BP Makes Me Feel – Oily

I cannot stop thinking about, reading about, talking about the oil spill disaster continuously unfolding on our Gulf Coast. You know that saying about watching a car crash? This horror seems to be the world’s slowest moving crash, with no end in sight.
Other than the anger, fear and concern that’s my emotional cocktail of choice while watching CNN updates, there’s another emotion coming to the surface. Embarrassment. I’m embarrassed that there seems to be no overall communications strategy in place at BP, our Federal Government, or the state/local level. So what happens when there’s a crisis and no crisis communications plan? Well, one party refuses to talk to the media (BP), one decides after weeks to finally appoint one spokesperson instead of 10 (Feds) and the others (locals) hold press conferences daily pointing out the problems with parties 1 and 2. A mess in the water, on land and in the media.
One of my oldest friends sent me an invitation to her son’s induction as an Eagle Scout yesterday, which reminded me of the old motto, “Be Prepared.” It’s a good one to live by.
Here are a few ways to find out more about environmental impacts on our waters:
Live cam of BP Oil Spill. See what’s going on underwater with your own eyes.
American Oceans Campaign. Good clearinghouse of information and resources on how to contact your representatives about water issues
Surfrider Foundation. They have a nifty tool that lets you pick your beach and check water quality. You can see my beach (Linda Mar) here.