With so much going on in the world with #covid19, I contemplated ending my #dwhstories a few weeks early--here is so much else to focus on. However, work continues on restoration, so I want to finish up this little project in the hopes that it can be useful to folks #dwhoilspill Settlements…Money…Restoration Oh My! The #oilspill resulted in numerous settlements & the assessment of nearly $20.8 billion in fines and penalties. So, who gets the money and for what? If only there was a simple answer!

For this week’s #dwhstories I want to share some thoughts and resources about impacts to the marine environmental as a result of the #dwhoilspill. Key point: out of sight isn’t out of mind. We can't forget the marine environment when it comes to offshore oil spills. 134 million gallons of oil was discharged from the wellhead over a period of 87 days in 2010. The evidence of devastation was apparent on the coast as well as on the surface of the Gulf--who can forget the sight of orange-brown crude roiling in on waves all summer?

#DWHStories How does one actually go about determine the environmental impacts of the #DWHOilSpill? The blowout happened a mile beneath the surface of the ocean, affecting the habitats and wildlife in the sea, but also impacted our coastal resources as well. This week we will peak under the hood of how the impacts were quantified. The Natural Resource Damage Assessment (NRDA, pronounced NERD-A) is a legal process used by the federal government, states and Tribes to evaluate the impacts of oil spills.

Digging a little into the mental health impacts of the #dwhoilspill in this week's #dwhstories. Mental health was acutely affected by the spill. Increased depression and anxiety were documented in the wake of the Exxon Valdez spill in Alaska, and it was no different in the Gulf. First, let's contrast disasters of technology with natural disasters. When natural disasters strike, they tend to bring people together, knitting a community more tightly as neighbors help neighbors recover and rebuild, creating what is known as a therapeutic community.

This week in #dwhstories, I provide a very broad overview of some of the economic aspects of the spill for further reading. One thing became crystal clear during the #oilspill: the health of our economy is intrinsically linked to the health of our environment. One of the first economic dominoes to call during the #dwhspill was the #gulfcoast fishing industry. The Gulf region produces the most seafood in the continental United States. preview.tinyurl.com/vb6moqm

This week’s #dwhstories thread looks back at some of the complexities of volunteering during the #dwhoilspill response. #oilspill Back in 2010, I served as Director of @joinacf, an awesome conservation org working in Coastal Alabama. We had a number of volunteer programs that involved local residents in education and citizen science activities.

In this week’s #DWHStories, we cover the #DeepwaterHorizon oil spill response. Next week I will spend some time on the role of volunteers in the response, both official and unofficial. #oilspill #gulfofmexico #dwhoilspill Thread 1/ The coast was largely quiet in the week following the rig explosion. Initial official reports indicated that only a small amount of oil was leaking, and that the well would be contained in a short period of time, before causing extensive environmental damage.

Thread/ This week’s #dwhstories will focus on the explosion of the mobile drilling rig Deepwater Horizon, the cause of the disaster, and what has changed as a result of the spill from a regulatory/safety standpoint. Background: In March 2008, BP paid $34M to the U.S. Govt. for an exclusive drilling lease in an area of the #GulfofMexico known as Mississippi Canyon 252. (Map Source: MMS)