Although scientists believe chances are remote that oil in any significant amount from the BP disaster in the Gulf of Mexico will ever reach South Carolina shores, both recreational and commercial fishermen are joining state officials in keeping a keen eye out in case some makes its way up the Gulf Stream.
The South Carolina Chapter of the Recreational Fishing Alliance, the South Carolina Seafood Alliance and the Coastal Conservation Association-SC have asked their members to report any sightings of oil to the National Response Center, the federal clearinghouse for hazardous spills (800.424.8802 or www.nrc.uscg.mil).
The South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control and the U.S. Coast Guard Station in Charleston have plans for containing oil spills that could be initiated if oil reaches South Carolina waters. Vessels operated by the South Carolina Department of Natural Resources are also carrying oil-monitoring test kits.
Both houses of the state legislature passed resolutions pushed by RFA and the Coastal Conservation League requiring SCDHEC, working with SCDNR and the governor’s office, to draw up a plan to deal specifically with oil coming from the Deepwater Horizon spill.
The National Center for Atmospheric Research created a computer simulation showing that if Gulf currents follow their usual pattern, oil from the spill could be carried by the Gulf Stream up the east coast as far as the Outer Banks of North Carolina before moving Northeast and away from the coast.
But scientists say the oil, if it does reach the east coast, will not be the same as it was in the gulf. It will be degraded by sunlight, bacteria, chemicals and other natural processes to form floating tar balls the size of marbles, according to James Morris, director of the University of South Carolina’s Baruch Institute for Marine and Coastal Sciences.
“I don’t expect to see oil slicks,” he said. “We are not going to see pelicans along the coast of South Carolina covered in oil.”
However, scientists are also trying to determine the effects of the oil on marine species if it should travel up the Gulf Stream. Don Hammond, Director of Cooperative Services, LLC, has urged anglers to tag as many dolphinfish as possible in the Gulf Stream, so he and other scientists can determine how fish will respond to the toxic water. RFA has asked its members to participate in the tagging study outlined at dolphintagging.com.
“RFA-SC knows how much of South Carolina’s recreational values depend upon the health of its marine and coastal resources, and having a plan in place for the effects of the oil spill off our coast is a logical first step to mitigate any damage they possibly can,” said Jim Donofrio, executive director of the RFA.
While keeping an eye out for oil on the water, some South Carolina charterboat operators say they have actually benefitted from the crisis in the Gulf, which has severely limited fishing in some areas of the Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama coasts.
Cameron Sebastian, operations manager of the Little River Fishing Fleet and Coastal Scuba, said some customers this year indicated they usually vacation on the Gulf Coast.
“About two or three weeks after the incident occurred, we started to get phone calls from people who wanted to get into clear water,” Sebastian said.
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