The Daily Glob

"EPA Says More Testing Needed To Know Dispersants' Impacts"

"The first round of government tests of the chemical dispersants that are being used to break up the massive oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico found they aren't overly damaging to shrimp and small fish, but more tests are needed to determine what happens when they're mixed with oil." Renee Schoof reports for McClatchy Newspapers June 30, 2010.

SEE ALSO:

"EPA’s Initial Testing Finds Dispersants Roughly Equal, But Raises Questions" (ProPublica)

"The E.P.A. on Dispersants: Cure Is Not Worse Than the Disease" (New York Times)

"Experts: BP's Plan To Protect Spill Workers Inadequate"

"BP's plan to protect workers fighting the massive oil spill in the Gulf, which the Coast Guard approved on May 25, exposes them to higher levels of toxic chemicals than generally accepted practices permit.

"Ingredients of Controversial Dispersants Used on Gulf Spill Are Secrets No More"

"U.S. EPA has quietly released a full list of ingredients in the two controversial dispersants BP PLC is using to combat the Gulf of Mexico oil spill, following weeks of complaints from members of Congress and public health advocates that the dispersant manufacturer had kept its complete formula a secret from the public.

"Scientist Awed by Size, Density of Undersea Oil Plume in Gulf"

"Vast underwater concentrations of oil sprawling for miles in the Gulf of Mexico from the damaged, crude-belching BP PLC well are unprecedented in "human history" and threaten to wreak havoc on marine life, a team of scientists said today, a finding confirmed for the first time by federal officials.

"Allen: Oil Spill Now 'Hundreds of Thousands' of Patches"

"Admiral Thad Allen says the one million gallons of dispersant used to break up the oil spilling into the Gulf of Mexico has helped create 'hundreds of thousands of patches' of oil that need to be cleaned up. The spill is 'no longer a single spill but a massive collection of smaller spills,' said Allen, who briefed reporters at the White House before heading into an 11 a.m. ET meeting with President Obama and Cabinet officials working on the spill response." Mimi Hall reports for USA TODAY June 7, 2010.

"BP 'Systemic Failure' Endangers Gulf Cleanup Workers"

"Federal regulators complained in a scathing internal memo about "significant deficiencies" in BP's handling of the safety of oil spill workers and asked the Coast Guard to help pressure the company to address a litany of concerns.

"Wildlife Toll Begins To Confirm Greatest Fears"

Oil-soaked pelicans in some coastal marshes, coated with oil from the Gulf spill, can no longer fly. The number of miles of shoreline smothered in oil continues to grow, and the oil pushes further inland.

"Obama: Government In Charge Of Oil Disaster Response"

"President Barack Obama defensively and sometimes testily insisted on Thursday that his administration, not oil giant BP, was calling the shots in responding to the worst oil spill in the nation's history. 'I take responsibility. It is my job to make sure that everything is done to shut this down,' Obama declared at a news conference in the East Room of the White House." Jennifer Loven and Tom Raum report for the AP May 27, 2010, 2:43 PM EDT.

"EPA Pressures BP To Reduce Toxic Dispersant"

After refusing EPA's demand that it stop using a potentially toxic dispersant on the Gulf oil spill, BP is agreeing to reduce the amount it uses. David Schaper reports for NPR's Morning Edition May 25, 2010.

"EPA Girds for a Fight with BP over Dispersants"

"BP has not met the EPA's mandate that it switch to a new dispersant, saying there aren't any other viable options for the Gulf oil spill. But the EPA says it's 'not satisfied,' and the manufacturer of a different dispersant insists it can meet BP's needs." Mark Guarino reports for the Christian Science Monitor May 25, 2010.