Vinyl Oil Booms Help Protect Gulf and Wetlands
GULF OF MEXICO, May 19, 2010 – Since the deadly explosion of the Deepwater Horizon oil drilling rig in the Gulf of Mexico April 20th, oil booms made of durable vinyl fabric have been employed to help contain the massive spill that endangers wildlife and marine-related industries in the gulf and coastal regions.
Every option is being considered to bring the release of oil to an end.
And while some of the methods are experimental or have unpredictable results, vinyl oil booms are in high demand for their proven success in protecting water and coastlines from oil spills.
As described by the Environmental Protection Agency, an oil boom is a device that helps contain oil spills at sea, in harbors and marinas, and in rivers, lakes, and streams. A boom is made of flotation devices that keep a long thin line of treated fabric afloat to encircle and contain oil spills, with ballast to keep it in place. A short curtain hangs down to stop oil floating below the surface.
As of April 29, the U.S. Navy sent 66,000 feet of inflatable oil booms, seven towable systems for skimming oil from the surface, and 50 contractors to operate the gear.
As of May 3, 92 miles of boom had been laid around sensitive areas of Mississippi. A bird’s eye view of the area reveals fluorescent ribbons strung through marshes, and around wetlands and barrier islands.
On May 6, Garret Graves, the Director of Louisiana Governor Bobby Jindal’s Office of Coastal Activities, issued a plea “…for any supplies of hard boom that [local] chemical plants may have to deploy in the Louisiana coastal area.” The governor’s office estimated 760,000 feet of boom may be needed to protect just Louisiana, along with additional demand from Mississippi, Alabama, and the Florida Panhandle.
Thousands of National Guard troops, fisherman, wildlife officials, and volunteers have been stringing booms along the beaches and the mouths of estuaries leading toward the Gulf. As of May 15, more than 200 miles of booms had been deployed.
Officials have exhausted local boom stockpiles and gone looking for more from Texas, Alaska, Canada, and as far away as Norway and Brazil.
American Boom & Barrier Corporation, based in Cape Canaveral, Fla, and founded in 1976, provides oil spill containment systems that are in operation worldwide.
Since the incident, the company has been manufacturing containment booms as fast as possible, which have a cylindrical flotation offering higher buoyancy, which reduces or eliminates splash-over.
Applied Fabric Technologies, based in Orchard Park, N.Y., has produced a variety of booms for more than 30 years. Each boom is manufactured by hand. The foam inserts are cut and shaped, then positioned within a PVC fabric sleeve, heat sealed, equipped with a cable or chain system and shipped off to their client.
Its customers include the U.S. Navy, the Coast Guard, oil companies, and port authorities, which dictate the size of the foam, the density of the fabric, and the length of boom required. The booms are yellow and orange to help identify affected areas, or in black which may be used on a permanent basis where customers may not want to draw attention to the boom.
Versatech, based in Vancouver, British Columbia, is also supplying miles of oil boom to the Gulf of Mexico, with its self-inflating oil spill containment boom used successfully around the world for more than 15 years. The company has added a second shift and considering a third shift to address the immediate needs of the spill.
Granite Environmental Inc., on Florida’s Atlantic coast, will begin providing PVC oil boom for spill responders as of May 29, and plans to produce 5,000 feet of boom nearly every other day throughout the month of June for spill responders, Gulf cities and counties, and private households.
Immediate if not sooner is the order of the day. It is estimated that a double layer of protection for the uneven Gulf coastline from eastern Texas to Panama City, Fla will require an estimated 2,000 miles of boom. And latest reports indicate the spill is approaching the Loop Current, a stream of ocean water that flows around southern Florida and into the Atlantic Ocean.
For more information, go to www.abbcoboom.com, www.appliedfabric.com, www.versatech.com, and www.erosionpollution.com.
The Vinyl Institute represents the leading manufacturers involved in the production of PVC/vinyl resin in the United States, and promotes the value of PVC/vinyl products to society.
For more information on The Vinyl Institute, contact:
Jeffrey B. Palmer
Director of Marketing & Communications
The Vinyl Institute
571-970-3327
jpalmer@vinylinfo.org
Also go to: www.vinylindesign.com, www.vinylinfo.org, and www.achievegreen.net.