the kind of horrific impacts currently affecting some northern Gulf shorelines — would encroach on the Keys. The weathered and diluted oil would likely appear in isolated locations in the form of tar balls. While arrival of oil in any form is unacceptable, tar balls are “significantly less toxic to the environment,” according to NOAA and Florida Department of Environmental Protection officials. It is possible one area of the Keys could be affected and others not, or that oil residues could remain in currents and completely miss the Keys. What about the oil tar balls that have already been found in different parts of the Keys? There has been much news coverage and I heard they were from the Gulf oil spill. Since May 19, the U.S. Coast Guard has tested more than 40 tar ball samples and none were from the Gulf spill. Finding tar balls in Keys waters or on area beaches is not an unusual occurrence. The Keys are located along a busy commercial shipping route, with some 24,000 vessels passing by annually. Commercial vessels sometimes discharge bilge water that has oil in it. Unfortunately, even though it is illegal, officials believe some vessels are now using the Gulf oil spill as an “opportunity” to empty oily bilge water into the sea. Tar balls also can drift into Keys waters from many other areas, not just the Gulf region. What is a tar ball? A tar ball is a blob of oil that has been weathered after floating in the ocean. Tar ball concentration and features have been used to assess the extent of oil spills, and their composition can help identify their sources of origin. They are slowly decomposed by microorganisms. While not dangerous to most people, tar balls can cause allergic reactions and should only be retrieved by trained personnel. Tar balls can occur –MORE– Oil Spill Q&A Page 2 naturally and so are not always associated with oil spills. All tar ball or other oil-related sightings should be reported to the Coast Can you guarantee me that oil residues will not make their way into the Keys during my vacation? Nobody can make a long-term guarantee that residues from the Gulf Coast oil spill will or will not reach the Keys. However, currently, expected impacts, if any, do not seem to be a serious issue for travelers. Each property has its own cancellation policy. It is prudent to check with the hotel as well as any other travelrelated operator in advance to determine cancellation policies and if management will offer refunds or credits in the event oil adversely affects Keys waters. Some Keys resorts are offerring “oil-free vacation guarantees,” with written and web-published compensation policies. I hear authorities have shut down fishing in the Keys. That is not true. A large area in the Gulf of Mexico, west of the Keys, has been closed by NOAA Fisheries to protect the public. But no area in the Keys is under the order at this time. That means Keys-caught seafood has not been affected and is safe to consume. Is it safe to dive, swim and participate in other water sports in the Keys? Currently, there are no advisories in the Keys in effect due to the Gulf oil spill. The Monroe County Health Department is monitoring the situation and would issue an advisory in the event of any health-related risk. I hear the Florida Keys and much of Florida are under a state of emergency. Twenty-six of the state’s 67 counties are under a state of emergency, even though moderate impacts have only been seen on northwest Florida beaches. A state of emergency is declared in advance of a potential emergency so the region can qualify for federal reimbursement funding and small business loans, if needed. Visitors continue to be welcomed to all Florida areas that are under a state of emergency. Are there protective actions being taken to safeguard the environment, if needed? The U.S. Coast Guard is the lead government agency responsible for oversight of any necessary cleanup and remediation activities. The Coast Guard works in conjunction with other local, state and federal authorities to enact a 725-page area contingency plan that includes oil spill response actions. Some other agencies involved are NOAA’s Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary, the Department of the Interior, Florida Department of Environmental Protection and Monroe County Emergency Management. All are operating under the recently established Florida Peninsula Command Center. Assessment and cleanup crews have been mobilized to mitigate tar balls, or any other unexpected effects. Currently, no protective actions are interrupting water- or land-related visitor activities in the Florida Keys. When will this be over? Officials don’t know for sure. The outcome and timing depend on when the leak at the Transocean/BP well site can be plugged or fully contained and how effective current mitigation efforts are in containing oil already in the northern Gulf of Mexico. Where can I get more information on the oil spill? The Keys tourism council is posting information — including official NOAA oil slick trajectory maps — on its website at www.fla-keys.com/oilspill as well as on Twitter and Facebook: http://twitter.com/KeysNewsBPspill • http://www.facebook.com/floridakeysandkeywest Spill-related websites includes: http://www.deepwaterhorizonresponse.com • http://www.dep.state.fl.us/deepwaterhorizon/default.htm Florida Oil Spill Information Line (8 a.m.-6 p.m. ET daily): 1-888-337-3569 ###
