MOSS POINT – Their questions showed deep concern for sea life endangered for the past three months by an offshore oil well spilling millions of gallons of crude into Gulf Coast waters.
Today marks 100 days since a gas explosion April 20 aboard the Deepwater Horizon oil rig killed 11 workers and damaged the well that has soiled shorelines in Louisiana, Florida, Alabama, Mississippi, and Texas.
Children attending the Environmental Expo at Sue Ellen Gymnasium on Tuesday plied representatives from British Petroleum with questions about the safety of birds and turtles, when residents could start fishing again, and when would the oil crisis finally end.
“We've been doing our best to clean it up,” said Ruth Rendon, director of community relations for BP.
Before the questions, she spoke to the hundreds of children and their parents present about the oil spill, explaining what happened, and finding out what the children already knew about the problem.
“When can we fish?” asked a youngster named Dalton.
“You can fish today,” said Ronden. “It's recreational fishing. You can catch and throw it back.”
Department of Marine Resources personnel at the expo said local bays and bayous are open for recreational catches, but commercial fishing is still not being allowed.
“How long will the spill last?” asked another child.
Ronden said that there is not much left, and hopefully that will be cleaned up soon.
Peter Hoar, an environmental specialist with Ecology & Environment Inc., said the coastal ecology has two systems – the beaches and marshlands and each is affected differently. “We simply don't know how long it's going to take for each system to recover.”
Several children asked how many animals had been saved from the oil spill, which was capped after leaking millions of gallons of crude oil into the gulf for more than 85 days.
Katie Bright with BP community outreach said 69 oiled birds have been rehabilitated and released back into the wild, and 82 are still at facilities across the coast.
One child wanted to know what “little people” can do to help.
Ronden said there are a lot of rules about cleaning up an oil spill, and numerous volunteers have been trained to do that. She told the children not to touch any soiled birds because they already are in distress.
'If you see oil, report it,” she said. “Don't touch, take a picture of it and report it.”
The questions from among hundreds of children, who along with their parents, attended Tuesday's Environmental Expo sponsored by the Moss Point Visionary Circle. The expo was the final presentation of a two-week summer etiquette program, which is in its second year at the Moss Point Recreation Department. .
Darlene Carter, president of MPVC, encouraged and praised the children for their questions. She said the point of the expo was to bring in experts who could talk to the children about the oil crisis and allow them to voice their concerns.
“The children are going to be the ones who have to deal with this in the next 10, to 15 to 20 years,” said Carter .
Several agencies displayed exhibits and included the Department of Marine Resources and Department of Environmental Quality. Carter recognized community groups and businesses that helped sponsor the expo.
“I enjoyed it. It was very knowledgeable,” said Christina Gardner. “I hate that it (oil spill) happened, but accidents happen all the time. It's good they've got it under control now.”
She said the oil spill has hurt her hair care business. Some women are not coming to she shop as much now that their husbands are not working.
A health clinic offered blood pressure checks and body mass index readings.
LaShunda Tate, 13, had a pressure reading of 110/60, which is very good, according to nurse Callie Marshall with MPVC. “I wanted to see how my blood pressure is going, have my body mass checked.”
Parents and students present also received free backpacks filled with school supplies.
