Imaging Australian Oil Spill Off Virginia’s Coast
On day #46 of the devastating oil spill that continues to dump oil into Australian seas, the Sierra Club Virginia Chapter released images of that spill plotted off Virginia’s coast.
The images were commissioned from SkyTruth who used NASA and other government generated satellite images to depict the Australian oil spill that as of September 3 has grown to almost 9,900 square miles – larger than the square mile size of Vermont. The simple overlay of the Australian spill originating at a hypothetical well in the Lease Area 220 shows an oil spill of this size reaching Virginia Beach, Virginia’s Eastern Shore and the northern Outer Banks.
“Supporters of offshore drilling have been saying there is no risk of a spill in Virginia waters with modern drilling technology. What is happening in Australia right now with a new rig built in 2007 proves that claim wrong,” added Besa.
“Plotted off Virginia’s coast, the Australian oil spill should give Virginia great pause” said Glen Besa, Sierra Club Virginia Chapter Director. “All it takes is one spill to virtually shutdown Virginia’s coastal economy, both tourism and fisheries, for years. Oil is still disrupting the natural environment in Prince William Sound 20 years after the Exxon Valdez spill.”
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