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On April 20, 2010, the largest oil spill recorded to date began in the Gulf of Mexico. Over the next three months, more than 200 million gallons of oil spilled into the Gulf. The oil may have been the least of the problems though, as more than one million gallons of corexit, a toxic chemical, was added to the oil in an attempt to disperse the oil. Dispersing, however, may have just accelerated its entrance into the food chain, and provided an additional hurdle to the clean up.

The leak was capped on July 15th and by mid-August, government sanctioned fishing closures were lifted, and beaches were declared open for business. Media attention dissipated and we could relax, but should we?

Since mid-January of this year, more than 80 dolphins have stranded on the coasts of Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, and Florida. Nearly half of those stranded are either stillborn or newborn calves. While NOAA officials have not stated that these strandings are directly related to the oil spill, they do acknowledge that there are ten times the number normally found at this time of year, and have declared an Unusual Mortality Event.

But the dolphins in the Gulf are not the only marine mammals to suffer the lingering effects of this spill. At a recent NOAA sanctioned Scientific Review Group meeting, agency representatives repeatedly pointed to the spill as the main reason why needed research data were not available or reports not written.

Last year a research cruise to genetically determine the stocks of long and short-finned pilot whales off the mid-Atlantic was halted to divert resources to the Gulf. Both species are caught in pelagic long line fisheries, and it is likely that at least one of them is being taken over the rate at which the population can be sustained. However, to enact any protective measures, the species must be differentiated and it is nearly impossible to visually tell them apart at sea. And it’s not clear just how many were taken during the delay. The quarterly reports to the Pelagic Long Line Take Reduction Team were not done, as data analyses were put on hold when NOAA resources were diverted to the Gulf.

And critically endangered right whales, as well as endangered humpback and fin whales also took a hit. The data analyses looking at sightings per unit effort (SPUE) of whales and fishing gear, needed to help reduce the risk of entanglements, were also delayed due to resources diverted to the Gulf. Stranding staff were required to refocus their efforts which resulted in other analyses of human-interaction cases being postponed.

“Resources diverted to the Gulf” also means resources taken from other species in need of protection. Whales and dolphins throughout the US were impacted, either from the spill itself or from the lack of resources they received during the spill. And now all of these animals will suffer the consequences of the pending federal budget cuts which threaten to remove staff, surveys, and research programs.

The impacts from the 2010 Deepwater Horizon oil spill not only continue in the Gulf but have resulted in a domino effect of upsets to whales and dolphins throughout the US. It’s not over. The media may have diverted their attention, but we need to stay vigilant as the realities of this disaster continue to unfold.

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