Florida's Department of Environment Protection Secretary, Mike Sole, hosted a conference call this afternoon where he briefed members of the Florida legislature on the latest developments of the giant oil spill that is slowly making its way towards the coast of the Sunshine State.
When asked by House Representative Adam Hasner about the concerns that the massive leak could hit the state's east coast, Sole said that his expectation is that "as this plume continues to grow, there will be the influence of a loop current on the product. This product will be in the form of tar balls," which he said may affect beaches in the Southeastern part of the state. But he said that current weather conditions don't make that a sure possibility at the moment.
Sole fielded several more questions from concerned state lawmakers, as well as presenting his view of the situation while speaking from Mobile, Alabama.
Several times during the 40 minute long call he stressed that communities should not deploy booms until there is the need to do so. He said such booms could and have been deployed too soon in Alabama, and "mother nature destroyed the vast majority of them." He said the plume headed towards Florida is mostly sheen.
Sole also said that there shouldn't be too excited that thousands of pounds of chemical dispersants have been deployed, saying that they're hitting just a small percentage of the plume. In his words, just 1-5% of the vast plume.
This article appears in Apr 28 – May 4, 2010.