[Shadow_Group] Onshore source suspected in major oil spill

[ItalysBadBoy]

http://www.sacbee.com/content/news/story/12106308p-12976316c.html
 
Onshore source suspected in major oil spillOfficials say the incident that killed or hurt at least 3,000 seabirds likely began in Ventura County.By Laura Mecoy -- Bee Los Angeles Bureau
Published 2:15 am PST Saturday, January 22, 2005
SAN PEDRO - A mysterious oil spill that's believed to have caused more bird injuries and deaths than any spill in the state in 15 years most likely came from an onshore source in Ventura County, state officials said Friday. 
State officials estimated 3,000 to 5,000 seabirds - mostly Western grebes - were injured or killed by the spill. 
More than 1,400 of them were brought to the Los Angeles Oiled Bird Care and Education Center in San Pedro, where University of California, Davis, veterinarians and volunteers tried to rehabilitate the injured ones. 
OAS_AD('Button20'); While further tests will be needed to determine the source, state officials believe the spill occurred in Ventura County because the oil-coated birds were first spotted there Jan. 11. 
Also, they said, the largest number of dead and injured birds came from Ventura County. 
Kenneth Mayer, scientific branch chief of the state Fish and Game Department's Office of Spill Prevention and Response, said the tarry substance removed from the birds is "weathered" crude oil, or oil exposed to the air and the environment for some time. 
As a result, he said it most likely came from an onshore source - rather than offshore oil production or naturally occurring seeps of oil. He said the oil most likely washed into the ocean in last week's rainstorms. 
"It came out in the environment near the shore because that is where these grebes live," he said. 
Ventura County was one of the hardest-hit areas during the 15 days of record-setting rainstorms in Southern California in late December and early January. 
Lisa Curtis, Office of Spill Prevention and Response deputy administrator, said so many roads were washed out or blocked by mudslides that many oil companies haven't been able to get to their drilling operations to determine if oil has spilled. 
Capt. Steve Edinger, the Fish and Game Department's lead investigator, said tests indicate one source of oil caused all the damage to the seabirds. But he said no one has spotted a slick of oil on the water's surface or onshore. He said the oil must have dispersed or sunk already and is unlikely to wash onto local beaches. 
Oil has its own distinctive fingerprint of chemicals, so state officials are hoping to match the samples from the dead and injured birds to a definite source. But Edinger said the tests may take a month. 
In the meantime, bird rescuers celebrated the release of 19 seabirds Friday, a sign that they're beginning to turn the corner in the rescue efforts. 
"There are still a lot of challenges ahead," said UC Davis wildlife veterinarian Greg Massey. "At least, we are not getting 200 to 300 birds a day in now. We can focus on those we already have." 
Of the 1,422 birds collected since Jan. 11, 260 were dead and an additional 562 died or were so sick they had to be euthanized, Sylvia Wright, UC Davis spokeswoman, said. 
Assuming that many more birds were killed or injured by the spill than those collected, state officials estimate 3,000 to 5,000 were affected. 
Fish and Game's Mayer said if the estimate of 3,000 is correct, the spill could have harmed 25 percent of the state's grebe population. 
But he said some of the injured grebes could have come from Washington or Oregon, lessening the impact on the state's population. Grebes are not endangered, but their numbers have been dwindling, making them a "species of special concern." 
They spend their lives on the water. Their feathers link together, like Velcro, to create a watertight covering against icy waters. Massey, the UCD veterinarian, said oil on their feathers is "like a rip in a diver's dry suit." 
The feathers can't stick together any more. The cold water seeps in, and the bird's body temperature drops. The grebe becomes stressed, stops eating and becomes dehydrated. 
At the Oiled Bird Care and Education Center, volunteers placed injured birds in pens to be warmed, fed and hydrated. Grebes aren't designed to be on land, and that posed even more problems for rescuers. 
The grebes' feet, which act as rudders in the water, are located so far back on their bodies that they provide no support on land. 
So, the grebes rest on their breastbones, and that can cause lesions on their bodies if the birds stay too long in one position. 
As soon as blood tests showed the birds were stable, volunteers washed them in tubs of soapy water. Using toothbrushes and cotton swabs, they scrubbed away every spot of oil on the squealing birds' bodies. 
"You can't leave any oil on them," volunteer Hugh Denton said. "If you leave any spots, they won't dry." 
Once the birds were rinsed and dried, they went into pools where volunteers ensured they were clean. Volunteers then tagged each bird and put them in boxes for the trip to the beach. 
At nearby Cabrillo Beach on Friday, state officials gently lowered the seabirds into the ocean's edge. Each flapped its wings furiously, desperate to get away from the humans who had saved it from a certain death. 
A group of toddlers from a nearby "Mommy and Me" program had come to watch and applauded the birds' release. 
Jonna Mazet, the UC Davis Wildlife Health Center director who organized the Oiled Wildlife Care Network, watched as they set out on their own. 
"It is amazing to get the birds in and have them released within a week," she said. "I am really pleased because when you are designing and constructing this network, you always worry it might not work."

 




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