Advanced Technology and Hair Booms Readied for Assault on Gulf Oil Spill

As the call for help has gone out to help stop the oil beast, more oil spill technology is entering the gulf. The latest advanced technology comes from Teledyne RD Instruments and Oceaneering. Oceaneering, one of the world leaders in remote operated vehicles has deployed four Remotely Operated Vehicles (ROV) to the spill site. At the same time, volunteer organizations are readying millions of oil absorbent hair booms. All the while, many are hoping the weather holds out. And that’s not just because they don’t a storm to wash the oil ashore, but because they want to see if their solution will work.

These ROVs, will guide the big dome, a giant container to capture the oil from the spill, down to the seabed. Alongside will be Acoustic Doppler Current Profilers from Teledyne. These technology devices will be used to measure the speed and direction of the water currents all the way down to the ocean floor. Besides these measurements, the profilers will also be used to gather data to model the oil plume and its projected underwater path.

Where the oil spill will travel underneath the ocean’s surface has many concerned. One of the problems here is that deep underwater currents change directions all the time. And the worry is that these deep underwater currents will grab hold of the oil beneath the surface and sweep it away to cause more damage elsewhere.

Although such concerns may be well founded, others reports indicate that much of the oil might just stay put. And that’s because the oil is at such a deep depth. Here the theory is that the weight of the water, all 5000 feet of it, will keep the oil from traveling too far.

Predicting where the oil spill that is on top of the surface will go is also still an open question. The weather is considered one of the most important variables. Because calm weather recently settled into the gulf, the oil slick has so far not hit shore to any significant degree. However, any new storm from the south could quickly change that.

The favorable weather in the last few days has allowed about 800,000 feet of boom (about 160 miles) to be laid down, and 260,000 thousand gallons of chemical dispersant to be applied. However, boom skeptics have indicated that booms are ineffective. Skeptics indicate that most of them sink and for the most part, the oil slides right under them. As well, chemical dispersant critics, say that dispersants are environmentally unsound. Many point to oil-eating microorganisms as a non-toxic solution, like what Oppenheimer Biotechnology Inc. offers.

The skepticism however has not stopped the Coast Guard and British Petroleum (BP) from using dispersants or keeping the booms as a resource. According to MOP Environmental Solutions, Inc. (MOPN.PK), both BP and the United States Coast Guard have designated its oil absorbent boom as a “Resource.” And this may vary well be because MOP’s boom is considered far above the others. Randy Fletcher, Safety Specialist of BP noted that “The booms and pillows performed above the standards established by other booms (i.e. polypropylene) and were found more economical than the competitive brands we have used.”

Hanesbrands Inc. also sees oils absorbent booms as a possible solution. It announced that it is donating 50,000 pairs of Hanes, L’eggs and Just My Size pantyhose for the production of oil-absorbing hair booms to fight the Gulf Coast oil spill.

The pantyhose will be used in a project that calls for the production of over one million hair booms to clean up the water. According to Jeff Golden, vice president and co-founder of The Sunshine and Shores Foundation in Destin, Florida, an organization involved in the oil-absorbing hair boom project, “We are collecting hair and pantyhose from throughout the country to make 1 million hair booms over the next three weeks. Hair acts as a sponge. When you put these booms in oil-polluted water, they absorb the oil and leave the water crystal clear.”