![]() View the meeting summary and copies of presentations. Discuss options for collaborations to facilitate long-term research planning, information sharing, and capacity building.Identify potential funding sources/opportunities for marine mammal research and monitoring stemming from the Deepwater Horizon oil spill and other initiatives.Identify high priority, overarching marine mammal data needs for the next 5-15 years.Review marine mammal research and monitoring programs. ![]() Provide an overview of marine mammal stocks and human activities.In April 2015, the Commission and several federal agency, academic, and non-governmental organization partners convened the Gulf of Mexico Marine Mammal Research and Monitoring meeting in New Orleans. Discussions focused on critical uncertainties and opportunities for enhancing collaborations and expanding partnerships within the state and beyond to advance conservation efforts.ĭolphins swimming in oiled waters in Gulf of Mexico (Source: NOAA) Workshop participants from the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), Mississippi-based marine mammal research and stranding network facilities, and Mississippi state agencies discussed current capabilities and research activities within the state and current knowledge regarding the status, stock structure, and major threats to bottlenose dolphins in Mississippi state waters. Bottlenose dolphins in Mississippi and throughout the Northern Gulf were significantly impacted by the Deepwater Horizon oil spill, and tracking recovery will require long-term monitoring and an ability to identify and minimize ongoing threats. In January 2021, Commission staff facilitated a virtual workshop focused on enhancing conservation of bottlenose dolphins in Mississippi state waters. The development and refinement of scientifically robust mitigation and monitoring measures to minimize impacts of offshore oil and gas and renewable energy activities on marine mammals, including impacts from oil spills, is one of the Commission’s six priority topics. We have also submitted restoration project ideas to the various Trustee Implementation Groups through federal and state portals, and commented on draft restoration plans. We have outlined priorities for restoration and long-term monitoring, as well as concerns regarding potential impacts of some large-scale restoration projects on marine mammals, in letters (see letters section below) to the Deepwater Horizon Natural Resource Damage Assessment (NRDA) Trustees and the Gulf Coast Ecosystem Restoration Council. The Commission works with scientists and managers across the Gulf to refine and promote recovery and restoration strategies for marine mammals injured by the oil spill. In comparison, the Exxon Valdez tanker spilled approximately 257,000 barrels (11 million gallons) of crude oil into Prince William Sound, Alaska, in 1989. Eleven of the 126 workers on the rig were killed and, over the following 87 days, an estimated 3.19 million barrels (~134 million gallons) of oil spilled into the Gulf ( 4.0 million barrels minus 810,000 barrels of collected oil). This was the largest oil spill ever reported in U.S. On April 20, 2010, BP’s mobile offshore drilling unit Deepwater Horizon exploded, burned, and subsequently sank in the Gulf of Mexico 52 miles southeast of Venice, Louisiana. Multiple Coast Guard helicopters, planes and cutters responded to rescue the Deepwater Horizon’s 126 person crew (U.S. Provisions for Managing Fisheries Interactionsĭeepwater Horizon Oil Spill in the Gulf of Mexico The Deepwater Horizon Explosionįire boat response crews battle the blazing remnants of the offshore oil rig Deepwater Horizon April 21, 2010.The incident was the country's deadliest pipeline explosion and was the result of a botched gas heist.Marine Mammal Commission: An Independent Agency of the U.S. In 2019, 137 people were killed as a result of a pipeline explosion in the town of Tlahuelilpan in Mexico's Hidalgo state. Pemex is one of the largest petroleum companies in the world and also has the largest debt of any major oil company - for a total of around $114 billion - and it has a history of industrial accidents. This amounts to 40 percent of Pemex's total output of around 1.7 million barrels per day. Ku-Maloob-Zaap produces over 700,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day, according to Energy Voice. Pemex has said it will launch an investigation into the leak. ![]() Firefighting vessels were also brought in to extinguish it. The company said that interconnection valves were closed in order to control the gas leak and bring the fire under control.
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