About | HeinOnline Law Journal Library | HeinOnline Law Journal Library | HeinOnline
LOG IN
LOG IN

40 Envtl. L. Rep. News & Analysis 11097 (2010)
The Oil Spill's Impact on Gulf Coast Oysters

handle is hein.journals/elrna40 and id is 1141 raw text is: The Oil Spill's Impact on Gulf Coast Oysters by Mike Freeman, Stephen Gidiere, and Mary Samuels Mike Freeman, Stephen Gidiere, and Mary Samuels practice environmental law and litigation at Balch & Bingham LLP in Birmingham, Alabama. ysters are an integral part of the Gulf of Mexico. They clump together to act as coral reefs that pro- tect, shelter, and form vital nursery grounds for other aquatic species. They act as natural water purifiers, fil- tering anywhere from 25 to 50 gallons of water per day in the bays and estuaries where they dwell. Often referred to as the backbone of marine life, oysters fall near the bottom of the food chain, providing nourishment for all types of sea life, including birds at low tide. Due to their proximity to shore, oyster shell reefs (living and dead) also help reduce shoreline and wetland erosion by forming natural ridges on the sea floor that minimize waves and tidal impact. And last, but certainly not least, oysters are a gastronomical delicacy whether done Rockefeller or Bienville style or just fresh, open, and on the half-shell. In the Gulf Coast region, this unique and valuable resource generates approximately $131 million in annual revenues. Undoubtedly of critical importance to the Gulf's marine life, oysters are highly sensitive to the quality of their sur- roundings. Oysters feed by filtering nutrients out of seawa- ter. Because they are immobile creatures, if the water around them is contaminated, oysters will collect these chemicals and pollutants, making them one of the most vulnerable spe- cies threatened by the BP oil spill disaster. From April 20 through July 15, 2010, approximately five million barrels of oil gushed out of a deepwater oil drilling well in the Gulf of Mexico. The oil penetrated the water col- umn and formed a thick oil slick that eventually reached the shores of the Gulf Coast, contaminating everything it encountered-including the world's last, largely intact net- work of oyster reefs. Because of the presence of oil in the water, state health departments closed the oyster seasons along the Gulf Coast, resulting in economic losses for oyster- men and other businesses not only in the Gulf region, but across the United States. Authors' Note: 7he authors are members of the firm's Gulf Coast Oil Spill Legal Team and represent oyster bed owners in litigation related to the Gulf oil spill. 7he authors wish to thank Emily Crawford, a third- year law student at the University of Alabama School of Law, for her contributions to this Article. The Gulf region leads U.S. commercial oyster production, accounting for nearly 70% of total national catch.1 Louisiana itself produces 40% of the oysters consumed in the United States, more than any other state.2 As oyster habitats have disappeared and diminished along the East Coast, seafood processors in the Chesapeake Bay area have been purchas- ing oysters from Gulf Coast harvesters to meet East Coast demand.3 Considered one of the last and best hopes for pres- ervation, conservationists have been working for several years to preserve and expand the Gulf's oyster beds.4 It is not just the oil released over the 87-day life of the spill that is a concern-the solutions employed to dissipate and degrade the oil also have harmed and continue to threaten the immobile, delicate oyster. For example, in early July, more than 60% of the oysters in one of the most produc- tive bays in Louisiana were reported dead as a result of the release of freshwater from the Mississippi River in an attempt to push oil out of Louisiana's coastal marshes.5 Importantly, this freshwater release killed the oysters growing on the inte- rior of the estuaries, an area protected from the oil and chem- icals that were washing up on the intertidal oyster beds along the coast. In addition, there is much concern that oysters are being killed from the chemicals in the toxins used to disperse the oil. The timing of the Deepwater Horizon disaster makes it even more damaging, as it coincided with the peak spawning season for oysters. Oysters reproduce by releasing eggs and sperm into the water. The eggs and sperm mix, and the fertil- ized eggs form hard-shelled larvae that eventually attach to a 1. Michael Hill, Oil Spill Puts the Gulf Oyster Industry on Ice, FINANCIAL WIRE, June 22, 2010; David Muller, Louisiana Officials Try to Allay Fears of Oil- Spoiled Seafood, NEW ORLEANS CITYBUSINESS, Apr. 30, 2010. 2. Jason Mark, Disaster on the Half'Shell, THE PROGRESSIVE, August 2010; Mela- nie Patten, Canadian Oyster Sales Booming After Gulf Spill, THE HAMILTON SPECTATOR, July 17, 2010. 3. Aislinn Maestas, From the Gulf'to the Bay, Oyster Industry Suffers, NAT'L WILD- LIFE FED'N MEDIA CENTER, July 21, 2010; Cory Nealon, Oil Spill 7here a Disaster Here?, DAILY PRESS (Newport News, Va.), Aug. 6, 2010. 4. See Steve Gorman, Spill Could Devastate U.S. Gulf'Coast Oyster Reefi, REUTERS, May 8, 2010; Scott McMillan, 7he Reef Makers, NATURE CONSERVANCY, Sum- mer 2010. 5. Jeffrey Ball, Fresh Water Aimed at Oil Kills Oysters, WALL ST. J., July 20, 2010. NEWS & ANALYSIS 1 1-2010 40 ELR 1 1097

What Is HeinOnline?

HeinOnline is a subscription-based resource containing thousands of academic and legal journals from inception; complete coverage of government documents such as U.S. Statutes at Large, U.S. Code, Federal Register, Code of Federal Regulations, U.S. Reports, and much more. Documents are image-based, fully searchable PDFs with the authority of print combined with the accessibility of a user-friendly and powerful database. For more information, request a quote or trial for your organization below.



Short-term subscription options include 24 hours, 48 hours, or 1 week to HeinOnline.

Purchase Access

Contact us for annual subscription options:

Contact Us

Already a HeinOnline Subscriber?

Log In

profiles profiles most