Farewell, Oil Spill

I am all packed up and ready to head back home this morning.  I have mixed emotions about leaving; happy because I'll be back home with my family, and sad because I feel there is so much more I could do down here.  My full-time job asked me to cut my sabbatical short, and as of yesterday I didn't have another assignment down here, and this one was ending.  As my luck would have it, I did get offered another assignment as a Resource Adviser, but I made the difficult decision to cut my time short here and return home.

It's been an amazing six weeks, and I have no regrets whatsoever.  Part of me wishes that I was in the position to stay down here and float from job to job as they present, but a bigger part of me realizes that my job stability is more important.  I plan on taking about a week off before I return to work, as I have been here for 44 days with only four days off.  

BP is working on closing the well, and the Coast Guard announced today that the "majority of the oil is gone".  Please, don't forget us on the coast.  There is SO much left to be done, and I feel like only now can the real assessment and cleanup begin.  Oil is still washing up onto beaches even today, and oiled wildlife is still out there.  I can only hope that the powers that be continue their commitment to preserving and restoring the Gulf Coast.  I did what I could to help, and gained invaluable experience and made great friends in the process. 

So today I say farewell to the oil spill-affected Gulf Coast.  I hope to see you again soon, but never again under these circumstances. 

Lots of birds on our second to last day

Yesterday we were lucky enough to get a boat again to survey the islands and coastline of eastern Mississippi.  We expected it to be another day much like the last week - pretty scenery and healthy birds to look at, but not much to do.  It turned out to be a very busy morning.  

We headed out to Round Island, a small island not far off the coast that typically has about 500 to 600 birds along the beaches.  There were lots of pelicans, but all seemed healthy and flighted.

We spotted a dead bird, so the boat (a 26 foot flat bottom) pulled up close to the shore and we waded onto the beach.  We collected the carcass, and decided to walk the beach to check on the other birds.  We came across a royal tern that did not appear injured, but was unable to fly.  We brought the carcass and the tern back to the boat and headed back to the beach to continue our survey.  My partner then saw a large juvenile northern gannet which appeared oiled and could not fly.  So we captured the gannet, who was quite aggressive and seemed determine to eat our fingers.  We returned to the boat, where we realized we had a little problem - we only had one bird carrier, and now had two birds (the dead one obviously doesn't need a carrier).  So, I got the tern out of the crate and we replaced it with the very angry gannet.  Having absolutely no more room, we decided to head back to the dock and get the birds to the intake center.  I got to ride for 45 minutes with a tern in my hands.  He was so grateful, he pooped on me.  Twice. 

The northern gannet:

The tern safe in his crate on the way to Gulfport:

Today we tried to go back on the boat to continue surveying the island, but the weather prevented it.  I am back at the hotel and am going to start packing up.  I am headed home tomorrow!

Not much going on

It's been a quiet week here in Mississippi.  So quiet, that the powers that be are working on a plan to reduce the Wildlife Operations staff.  Initially we thought that we would be done here on Friday, but it seems we have been given another week to work.  After that, who knows.   Part of me would welcome the chance to get out of here for a while - there is little actual work to be done and the days seem to last forever.  I don't want to end my work with the oil spill, so hopefully another opportunity will present itself soon. 

I would love to get back to Louisiana and have the opportunity to work Wildlife Ops there.  It seems that Louisiana has been impacted the most, and there is still a lot of work left to do there.  I truly hope that the company I am working for can find a way for us to get involved there in the event that our current assignment ends.  I think we will know something by the end of next week; until then, I will just keep on plodding along. 

We have only had 2 calls in the last 2 weeks, so it's been incredibly slow.  We are hoping to finally get out on a boat tomorrow, which will allow us to survey a large stretch of marshy coastline that we have been unable to access.  It amazes me that it has taken us this long to secure a boat, but things in Mississippi are just not as organized as in Louisiana. 

I am getting tired, and frankly, a little bored.  It looks like I will not be getting my two days off this weekend that were scheduled, so I don't even know when I will be home next.  I imagine that the next time I leave, it will be more or less for good.  Nothing else exciting to report, so until next time...

Bye bye, Bonnie

The remnants of Bonnie are just offshore, and so far here it's a bit overcast, but no rain or storms.  I am very relieved that Bonnie fizzled out, for my sake as well as the Gulf's.  A stronger storm could have potentially caused some very serious issues for the marshes of Louisiana.  Let's hope Bonnie is the last visitor we get this summer.

We have been on stand-down since yesterday, so I've been relaxing in my hotel room and getting caught up on paperwork.  I imagine we will be back to work tomorrow, but I won't know for sure until tomorrow morning.  To be honest, I keep waiting for the axe to fall on this whole operation.  We take so few calls at night that I can't help thinking that someone is going to shut down night operations sometime soon.  But, so far so good - I still am employed and that's all I can ask for.  I've decided that in the event that we do get let go before my sabbatical is up, I will most definitely be looking for a similar position with a different firm;  I am enjoying the hell out of this work and don't want to go back to my desk job anytime soon!

A slow few days

It's been pretty slow since I got back to Mississippi.  My routine is pretty much the same every day - wake up for a conference call at 10:30 am, survey the beaches and marshes until sundown, and then wait for calls until midnight.  So far we have only had one call for a juvenile laughing gull with a dislocated leg.

I still get to see some interesting things though.  We have been visiting a certain beach area with a nearby Osprey nest with young.  Today however, when we stopped by, the babies had flown the nest and were nowhere to be found.  Ospreys are beautiful raptors which feed on fish and are amazingly large up close.

On Monday, we released 14 laughing gulls and one ring-billed gull which had been previously been oiled and were completely rehabilitated.  We released the birds onto a small beach island just west of Pascagoula.

 Other than that, it's been kind of boring around here, to be honest.  I will be keeping my eye on the tropical wave that is currently over Hispanola and will be heading home if they call for an evacuation.  We have good weather predicted for the next few days, so we may try to do some survey by boat if possible.  Nothing else to report for now, I'll update again in a day or so.

It's back to work I go....

I'm back in Mississippi as of 11:00 this morning and working my regular swing shift until midnight.  I had a great few days at home, mostly spent relaxing, eating good food, and consuming a few adult beverages.   Luckily, I will be home again in two short weeks for a weekend.

I saw an article today regarding media access to the spill work sites.  I know a lot of people were very upset when the Coast Guard issued a mandatory 65-foot 'no media' buffer around all work sites and boomed areas, and I'm sure those same people are happy that the Coast Guard reversed the policy a few days ago.  I, however, am not so sure it's a good idea to give media no-limit access to all sites, and here's why.  When I was in Grand Isle, the media were EVERYWHERE - you couldn't throw a rock without hitting a boat or truck full of reporters.  Which is fine, in theory, and I know everyone wants full disclosure of what is going on.  Our wildlife rescue operation allowed media of all sorts (from HBO documentary crews to local news guys) to ride along on one of our boats on specified days, and while I never had media on my boat, I understand it happened regularly.  However, during our daily surveys, not one day went by when we didn't see a boat loaded with cameramen in a place they shouldn't have been.   The bird nesting islands are extremely sensitive places, and even biologists had very limited access to them.  The media, in pursuit of that perfect picture or film footage, would often cross the protective boom which surrounds the islands and sometimes even pull up ONTO the islands.  These rookeries house literally thousands or even tens of thousands of birds, including countless hatchlings.  The wake caused by the boats approaching the island, or even worse, people actually walking around on the islands, can cause irreparable damage to the nests and colonies.  I for on was glad to see the Coast Guard enforcing the buffer zone - most of the media boats we saw were not considerate at all of the sensitive nature of the islands.  I hope that in reversing this policy, common sense still prevails and the rookery islands remain protected.

Here in Mississippi, it's a totally different story.  I have yet to see the first camera crew or reporter on any of the beaches.  I'm sure they are out there somewhere, but the presence here is definitely less pronounced than in Louisiana, despite the fact that oil is continuing to show up on the shores here as well as in Alabama and Florida.   And now that the damaged well is "plugged" (for the time being), I can't help but think that the media spotlight will start to wander elsewhere and the long struggle that our coastal states face in remediating this disaster will drop off the front page.  After all, Lindsay Lohan is going to rehab and Mel Gibson is acting crazy - who doesn't want to read about that every day? 

Props to my husband (and to Mignon Faget)

So I got home today for my four days of R&R.  I'm not sure I've ever been so excited to walk in my back door.  I also am not sure my dogs have ever freaked out at seeing me quite as much as they did today.  It was a nice feeling.  :)

Since I don't have anything really work-related to write about, I thought I'd share a sweet story involving my husband and Mignon Faget (a jewelry designer from NOLA who happens to be a favorite of mine).  Our two-year wedding anniversary was this past weekend.  I initially wasn't scheduled for a day off until the end of July, but my husband ended up planning a last minute trip to come visit me so that we could actually spend our anniversary together.  So anyway, Mignon Faget has recently designed a Gulf Coast Collection of jewelry, with sales benefiting the Coalition to Restore Coastal Louisiana.  My husband decided that one of these pieces would make a most excellent anniversary present for me (he was spot on).  The problem was, they were back ordered for 4 weeks.  Not to be dissuaded, my husband sent an email to Mignon Faget customer service explaining the situation - that I was out of town working on the oil spill and he desperately wanted to have this gift in time to bring it to me on his visit for our anniversary; was there any way he could pay extra to get one shipped early?  Much to his surprise, the piece arrived at the house 2 days later, at no extra charge. 

My husband never ceases to amaze me in how thoughtful and romantic he can be.  He chose a beautiful piece of jewelry that I will always treasure, and will always remind me of this summer.  And big thanks to Mignon Faget for going above and beyond.  Here is a link to the collection:  Mignon Faget Gulf Coast Collection. 

A much-needed rest

My days off were rescheduled, and I will be coming home tomorrow!  I get four days off, so I will be able to spend some much-needed time to relax and be at home.  I will return to work on Saturday and start another 2-3 week rotation. 

On my agenda for this week - a manicure/pedicure; a few loads of laundry; time with my family, husband, and dogs; plenty of sleep; and drinks at George's (my favorite hangout).  I'll be back to work next weekend, so I'm going to make the most of my time at home!

A happy weekend

I am in a great mood this morning - my husband is coming to visit me for the weekend!  Big thanks to mom for keeping the dogs for him, and thanks to husband for making the drive!  I have been working since June 22nd, and it looks like I won't be getting a day off until July 20th.  Since I won't be able to go home for a while, I'm very happy to get to see my husband, even if it is just for a night.  Our wedding anniversary is tomorrow, and although I'll be working the night shift, we will at least be able to go out to lunch to celebrate.

Have a good weekend - I sure will be!

Long day....

We were fairly busy today.   We got up this morning and assisted in the release of two birds that have completed their rehabilitation.  We selected an appropriate location on the shores of Singing River Island and released an oystercatcher and a laughing gull.  The oystercatcher:

And the juvenile laughing gull:

It was a neat experience to see them fly away and go join the flocks of other birds that were down on the beach.

We had two calls tonight, which were not nearly as upbeat as our morning.  The first was a call for a deceased Great Blue Heron; he did not appear oiled, but was still brought in for testing to the intake center.  Great Blues are quite large and are amazing birds. 

Our second call was for an injured laughing gull - he had a broken wing.  Although his injuries were obviously not related to the oil spill, we still brought him to the intake center for veterinary care. 

Not much else to report, and I'm too exhausted to write about some of the things I mentioned yesterday.  One of these days I promise to sit down and address some of the things I've been reading in the media and my take on the situation - I just need some free time when I'm not sleeping or working!

Bird Count: 3

Yesterday was a fairly slow day.  We spent most of the afternoon surveying the beaches and marshes of eastern Mississippi.  We spotted a healthy green heron, which is a beautiful bird and one that isn't seen too often.  They are much smaller than most of the other heron species, and have amazingly colored plumage.

Tonight we received a call about an oiled bird along the Pascagoula beach.  We arrived to find a Royal Tern in pretty bad shape - it appeared he had previously been oiled and may have encountered some chemical dispersant.  Royal Terns are one of the largest tern species, and typically look like this:

This is the tern we rescued tonight:

I am not sure he will make it, but at least now he is in the good hands of the rehab folks.  We also found out tonight that our loon from a few days ago didn't make it, but the pigeon is doing well.  I actually got to help out in the rehab center for an hour or so tonight, bringing birds in from the aviary for exams.  All the birds I assisted with were laughing gulls (what most people just call sea gulls), and all seem to be doing very well.  They certainly put up a fight when I was trying to corner and catch them!  These are some of the laughing gulls that are located on a rocky outlet along the Pascagoula beach - there are usually 50 or so in this location and we check on them every day.  The dark-headed birds are the adults, and those with the mottled heads are juveniles that haven't reached their full plumage yet.

I have a few more things I want to write about, but I am fighting to keep my eyes open, so I'll leave the heavy stuff for tomorrow.  I want to address some of the news articles that I keep seeing and getting asked about - specifically, reports regarding the media ban from certain areas and other outrage topics that have been brought to my attention.  If you have any specific questions you would like me to address, please let me know and I'll do my best.  But, as I said, I'll work on that tomorrow.  Anything else I try to write tonight will likely be incoherent garble.

Good night!

Bird Count: 2

Yesterday was fairly uneventful.  We spent most of our shift surveying the beaches in Pascagoula along with the coasts of a few inland bays.  We did receive a call regarding an oiled Roseate Spoonbill, which is an amazing bird.  We got to the location and spotted the bird out in the marsh, but were unable to capture it.  The bird did look moderately oiled, but managed to get just enough wind under her wings to get out of our reach.  We checked back today, but she wasn't there.  Spoonbills are one of my favorite birds to spot because they so brightly colored and unusual looking.  Here is a roseate spoonbill (but not the one we tried to catch):

Today we headed out to Singing River Island, which mainly functions as a naval and coast guard base, but also has a fairly long stretch of natural beach.  

We were able to survey the entire beach by foot and saw some pretty interesting things.  All along the coast I spotted roughly 25-30 horseshoe crab carcasses and exoskeletons.  It was impossible to tell if they were oiled or perhaps died of natural causes, but either way, it was a sad sight.

We also saw lots of birds, which all looked clean and healthy.  One of the more interesting species we saw was the Least Tern.  One subspecies of this bird is listed as an endangered species in most gulf coast states.

We also saw a few small tarballs which were washing onto the shore.  They are orangish-brown and extremely sticky.

Later in the evening, we received a call about an oiled bird along Bayou Casotte.  When we arrived, we were pretty surprised to find that the bird was a pigeon.  Pigeons are not known for swimming in water, so I'm not sure exactly how it got oiled; regardless, we collected it and brought it to the wildlife intake center in Gulfport.  The weather was really nasty, so it took us over an hour to drive 30 miles.  Here is our little rescued pigeon:

I finally got back to the hotel around 9:00, and am now on standby for more calls until midnight.  Staying awake this late is quite a challenge.  And in case I want to relax in a nice hot bath, this is what I have to look forward to:

Yes, that's really what the water looks like here.  Not very inviting, is it?

I am currently on day 13 of work with no time off.  It looks like I will be working straight through until July 17th, and hopefully by that time will be able to get a few days of R&R.  I'm finally starting to get a little tired, and would love to get home for a day or two to see my family (and sleep in my own bed!).  Otherwise, things are going smoothly and I am thoroughly enjoying my work down here. 

Bird Count: 1

It is 11:30 pm and I just returned from capturing my first bird.  Our team (which is myself and another biologist) got the call around 10:00 that a crew cleaning up tar balls on the beach had spotted an oiled bird.  We arrived on site and the foreman led us to the bird, which had been roped off to ensure the bird was visible to the workers and construction equipment. 

The bird was a moderately oiled loon who was very disoriented and did not struggle at all.  We brought him/her to the intake center in Gulfport where it will be under the care of a great veterinary staff.  I sure hope the little guy/gal is ok.  The bird was not covered in goop, but the feathers were matted and disheveled and showed signs of some oil staining.  Of course, my camera isn't working, so I wasn't able to get a picture. 

Common Loons are native to Canada and the northern US and migrates to the Gulf coast during the winter.  Typically, Loons look like this:

Our loon was likely a juvenile, or an adult still in winter plumage. Both look something like this:

Additional information on the loon from allaboutbirds.org.

Now I am going to bed!

Of all the places....

I was up at 5:00 this morning to finish packing and get on the road to Mobile, AL.  As of this morning, my plan was to drive to Mobile, get checked in and get my assignment, and head to an unknown destination in Florida.  After five hours in my very small car (and one pit stop in Mississippi), I arrived at HQ in Mobile at 11:30.  We met with the folks from the International Bird Rescue Center, who are down here assisting US Fish and Wildlife with bird rescue and recovery.  We, apparently, will be their night-time relief.  However, the location completely changed on us, and I am now in Mississippi.

I have a fairly long work history here - for about three years I traveled quite often to Pascagoula, MS to work at the Chevron Refinery.  When I quit that job a few years ago, I distinctly remember thinking, "man, I'm glad I'll never see that crappy town again" (no offense if you hail from Pascagoula, but I will offer my condolences).  Even the ride through MS this morning reminded me of all the wonderful things I had forgotten - a hellish memory lane filled with Hardees burgers, tap water the color of split-pea soup, and the trashiest Wal-Mart in history.  So imagine my surprise (and horror) when I was given my assignment - none other than Pascagoula, MS.  Oh you dumpy town, I have not missed you.

I did, however, manage to secure a hotel room in the nearby metropolis of Gautier (pronounced Go-shay), which I'm sure will have at least 2 more fast food restaurants, but lacks a Wal-Mart.  

We will be working the night relief shift and start in full swing tomorrow, so from noon to midnight each day we will be surveying our areas (ours is the eastern third of the Mississippi coast), rescuing birds, and responding to calls from dispatch.  Apparently the citizens around here are actually calling in dead or oiled wildlife in the middle of the night.  Go figure.

I realize I sound a little grumpy, and it's not intentional.  I am very excited to still be involved with this effort, and I think this region will be seeing a lot of oiled wildlife in the days to come.  The operations here are scaled way down from what I was involved with at Grand Isle, but I still have met a lot of great people today who are also glad to be down here helping.  So if I am coming off as a bit surly, trust me, it's just the fact that I have been awake for almost 16 hours and spent a good portion of that in a Pontiac Solstice.  

Oh, and my camera broke, so no more pictures until I replace it.

Farewell, Grand Isle

Well, we have officially been voted off the island.  The Houma command center made the decision to fill our spots with federal people, which leaves 14 of us without a job.  Luckily, the company I am contracting under has also been working in other states, and I am one of the lucky six who is heading out tomorrow for another assignment.  I will be arriving in Mobile, Alabama around noon tomorrow to get checked in and will start working with the International Bird Rescue Center immediately.  We will be responding to calls of oiled wildlife, but the catch is - I will be working the swing shift from 4 - midnight.  After 10+ days of being up at 4:30 am, it's going to be quite a change.  I am tentatively scheduled to be stationed somewhere in Florida, but will get more details tomorrow.

I am very sad to be leaving Grand Isle and the operations here.  We have become like a family, and it's painful to leave everyone, as well as this beautiful place, behind.  There is talk that we may be back in a month or so, so I am keeping my fingers crossed.  I started this adventure to help with my home state of Louisiana, but at this point I am willing to go where I am needed.  I had so much I wanted to photograph and share with everyone from Grand Isle, but the weather this week kept me mostly homebound.  If you ever get the chance, I highly recommend a trip to Grand Isle to do some fishing or relaxing on the beach (after the spill is over, of course).  There are some amazing people down here that would show you a great time.

I will most likely start my first swing shift tomorrow night, so I doubt I will be able to update the blog.  Hopefully by Monday I will be starting to adjust and can update everyone on what I will be doing in Florida.

Farewell, Grand Isle, it's been fun.

Another few off days

The bad weather from Hurricane Alex kept us beached for the last two days.  We are hoping to go back out tomorrow and get to survey the damage from the storms, but the weather may keep us in yet again.   So, nothing really exciting to report on that front.

On a side note, I finally caught a glimpse of the nasty political underbelly of this whole operation.  Currently, we are teamed with US Fish and Wildlife and Louisiana Dept. of Wildlife and Fisheries.  Today, USFWS decided that they wanted more of their own people down here, so they are attempting to push us out of the operation.  We will find out tomorrow if we will be staying on Grand Isle or demobilizing on Saturday.  My company has assured me that they have positions for us in other Gulf states, but I have to admit to being less than thrilled about having to leave for Alabama or Florida.  Fingers crossed, and hopefully we'll get good news tomorrow.

I want to bring attention to a certain Louisiana artist - Stacey Blanchard, who created the now-famous-in-Louisiana LSU Tiger Fleur De Lis design seen on virtually every car in Baton Rouge.  Stacey has created a beautiful design and is selling merchandise to benefit Louisiana families affected by the oil spill.  Her site can be found at http://curethecoast.org.  The artwork is breathtaking up close, and so far I have purchased the license plate and a decal for my car.  Here is a close-up of the design:

You really can't see the amazing detail in the artwork on this photo, but trust me, it's pretty damned awesome.

On another note, I wanted to take the opportunity to commend our wonderful boat captains working on the wildlife recovery effort.  All are locals who know these waters like the back of their hands, which is important in navigating these waters.  So many houses and other structures were sunk during Katrina - boating in the marshes is very dangerous, and I feel so lucky that we are in the hands of such experienced captains.  We get to hear their stories every day, and it is heartbreaking.  One captain is an 8th generation fisherman who has seen his livelihood flushed down the toilet.  Another is a charter captain who would typically be taking countless people out on fishing expeditions each summer, and has now lost that source of income.  Another tells the story of his neighbor who has thousands of acres of oyster leases in the affected areas, and is now sitting on 5 million sacks of oysters that he cannot harvest.  At $30 a sack, that adds up to $150 million dollars in lost revenue this year, not to mention the crew that he has had to lay off.  These guys are working on this effort to make ends meet, but also care so deeply about the resources we are trying to protect.  They know the islands, the waters, and can identify birds and other wildlife far easier than even the most seasoned biologists.  Having them as part of the team is invaluable, and I can only hope that they can find a way to make it through these rough times and come out on the other end with their lives intact.

The weather has us down

The last two days have been rather uneventful. The winds, rain, and high seas have kept us mostly on stand down, so I've been able to catch up on some sleep. We have bone out for at least an hour each day just to make a quick pass around our zones, but have been called in for safety reasons each morning. With Tropical Storm Alex in the Gulf, we are expecting the weather to be pretty nasty for the next day or so. Here are a few video clips - the first is from yesterday on the boat, and the other is the Gulf today.

As you can see, the Gulf didn't appear to be very rough, but it was quite a bumpy ride.

We are renting our camp from one of the captains, who is staying on the first floor of the camp. He has been amazing to us - last week he threw us a crawfish boil, and tomorrow, he is cooking jambalaya and bringing in a masseuse from New Orleans to give us all massages! I am really looking forward to the massage - a few days on a bumpy boat definitely takes its toll on your back. Overall though, I'm holding up pretty well. I'm finally getting used to the sun and not burning so badly, and having the last day or so to rest has been a wonderful treat.

I can't say I have much to complain about. We have a great team of biologists down here. While living with seven women is definitely a change for me, so far so good. I just moved into a private room tonight, which I am happy about. Everyone is wonderful, but I will enjoy having some private time.

The biologists with us are from all over the country, including Washington DC, New Jersey, Arkansas, Ohio, and one man all the way from Canada. I am the oldest in the girl house, while the guys typically are a little older. Some days I show my age and go to bed super early - I just can't go with no sleep like I used to back in college! We have a TV here that picks up 1 channel, so sometimes in the evenings we watch whatever is on, but most of our time is spent on the patio or underneath the camp on the swings. The guys will come down on some evenings and have dinner with us or just hang out. We have the nicer house, so it tends to be where everyone gravitates to. I've really enjoyed getting to know everyone on our team, and have already made some great friends.

If there is a break in the weather tomorrow, I will go take some pictures around the island.

Day 4

Not much to report tonight.  The oil slick is still looming offshore, but there was not much activity today.  The big buzz around the island has been about Tropical Storm Alex.  If it looks like it will come near Louisiana, we will be evacuating.  Hopefully by tomorrow we will know what is going to happen.

I'm holding up pretty well - it's hot as hell and being in the sun for 12 hours a day has been an adjustment for my poor pasty white skin.  I'm fairly sunburned and sporting pretty white raccoon eyes and funky red stripes on my feet from my boat sandals.  I'm trying to be cautious about staying hydrated on the boat, and I'm limiting myself to 2 glasses of wine in the evenings.  I'll probably be exhausted by the end of next week, but I'll be going home for a 2 day R&R on July 9th!

The oil is coming

What an interesting two days.

I'm starting to feel comfortable with my job down here and getting the hang of things.  While our team is officially called the "Wildlife Rescue Team", we do much more than that.  We leave dock around 6:30 am and are assigned to a specific zone of the Grand Isle area.  For the last two days, my team has been patrolling the area between Grand Isle and Empire, LA (which is on the Mississippi River).  It is an area with a lot of open water and small rookery islands, so it is a very crucial area to protect.  Our captain will drive us out to our zone and then begin traveling to the areas where birds are often found so that we can check on them and make sure none are oiled or injured.  We try to stay as far away from the islands as possible and observe using binoculars to avoid disturbing the colonies.  But beyond that, we also check our entire zone for oil and/or dispersant plumes and we also check the booms that are placed around certain areas.  If we discover any plumes or boom which needs to be repaired or replaced, we radio it in to headquarters.  HQ will then dispatch a boom crew or skimmer boats to address the problem.  The entire system is extremely well organized, and from what I've seen, action is taken quickly after the report is made.  Here are a few pictures from the last 2 days.

Such a telling picture

One of the many bird rookeries with both soft and hard protective boom around it

A closer shot of a rookery.  The number of bird species and individuals is amazing.  It smells horrible, however.

A funnel cloud spotted very near our boat.  Not something you want to see when you are in the middle of nowhere.

Yesterday our zone was basically spotless.  Virtually all of the oil that came onshore 2 weeks ago has been cleaned up, and the main focus has been on maintaining and placing new boom around sensitive areas.  Today however, we noticed a marked increase in the amount of plumes that we saw.  A 20 square mile slick was spotted less than a mile offshore, and is predicted to hit us sometime tomorrow.  All day we saw skimmer boats mobilizing to the area to begin fighting the plume as it approaches.  Although the work will definitely reduce the impact of the oil, I can't help but thinking that a large amount of oil will still reach the marshes.  The next two days are expected to be very busy - unfortunately it looks like the wildlife recovery will be back in full swing.  I apologize that my pictures aren't great - the lens of my camera fogs up constantly.

This is a plume of oil mixed with dispersant, which was approximately 3/4 of a mile long.  

This is a skimmer boat, which is actually a shrimping boat that is now towing skimmers and boom instead of shrimp nets.  These guys respond to our reports of slicks and do their best to remove the contamination.  All are local boats piloted by local fisherman.

My work here so far has been very tiring, but very rewarding.  We are so lucky to have wonderful accommodations and a great crew of people that are both skilled and passionate about what we are doing.  Everyone is 100% dedicated to protecting the wildlife and habitat - it is very inspiring.  The beautiful scenery and beach-front house don't hurt either.  :)  As I sit here on the balcony listening to the waves of the gulf and looking at the full moon (and nursing quite a sunburn), I know without a doubt that I made the right decision in coming here. 

First day on the boat

Man, what a day.

We got to the dock around 6:00 this morning, had a brief meeting to get our assignments, and then set off.  I was teamed with a wonderful captain who used to run fishing charters, a member of LDWF, and a fellow biologist.  We were assigned a certain zone of the area to survey for the day.  

This is our boat:

One of the things we received in our meeting was a boxed lunch to take on the boat.  Around 11:00, we stopped at a random fishing camp and had lunch.  I was quite happy with the actual lunch!

We spent our day surveying our zone looking for signs of oil contamination or any oiled or injured wildlife.  Our section is fairly far inland, so it has not seen much oil.  All of the marshland we saw was healthy and in good shape, as were the birds.  It was pretty damned awesome to be riding around such a beautiful part of Louisiana.  The wetlands and waterways down here are breathtaking.   The one sad thing was the loss of land - it's one thing to hear about it on the news or read about it, and another thing entirely to witness it.  Our captain had a GPS unit with maps that were from approximately 2004 (prior to Katrina).  All day, as we drove through giant bays of open water, the GPS would show that we were in the middle of a land mass.  The area has lost so much land both during and after Katrina...it's hard for me to even describe.

Frigate birds in front of a camp ruined by Katrina

Speaking of birds, we saw a good amount of birds and other wildlife today, including: porpoises, pelicans, terns, herons, egrets, and a ton of others.  Hopefully over the next few days I'll be able to get some good close-up shots of some of the great birds we have down here.

We did stop by one of the rookery islands which was amazing.  I can't even begin to estimate how many birds were nesting on that island.  The island is protected by 2 layers of hard boom material to keep any future oil from reaching the sensitive habitat.  There is also extra boom set up for standby even further off the island; in the event of a storm or major oil intrusion, they will have plenty ready to replace the damaged or oiled boom.

My apologies for the bad quality of some of these pictures - apparently I smeared sunscreen on the lens of the camera and didn't realize it.  Oops!

Day 1 in Grand Isle

I arrived in Grand Isle around 11:00 this morning and have been getting settled in for most of the day.  We have an amazing camp located on the beach - it's more than I could have hoped for.  

The island is very crowded with workers, security, and National Guard and Coast Guard personnel.  It stormed most of the day, so I wasn't able to get a lot of pictures, but here are a few I captured of the beach.

The real work starts tomorrow, so hopefully I will have more interesting news to report!

June 23 - Houma, LA

I arrived in Gray, LA last night (right outside of Houma) around 8:00.  This is the "home base" set up for incoming folks as well as out-of-towners that are on their off-days.  I don't know what I was expecting - but it wasn't this.  This house is massive.  So far I've counted 4 kitchens and I'm sure there are others I just haven't seen yet.  It sleeps at least 20 people, but last night there were only 4 of us.  Myself and a man from Canada will be leaving for Grand Isle today, while another gentleman from Ohio is heading to Dennis Pass. 

 

Last night, the house was absolutely covered with tree frogs.  The folks from out-of-state were pretty amazed.  We get tree frogs at my house in Baton Rouge, but even I was a little awed by the sheer number of them.  Here's one of the guys that was hanging out on the back door.

Today I will attend training here in Houma before heading down to Grand Isle.  Once there, I will check in and will most likely have the afternoon to get settled in and explore.  I hope to have time to get some great pictures of the island.  The real work starts tomorrow!

This is the drive I will be making tomorrow.  Luckily I'm located in south Louisiana, so overall I will only be about three hours away.  I will be in Houma tomorrow night through Wednesday, and will continue on to Grand Isle hopefully Thursday. 

I have been fishing in Grand Isle a few times, so it will be very telling to see an area that I know after it has been affected by the spill.  From what I have read and seen on the news, the island is basically shut down to tourism and fishing, so I can't imagine that it's in very good shape.  I guess I will get to see for myself later this week. 

On my way!

I finally got my marching orders today - I'm leaving for Houma, LA Tuesday night.  I will be there for a day or two for intake and training before I get my assignment.  At this point it looks like I will end up in Grand Isle.  I am so relieved that I know when I'm heading out, but now I'm starting to get a little nervous.  Being away from home for weeks at a time won't be easy for me, or those I'm leaving behind.   This is something that is so important to me that I think it will be worth the sacrifice. 

I'll know more about my accommodations once I get down there, but I'm hoping I at least have internet access so that I can keep this blog updated.  Look for an update on Tuesday!

Well, I'm still in Baton Rouge

My deployment to the coast has been delayed.  Apparently there has been a 'slow down' in the work and until US Fish and Wildlife sends more personnel to oversee the teams of biologists, I'm sitting dead in the water.  It's more than frustrating, seeing as how I've taken a leave of absence from my job and have been sitting at home doing nothing for a week.  I am hopeful that I will be leaving soon, though.  I have been assured that there is a position for me and that I will be going, though now I may end up in one of the other affected states.  Considering how important it is for me to work in my own home state, I will be doing everything I can to make sure I am able to work in Louisiana. 

But for now, I'm living the extremely boring life of the unemployed.  My house is very clean, so I guess that's a plus.

One week to go

Today I started my official leave of absence from work.  It's weird to think about what I am leaving behind, but I still feel that I am making a good decision.  Going on this adventure is likely to be hard and probably often uncomfortable, but will also be (I hope) an amazing opportunity. 

All of my pre-trip shopping seems to be done, now I just have to start the mind-boggling process of packing.  Because my accommodations will not be a comfortable hotel room and I will be nowhere near a Wal-Mart, I have to try to pack everything I might conceivably need without going overboard on the luggage.  I will be out in the field for 14 days at a time, with possibly one day off between deployments.  Although we are supposed to have access to laundry facilities, I still plan on having at least 2 weeks worth of field clothes with me just in case.  Add to that the boots and other field equipment, and I think I will be getting a giant army duffel to use as luggage.  The big trick will be getting said giant duffel to fit in the passenger seat of my car (I have no back seat and my trunk is 3 cubic feet).  Should be an interesting drive!

Snake boots are sexy

I have done my share of field work over the years, but never have I had the need for waterproof, snakeproof, camouflaged  wonders such as these.  They are so clean and new that I feel like I should go run around in the yard with them for a few hours and scuff them up - that way the other biologists won't think I'm a newb. 

Introduction

This is my first foray into blogging, and that will likely be pretty apparent as the days go on, so please forgive me for that.  I have never felt I had anything important enough to say or share with the world that would merit a blog until now.  I recently made a decision to leave home and travel to the Louisiana coast to work as a biologist with the BP oil spill clean-up effort.  I don't really know what I am in for, and I'd be lying if I said I wasn't a little nervous and scared.  I imagine that keeping this record of my experiences to share with family and friends will help me keep a little of my sanity during my months of long, hot, hard days. 

As a life-long resident of Louisiana, I have been following the oil spill on the news since the explosion occurred on April  20th.  My initial horror and sadness for the eleven workers who lost their lives was replaced by an even deeper dread once it became clear that this event would have far-reaching consequences.  I have dedicated my career to the environmental field - it is both my passion and my paycheck.  For many weeks I dreamed of leaving my current job to go help with the cleanup effort, and woke up one day with the realization that I really needed to go.  This is one of the worst environmental disasters in American history, and certainly one of the worst for Louisiana - the state I was born in and have made my home.  I am by no means an expert biologist, but anything I can offer to help the wildlife and natural habitats that have been affected is better than if I sat by and did nothing.  How can I not go?